May 16, 2009

Box Score

Northridge, Calif. - Led by LHP David Rowse (Pleasanton, Calif.) the Pacific baseball team game polished off a complete game shutout at Cal State Northridge by a score of 11-0, on Saturday, May 16. It was the first complete game shutout for the Tigers since March 14, 2008.

With the win the Tigers improve to 19-30 on the season and 9-14 in the Big West Conference, recording the most amount of conference wins since the 2006 season. Cal State Northridge falls to 21-30 on the year and 5-15 in Big West play.

Despite a lead off triple by the left fielder C.J. Belanger to lead off the top of the first inning, Rowse settled down and retired the next three batters in order and stranded his lead off triple hitter. That was the story of the game for Rowse who offered a complete game shutout on under 115 pitches and only 35 batters faced - just eight over the minimum in nine innings. After nine innings, he dropped his ERA from 4.91 to a team-leading 3.86.

With both teams scoreless, Pacific broke through in the second. Senior Joey Centanni (San Diego, Calif.) led off the inning with a quick single, one of eight batters to get aboard as a lead off hitter in the top of the inning for the Tigers. One out later, Centanni was caught on a stealing attempt as he was looking to snag his eighth base of the year, but instead put two outs on the board. At the time, the extra runner would have been needed, but juniors Mike Walker (Marysville, Calif.) and Jamie Niley (Elk Grove, Calif.) launched back-to-back opposite field homers over the right and left field walls, respectively. Pacific came storming in the game with a quick 2-0 lead over the Matadors in only the second inning.

Rowse continued to toss shutout ball on the mound, giving Pacific more opportunities to come back on offense and increase the 2-0 lead. And so the Tigers did just that in the third, with a second-consecutive run-scoring inning.

Off a new pitcher, Paul Tremlin, junior Ben Gorang (Turlock, Calif.) doubled to lead off the third. Sophomore Nick Longmire (San Diego, Calif.) next remained patient at the plate with Gorang in scoring position, taking a four-pitch walk off a fourth wild pitch that flew towards the backstop while Gorang used head's up baserunning and pulled up to third base. On out later, sophomore J.B. Brown (Alvin, Texas) singled to drive in the Tigers' third run of the game, Gorang charging home and Longmire moving to second.

After a second out in the inning advanced the runners, senior Kurt Wideman (Fallbrook, Calif.) recorded his 23rd double this season and his fourth two-bagger in the last week. That double re-established a new single-season high set by Wideman last Wednesday, with 24 single-season doubles leading as the best mark ever in Pacific history. Off Wideman's potent bat, two runs came in to bring the Tigers up 5-0 after three. The Matadors had enough, keeping a short leash on its pitching staff, going to the bullpen again. But the pitching could not be helped as Walker grounded to the shortstop Jason Dabbs, but Dabbs could not come up with the ball to make the play at first. So while Walker should have been thrown out, a two out fielding error put another runner at first and brought in Wideman for the sixth run of the game, putting the Tigers up 6-0.

Two innings later, it was freshman Josh Simms (La Mesa, Calif.) that was the next in line for an inning lead-off hit. Brown took his lead and followed it into the next at-bat, when he also singled to left center and brought Simms all the way to third base. The first of two balks offered by Cal State Northridge's pitching staff in the next at-bat brought Simms home, giving the Tigers a 7-0 lead in the fourth.

Pacific continued its trend of hot hitting, driving in three more runs in the seventh inning for a final 11-0 lead. Offensively, the Tigers were led by Centanni who went 4-for-5 at the plate including a double, in his second best hitting outing of 2009.

The Tigers return to action in the series rubber match and the final Big West Conference contest of 2009. First pitch in Northridge is scheduled for 1 p.m.