Long Beach State University
7-3
Indiana
5-6
Dirtbags Crowned LeClair Classic Champions with Win Over Indiana
3/5/2023 11:30:00 AM | Baseball
In the three games, Long Beach State outscored their opponents 31-9 with the 31 runs scored marking the most scored by a tournament champion since 2019 when Utah scored 32 runs.
For the fourth time in six games, the 'Bags scored double-digit runs headlined by a career day for Jack Hammond. In his first at-bat in the second, the sophomore got the scoring started with a double down the left field line for his first RBI of the day.
Two innings later, LBSU posted a six-run third with a pair of home runs. After the first run scored on an error, Joey Walls followed up with a two-RBI double off the wall down the left field line. Eddie Saldivar and Jack Hammond would then launch back-to-back home runs to blow the score open. Saldivar's two-run shot is the first of his sophomore campaign will Hammond's solo shot is the first for him in a Dirtbag uniform.
Back. To. Back.@EddieSaldivar3 ?? @_JackHammond_ pic.twitter.com/LnEgspaKa8
— LBSU Dirtbags (@LBDirtbags) March 5, 2023
In the fifth, it was Hammond again. This time, a single back up the middle to plate two runs and put his team out in front 9-1.
Nico Zeglin was the Sunday starting pitcher and dominated the Hoosier lineup for the first five innings, racking up seven strikeouts and allowing just one unearned run. The top of the sixth started great with a pair of quick groundouts to the first two hitters. Unfortunately, it would unravel as the next four batters all reached and ended the right-hander's day.
For the inning, Indiana would plate three runs and cut the Dirtbag lead to five runs.
Long Beach State would get one of those runs back in the bottom half of the sixth, scoring their tenth run of the afternoon on an RBI single from Rocco Peppi.
The duo of Myles Patton and Nathen Morris would combine to shut down Indiana the rest of the way. Patton threw 1.1 scoreless while Morris closed it out with two scoreless innings allowing just one hit and one walk, securing the 10-4 victory.
The Dirtbags will take a four-game win streak into a midweek road contest with No. 10 UCLA on Tuesday. First pitch from Jackie Robinson Stadium is scheduled for 5 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Zeglin, Nico (1-1)
L: Manase, Seti (1-1)
Batting:
RBI: Mathison, Carter 1 ; Tibbitts, Brock 1 ; Ellis, Matthew 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Whalen, Bobby 1 ; Jessee, Hunter 1 ; Pyne, Josh 1 ; Mathison, Carter 1
CS: Cerny, Tyler 1
Batting:
2B: Walls Jr., Joey 1 ; Hammond, Jack 1
HR: Saldivar, Eddie 1 ; Hammond, Jack 1
RBI: Peppi, Rocco 1 ; Walls Jr., Joey 2 ; Saldivar, Eddie 2 ; Hammond, Jack 4
SH: Marinconz, Nick 1 ; Walls Jr., Joey 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Borgogno, Ty 1 ; Long, Jonathon 2 ; Walls Jr., Joey 2 ; Saldivar, Eddie 2 ; Hammond, Jack 1 ; Ashworth, Kyle 2
CS: Hammond, Jack 1
HBP: Walls Jr., Joey 1
PO: Borgogno, Ty 1
