SAN JOSE, Calif. – Saint Mary's took an early lead in Tuesday's midweek game against San Jose State, but a potent Spartans offense could not be held at bay as the Gaels fell 7-3 at Municipal Stadium.
Â
HOW IT HAPPENED
Â
- Strong defense from the Gaels cut the Spartans' rally short in the bottom of the first after SJSU put runners on first and second with one out: senior right-hander Jonathan Buckley picked off the leadoff runner from second and sophomore JC Santini caught the runner stealing from first. Â
- It was small-ball that got the Gaels going in the top of the second: junior Ryan Novis led the inning off with a perfectly-placed push bunt for a base hit. He advanced to second after junior Matt Green's sacrifice bunt which was followed by a wild pitch that placed him on third. Then, senior Eddie Haus drove Novis in with a groundout to second to give SMC a 1-0 lead.
- SJSU got their first two hits and runs in the bottom of the third as two-consecutive extra-base hits gave the Spartans a 2-1 lead.
- SMC responded in the top of the fourth as a two-out, RBI single from Haus delivered sophomore Gio Diaz from second. Diaz's run tied the game at two runs apiece.
- In the bottom of the sixth, four-straight singles, an SMC error, and a double-steal gave the Spartans three runs and they took a 5-2 lead.
- San Jose State tacked on two more run in the bottom of the seventh, taking a 7-2 lead off of two hits and two walks.Â
- In the ninth, sophomore Jack Murphy reached on a one-out single and advanced to second on a throwing error. After moving to third on a wild pitch, sophomore Gabe Giosso drove him in with an RBI groundout. Santini doubled down the left field line in SMC's next at-bat, but their rally was cut short and the Gaels fell 7-3.
NOTABLE NUMBERS
- 4: Career-high four innings pitched for senior Jonathan Buckley in the second start of his career.
- 8: Junior Joe Vranesh pushed his hitting streak to eight games to begin the season. HE is now batting a team-high (.429)
- 1st: First start for Buckley since March 6, 2016 (the second of his career)
COMING UP
- Saint Mary's will play a split home/away series against Cal February 27-March 2. They will play two games in Berkeley to begin the series and then host March 1 and 2.
#GaelsRise Tickets for all upcoming home game are available for purchase
here on SMCGaels.com or by calling the SMC Ticket Office at (925) 631-GoTx. Fans can find all live coverage links on SMCGaels.com.
Â