Friday, April 23
Long Beach, Calif.
6 P.M.
Long Beach State University
4
vs
3
UC Santa Barbara
Photo by: John Fajardo
Back-to-Back Homers Propel Dirtbags Over No. 25 UC Santa Barbara
4/23/2021 10:56:00 PM | Baseball
Long Beach State picked up the upset over the Gauchos with a 4-3 win on Friday night.
LONG BEACH, Calif. – Long Beach State (11-9, 9-8 BWC) got back-to-back home runs from Chris Jimenez and Connor Kokx to propel them over No. 25 UC Santa Barbara (25-16, 15-6 BWC) in the series opener on Friday night.
The Gauchos took the early lead plating a pair of runs in the second inning and another in the fourth, all of Dirtbag starting pitcher Johnathan Lavallee. The junior finished the night with 5.1 innings pitched, allowing the three runs on five hits and pair of walks while striking out seven.
Long Beach State was held in check by UCSB's Michael McGreevy through the first three innings as he scattered a couple of singles and a hit by pitch. The Dirtbag offense got to him in the fourth after a leadoff hit by pitch to Jesse Lopez led to an RBI double from Javier Rosales to end the shutout.
The Dirtbags did the rest of their damage in the bottom of the fifth as a leadoff single from Toren Craig set the tone. After a flyout put Jimenez to the plate, the junior launched a towering shot that cleared the fence in left for a two-run, game tying home run.
Two pitches later, Connor Kokx sent a missile to left for a solo shot giving Long Beach State the lead. It is his third home run of the season and it was clocked at 102mph off the bat.
The bullpen took over after that as Basilio Pacheco was absolutely dominant in relief, tossing 2.2 scoreless innings allowing just a single hit while striking out four Gauchos.
With a one-run lead, Pacheco handed the ball off the Dirtbag closer, Devereaux Harrison. The freshman tossed a scoreless ninth allowing a hit and striking out one en route to his league-leading seventh save of the season.
With a 1-for-3 performance, including a hit by pitch, Kokx has extended his reached base streak to 21 straight games.
Chase Luttrell had the only multi-hit night for the Dirtbags, going 2-for-3 with a couple of singles.
The Dirtbags and Gauchos continue their series with a doubleheader tomorrow. First pitch scheduled for 12:00 p.m.
The Gauchos took the early lead plating a pair of runs in the second inning and another in the fourth, all of Dirtbag starting pitcher Johnathan Lavallee. The junior finished the night with 5.1 innings pitched, allowing the three runs on five hits and pair of walks while striking out seven.
Long Beach State was held in check by UCSB's Michael McGreevy through the first three innings as he scattered a couple of singles and a hit by pitch. The Dirtbag offense got to him in the fourth after a leadoff hit by pitch to Jesse Lopez led to an RBI double from Javier Rosales to end the shutout.
The Dirtbags did the rest of their damage in the bottom of the fifth as a leadoff single from Toren Craig set the tone. After a flyout put Jimenez to the plate, the junior launched a towering shot that cleared the fence in left for a two-run, game tying home run.
Two pitches later, Connor Kokx sent a missile to left for a solo shot giving Long Beach State the lead. It is his third home run of the season and it was clocked at 102mph off the bat.
The bullpen took over after that as Basilio Pacheco was absolutely dominant in relief, tossing 2.2 scoreless innings allowing just a single hit while striking out four Gauchos.
With a one-run lead, Pacheco handed the ball off the Dirtbag closer, Devereaux Harrison. The freshman tossed a scoreless ninth allowing a hit and striking out one en route to his league-leading seventh save of the season.
With a 1-for-3 performance, including a hit by pitch, Kokx has extended his reached base streak to 21 straight games.
Chase Luttrell had the only multi-hit night for the Dirtbags, going 2-for-3 with a couple of singles.
The Dirtbags and Gauchos continue their series with a doubleheader tomorrow. First pitch scheduled for 12:00 p.m.
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