STOCKTON, Calif. ? Martin Medina broke a 7-7 tie with a solo home run in the top of the eighth, but Pacific came back with a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning, giving the CSUB baseball team a 9-8 loss Saturday at Klein Family Field.
For a second consecutive game, it was a battle of the bats as Bakersfield (12-37) totaled 14 hits and Pacific (21-31) had 15. The teams also combined to commit five fielding errors leading to one unearned run scored by the Tigers and four by the ?Runners.
In the bottom of the second Pacific's Kurt Wideman singled to right field then looked to advance to third on Mike Walker's fielder's choice to second when Brandon Boren's throw to Eric Sanchez went wide into shallow left field. Third baseman JJ Henry was able to run the ball down and make the throw to third where pitcher Jonathan Montoya tagged out Wideman. A Jamie Niley ground out moved Walker to second and a Mike McKeever double to center sent Walker home for a 1-0 Tiger lead.
Bakersfield tied the game in the top of the fifth beginning with an Eric Sanchez single through the left side. Boren followed with a single through the left side and after Medina flew out to left field, Richard Escalera singled to left, sending Sanchez home from second.
Pacific rallied with a four-run bottom of the fifth, pushing the lead to 5-1. Nick Longmire led of with a double to left, Josh Simms walked and J.B. Brown sent and RBI-single in to left field. Joey Centanni laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance Brown and Simms to second and third, respectively. Wideman followed with sacrifice fly to center for a second Tiger run. Jamie Niley drove in a run with single to third and after Pacific reloaded the bases, Ben Gorang reached on a fielding error by Boren, allowing Walker to score.
With one out in the top of the sixth, Mick Gaston blasted his second home run of the series, a solo shot to left, cutting the spread to 5-2. That began a four-hit, five run inning for the Roadrunners. Henry reached on a bunt single to first, Joey Mills singled to left and Sanchez reached on a fielder's choice to second while Henry scored and Mills safely reached second on a throwing error by the pitcher. Boren singled to left to drive in Mills and Escalera doubled to center, sending two more across home plate, giving Bakersfield a 6-5 lead.
Pacific tied the game with a single run in the bottom of the sixth, but Bakersfield took the lead right back in the seventh, scoring an unearned run on a Tiger error.
The sea saw continued through the eighth inning as the ?Runners went ahead 8-7 on Medina's home run, but Pacific stole the lead right back with two runs in the bottom of the inning. Brown led off the frame with a double to right-center than dropped in between Mills and right fielder Jason Kudlock. Centanni then grounded out to first, but moved Brown to third on the play. Wideman then came up with a single to left to score Brown and, after a Walker ground out, Niley drove home the game-winner with a single through the left side.
Both starting pitchers, Montoya for Bakersfield and David Rowse for Pacific, struck out two and allowed 11 hits for six runs each in 5 1/3 innings.
Sam Jones (0-5) took the loss for the ?Runners after giving up four hits for three runs in the final 2 2/3 innings of play. Reliever Jamie Niley (2-4) was credited with the win for the Tigers as his team took the final lead while he was the pitcher of record. Thomas Berolzheimer earned his fifth save of the season, striking out two and not allowing a hit in the final frame.
Boren had three hits and an RBI for the ?Runners while Medina, Escalera, Gaston and Henry had two hits each.
Bakersfield and Pacific meet Sunday at 1 p.m. for the final contest of their three-game series. The game also marks the finale of the 2009 season, the inaugural campaign for the Roadrunner squad.
Score by Innings R H E
--------------------------------------------
CSU Bakersfield..... 000 015 110 - 8 14 3
Pacific............. 010 041 12X - 9 15 2
--------------------------------------------
Win - Niley, J. (2-4). Loss - Jones (0-5). Save - Berolzheimer (5).
E - Boren 2(13); Sanchez(8); Brown, J.B.(12); Rowse, D.(1). DP - Tigers 2. LOB - Road Runners 8; Tigers 12. 2B - Escalera(5); Gaston(3); Longmire, N.(16); Brown, J.B.(17); Centanni, J.(13); Wideman, K.(24); McKeever, M.(12). HR - Medina(8); Gaston(4). HBP - Kudlock; Walker, M.. SH - Centanni, J.(11); Gorang, B.(9). SF - Longmire, N.(3); Centanni, J.(6); Wideman, K .(4).
