Dirtbags Deliver Sweep over Cal Poly

Sunday, May 18

San Luis Obispo, Calif.

1:00 PM

Long Beach State University

34-18, 0

Cal Poly

23-30, 0

Long Beach State

Cal Poly

Jordan Casas drove in his first career run in the win.

5/18/2008 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

May 18, 2008

Box Score

SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA-- Jordan Casas' diving catch in center field finished off the sweep for Long Beach State (34-18, 14-7), as the Dirtbags beat host Cal Poly (23-30, 7-14 Big West) 3-2 and gave Vance Worley (6-3) his first win since April 19.

Bryan Shaw saved his seventh, but not before Cal Poly mounted a rally in the eighth and ninth innings.

With the sweep, the Dirtbags move to within a game of CS Fullerton with three games to play against the Titans next weekend at Blair Field to close out the regular season. Casas also came through with the game-winning bunt single, in a two-run seventh inning that gave LBSU a 3-0 lead. Luke Yoder hit a two-run home run to chase Worley from the game in the eighth and make it 3-2, before lefthander Adam Wilk got the final out of the eighth and first out in the ninth, against two left handed bats. Shaw then got a one-pitch flyout, before yielding a two-out double to Wes Dorrell. Adam Melker then hit a 2-2 pitch to left center that Casas layed out for the final out.

Worley had shut down the Mustangs with seven scoreless innings on three hits entering the eighth, including two infield singles. He had retired nine in a row prior to the Mustang rally, after retiring eight in a row earlier. Worley struck out five and gave up three hits to win for the first time in four starts.

Reserve Zach Barger, who came in batting .182, twice singled to contribute to rallies in the sixth and seventh innings to give LBSU a 3-0 lead.

Steve Tinoco finally pushed one through against Steven Fischback (5-4) in the sixth, hitting a two-out single through the right side and scoring Barger from second to make it 1-0. Barger had led off the inning with an infield single to short.

Barger then came through again in the seventh, hitting a two-out base hit to right to score Danny Espinosa from second and make it 2-0. A bunt single by Casas then made it 3-0 off of reliever Grant Theophilus, as Fischback struck out nine over 5.2 innings, scattering seven hits.

Cal Poly had two infield hits in the fifth, putting runners on the corners, before Worley struck out Scott Domingues and got Josh Thomas to fly out to keep it scoreless. Worley had retired eight in a row prior to the two base hits.

LBSU hosts Oregon State at 6:30 p.m. on Monday to begin a four-game homestand and close out the regular season.