Dirtbags Win Rubber Game 11-8

Sunday, May 27

Fullerton, Calif.

1:00 PM

Long Beach State University

37-18, 0

Cal State Fullerton

33-23, 0

Long Beach State

CS Fullerton

5/27/2007 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

Dirtbags Take Series 11-8
Perry Drives in Four, Howell Three More as Beach Take Series

May 27, 2007
BOX SCORE

FULLERTON, CA-- No. 16-ranked Long Beach State (37-18, 15-6 Big West) will host their third NCAA Regional following a series win over arch rival and No. 28-ranked CS Fullerton (33-23, 10-11 Big West) 11-8, thanks to a three-run seventh inning.

"Odd years have been good to us, both with the College World Series (1989, 1991, 1993) and in hosting regionals (2003, 2005, 2007)," said Head Coach Mike Weathers after being named one of 16 regional sites prior to the start of the game. "It's good for the community and good for the school. It's well deserved for our team, for what they've accomplished and rewards them for the way they've played. It also rewards our fans after last year."

Robert Perry drove in four runs with two doubles and Brandon Godfrey added three hits, while Travis Howell drove in three runs, as The Beach took three leads in the contest, holding on after scoring four unanswered in the seventh and eighth innings. Bryan Shaw got his 10th save after striking out Joel Scott with the bases loaded.

The Beach came right back after the Titans tied it at 7-7 in the sixth, by scoring three more times to lead 10-7. An RBI double by Perry broke the tie, before an RBI single by Howell made it 9-7. LBSU added a run on a fielder's choice.

The Beach broke open the game with five runs in the fifth to lead 7-2. Paul Canedo, the second pitcher of the inning, barely lasted three batters, as he had an 2-0 count on Perry, before Perry launched reliever Adam Jorgenson's (3-2) first pitch for a three-run double to break the tie. An RBI single by Brandon Godfrey followed, before an RBI groundout by Howell, his second of the day made it 7-2.

Shane Peterson went the first five innings, giving up two runs on four hits. He tied a career-high with six strikeouts, retiring the first seven batters of the game and twirling 29 of the first 40 pitches for strikes. His only blemish was a two-run home run by Nick Mahin to tie it at 2-2 in the fourth.

The bullpen of Omar Arif and David Roberts (4-1) then gave up five runs in the sixth to tie it at 7-7.

The Beach will await NCAA Regional pairings on Monday at 9:30 a.m. on ESPN. The Athletics Department will gather at Smooth's in downtown Long Beach starting at 8:30 a.m. on Monday to watch the broadcast. LBSU is hosting its fourth playoff series and third sub-regional. They will play in their 16th NCAA Regional.