Baseball beats No. 17 Arizona State 9-8
After two losses to the Sun Devils, the No. 5 Beavers get a win to maintain their two-game lead in Pac-10 conference standings
Barometer Staff Report
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TEMPE, Ariz. - Oregon State overcame a four-run deficit and the No. 5-ranked Beavers held onto first place in the Pac-10 baseball race with a 9-8 win over No. 17 Arizona State on Sunday afternoon. OSU (35-13 overall, 12-6 Pac-10) is now two games ahead of ASU and Southern California.
The Beavers trailed 7-3 after three innings but eventually tied the game at 7-7 in the fifth inning. OSU got the winning run in the top of the ninth on a pair of two-out errors, reaching base on shortstop Andrew Romine's throwing error, stealing second, then scoring when second baseman Seth Dhaenens misplayed Mitch Canham's sharply hit ball to the right side.
"I can't tell you how impressed I am at how our guys came out here after the way we lost the first two games, stand in the 102-degree heat and win this game after nothing was going right for us early," OSU coach Pat Casey said.
Less than a day after taking the loss in the Beavers' 6-3 defeat on Saturday night, closer Kevin Gunderson earned the win to even his season record at 2-2. In 2 2/3 innings, Gunderson allowed one run on two hits and no walks, striking out two and he retired the Sun Devils in order in the ninth.
"Gundy doing that is a credit to his character," Casey said. "I tried to tell him Saturday night that the sun doesn't shine on the same dog every day. He's done it every stinking time out, and sometimes it's going to happen that way."
Darwin Barney, batting in the leadoff spot for the first time this season, was 3-for-5 with a double and two runs batted in as the Beavers collected 14 hits. Chris Kunda was 2-for-5 with a double and one RBI, John Wallace was 2-for-5 with one RBI and Bill Rowe was 2-for-5 for the Beavers, who avoided having their first three-game losing streak of the season.
The Beavers managed an 8-7 lead with a run in the top of the eighth inning off ASU closer Zechry Zinicola.
Oregon State had evened the game at 7-7 with a three-run fifth inning. Cole Gillespie walked to start the inning and stole second. Then with one out, pinch hitter Geoff Wagner coaxed a full-count walk to put runners at first and second. Bill Rowe pushed a sacrifice bunt toward third base; third baseman C.J. Retherford's throw got past first baseman Ike Davis and rolled down the right field line as Gillespie and Wagner scored and Rowe went all the way to third. Tyler Graham then grounded out to short to score Rowe and tie the score.
Arizona State went up 5-3 with a five-run second inning against OSU right-hander Mike Stutes and reliever Joe Paterson in the bottom of the second inning. Davis, the Pac-10 leader in runs batted in, homered to right-center to start the inning.
Shea McFeely joined OSU's all-time top 10 for career hits with a two-out single up the middle in the first inning. It was the 180th hit of McFeely's career, matching Kevin Hooker's total from 1991-95.
On Saturday, in game two of the three-game series, OSU lost 6-3 to the Sun Devils in extra innings. Friday, Arizona State scored eight runs with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning as the Beavers lost 10-3.
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