Long Beach State University
4-2
Wake Forest
3-3
Ramirez Fans 12, Dirtbags Rally For Series-Clinching Win Over No. 17 Wake Forest
2/22/2020 7:18:00 PM | Baseball
Long Beach State got off to a shaky start on Saturday, falling behind 3-1 in the second inning, but freshman Luis Ramirez righted the ship on the mound, retiring the final 17 batters he faced, and the offense rallied to score six unanswered in an impressive 7-3 win over No. 17 Wake Forest.
Ramirez got off to a rocky start, committing a throwing error on the first play of the game and allowing a pair of unearned runs in the first inning. He then allowed a solo home run with one out in the second inning, which gave the Demon Deacons a 3-1 lead at that point. But from that point on, Wake Forest didn't put another runner on base, as Ramirez and fellow freshman Devereaux Harrison combined to retire the final 23 batters in a row.
Ramirez also started to rack up strikeouts along the way. In the fifth, he struck out the side on just 10 pitches. That was part of a stretch of five consecutive punchouts, which hadn't been done by Dirtbags pitchers since Mar. 5, 2016 against Nebraska.
He made it through seven innings, allowing just three hits and no walks, while piling up a whopping 12 strikeouts. That number is a season-high for a Dirtbags starter, and it also put the righthander in select company. Ramirez is the first Dirtbags freshman since Jered Weaver to strike out 12 batters in a game. Weaver struck out 12 against Pepperdine on May 14, 2002. The last Dirtbags freshman to reach double-digit strikeouts in a start was Chris Mathewson, who fanned 10 against UC Riverside on Apr. 19, 2015.
With Wake Forest's offense suddenly neutralized, it was up to the Long Beach State offense to provide some run support. Riki DeSa delivered a two-out RBI single in the first to get one of the runs back, but it wasn't until the fifth inning until Long Beach got things tied. After leadoff singles by Thomas Greely and Tanner Carlson, Calvin Estrada stroked a double to right field to clear the bases and tie the game, 3-3.Luis Ramirez is DEALING!! He gets back-to-back K's to end the 7th inning. The freshman now with 12 strikeouts on the day, a new season high for the Dirtbags! #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/mBLOjfFTq6
— LBSU Dirtbags (@LBDirtbags) February 23, 2020
LBSU then broke things open with four runs in the seventh inning. It was the same part of the order starting it off as Greely and Carlson both singled to get the rally going. Alex Pimentel put down a great bunt that turned into an infield single, but with the Demon Deacons defense struggling to field the ball, pinch runner Jesse Lopez was able to race all the way home from second to put the Dirtbags on top.We're tied!! Calvin Estrada takes this one the other way for a 2-run double, scoring Greely & Carlson!! It's now a 3-3 game in the 5th! #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/Pdk6daIIJ6
— LBSU Dirtbags (@LBDirtbags) February 23, 2020
The Dirtbags kept the pressure on, scoring on a wild pitch during the next at-bat. Connor Kokx added another run with a sharp two-out RBI double to score Jacob Hughey from first. Leonard Jones added the last run with an RBI single to plate Kokx.The Dirtbags take the lead!! After back-to-back singles, Pimentel gets a great bunt down, the Demon Deacons can't handle it, and pinch-runner Jesse Lopez comes in from 2nd! 4-3 Dirtbags in the 7th! #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/VlyDl05AAk
— LBSU Dirtbags (@LBDirtbags) February 23, 2020
Harrison then came in to record the final six outs, tossing two perfect frames with one strikeout to secure the series win for the Dirtbags.Double up!! Connor Kokx strokes this RBI double to left to score Hughey! Three runs for the Dirtbags in the 7th to take a 6-3 lead over No. 17 Wake Forest! #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/gtAsZvwpea
— LBSU Dirtbags (@LBDirtbags) February 23, 2020
Long Beach State will have another chance at a series sweep on Sunday at 1 p.m. Junior RHP Jonathan Lavallee (0-0, 9.00 ERA) will get the start against RHP William Fleming (1-0, 4.50 ERA) for the Demon Deacons.
Here's freshman RHP Luis Ramirez, who picked up his first career win today over No. 17 Wake Forest.
— LBSU Dirtbags (@LBDirtbags) February 23, 2020
His line: 7IP, 3H, 3R (1 ER), 0BB, 12K.
He also retired the last 17 batters he faced ?? #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/SVIUaxpqFZ
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Ramirez, Luis (1-0)
L: Jared Shuster (1-1)
Batting:
HR: Shane Muntz 1
RBI: Chris Lanzilli 1 ; William Simoneit 1 ; Shane Muntz 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Michael Turconi 1 ; Chris Lanzilli 1 ; Shane Muntz 1
SB: Chris Lanzilli 1
Batting:
2B: Estrada, Calvin 1 ; Kokx, Connor 1
RBI: Estrada, Calvin 2 ; Kokx, Connor 1 ; Jones, Leonard 1 ; DeSa, Riki 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Estrada, Calvin 1 ; Hughey, Jacob 1 ; Kokx, Connor 1 ; Greely, Thomas 1 ; Lopez, Jesse 1 ; Carlson, Tanner 2
CS: Kokx, Connor 1
