Long Beach State University Athletics

Late Surge Lifts Dirtbags To Series-Clinching Win Over UC Davis
4/25/2026 9:41:00 PM | Baseball
Six-run ninth propels Dirtbags past Aggies to secure road series.
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The Dirtbags struck first in the second inning when Dylan Lina singled to right, putting a runner on first. Aaron Perez followed with a two-run home run to right field, bringing Lina home from first to give Long Beach State a 2-0 lead.
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UC Davis answered in the bottom half of the inning. After singles by Justin Mault and Colton McNeal put runners on the corners, Jack Lee lifted a sacrifice fly to left to score Mault from third. Later in the inning, McNeal scored from third on a groundout by Brady Johnson, tying the game at 2-2.
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The game remained even until the ninth, when the Dirtbags erupted. Murchael Turner singled up the middle to start the inning and advanced to third on a single by Camden Gasser. Damon Valdez then doubled down the left field line, scoring Turner from third and moving Gasser to third to give LBSU a 3-2 lead.
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After an intentional walk to Trotter Enright loaded the bases, Smith Chandler singled to left field, driving in Gasser from third while Valdez advanced to third and Enright to second. A wild pitch brought Valdez home from third and moved the runners up, extending the lead to 5-2.
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Matt Toomey followed with a two-run single through the right side, scoring Chandler from second and Enright from third. Lina capped the rally with an RBI double down the left field line, scoring Toomey from first and pushing the lead to 8-2.
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UC Davis added a run in the bottom of the ninth when Johnson doubled to right, moved to third on a groundout, and scored on another groundout by Tommy Story, but the Dirtbags closed it out to secure the win.
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At the plate, Perez led the way early with his two-run home run, while Toomey delivered in the clutch with two RBI in the ninth. Lina added a multi-hit performance, including a key RBI double, and Valdez contributed with an RBI double in the decisive inning. Turner and Gasser each played key roles in sparking the ninth-inning rally.
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On the mound, Long Beach State received a strong start from Luke Howe, who worked 6.0 innings, allowing two runs on five hits with two walks and two strikeouts on 89 pitches. Caleb Anderson followed with a sharp inning out of the bullpen, striking out three while allowing just one hit and one walk. Tyler Gebb (3-0) earned the win, tossing the final 2.0 innings and limiting the Aggies to one run on one hit while striking out two, as the Dirtbags staff combined to hold UC Davis to three runs on seven hits and secure the victory.
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The series will conclude on Sunday in Davis, with first pitch set for 1 p.m.
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Gebb, Tyler (3-0)
L: Tyler Wood (1-2)

Batting:
2B: Lina, Dylan 1 ; Montgomery, Reid 1 ; Valdez, Damon 1
3B: Toomey, Matt 1
HR: Perez, Aaron 1
RBI: Chandler, Smith 1 ; Toomey, Matt 2 ; Lina, Dylan 1 ; Perez, Aaron 2 ; Valdez, Damon 1
SH: Gasser, Camden 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Enright, Trotter 1 ; Chandler, Smith 1 ; Toomey, Matt 1 ; Lina, Dylan 1 ; Perez, Aaron 1 ; Turner, Murchael 1 ; Gasser, Camden 1 ; Valdez, Damon 1
SB: Enright, Trotter 1
CS: Montgomery, Reid 1

Batting:
2B: Jaxon Murphy 1 ; Everet Johnson 1
RBI: Zach Story 1 ; Ryan Lee 1 ; Everet Johnson 1
SH: Zach Story 1 ; Elijah McNeal 1
SF: Ryan Lee 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Kai Mault 1 ; Elijah McNeal 1 ; Everet Johnson 1
HBP: Kai Mault 1

































