MORAGA, Calif. - Br. Ronald Gallagher Stadium treated the Gaels well Tuesday afternoon as they ended a three-game skid and picked up their first win over Fresno State since 1995. It was a complete performance for the Gaels featuring timely hitting and quality pitching as four different arms allowed just three runs on seven hits.
Nine runs through the first four innings for the Saint Mary's offense would set the tone after being held scoreless in their series finale with 15th ranked Vanderbilt. The Gaels took advantage of free passes and hit batters, punishing the Bulldogs pitching staff with two home runs and an RBI double from
Brian Duroff.
Dylan Delvecchio made his second start of the season and completed three innings, allowing just one run off one hit.
Diego Emerling would get the win with three scoreless relief innings allowing just one hit for his first collegiate victory on the mound.
2ND INNING
Senior lefty
Dylan Delvecchio made his second start of the 2025 season and was nearly perfect once again, completing three innings and allowing one unearned run off one hit. Delvecchio had a great mix of his fastball and slider to strike out a season high five Bulldogs. After giving up the early run in the top of the first,
Ryan Pierce would send a moon shot over the left field foul pole to tie the game with his second homer of the season.
Delvecchio would retire the Fresno State hitters in order in the top of the second to set the table for a three-run inning for the Gaels. After an
Aiden Taurek leadoff single and a hit batter, sophomore center fielder
Tanner Griffith would come to the plate and lay down a sacrifice bunt. The Bulldogs pitcher went to field but his throw over to first tailed into the runner and got by the first baseman into right field.
Taurek and Mettam would score and Griffith would get all the way to third on the throwing error, giving Saint Mary's a 3-1 lead. Freshman catcher
Ian Armstrong would complete the three-run second with a sac fly to center to score Griffith, his seventh RBI of the season.
3RD INNING
Delvecchio struck out two more batters in the third to complete his outing and leave with a three-run lead. In the bottom half of the inning, the Gaels would tack on three more, highlighted by a two-run single from Armstrong through the right side of the infield. Early in his collegiate career, Armstrong has shown a great ability to simplify his approach and hit the ball where it's pitched. His two-run single brought his RBI total to nine on the season for second most on the team and he currently ranks second with a .400 batting average.
Freshman right hander
Diego Emerling would replace Delvecchio for his third appearance of the season. After pitching just a third of an inning in Nashville, Emerling completed a season high three scoreless innings allowing just two hits to put himself in line for the win.
8TH INNING
The Gaels pitching staff kept the Bulldogs off the scoreboard through six innings before allowing two runs in the seventh. Any chance of a comeback was put to bed though with an RBI double from
Brian Duroff in the seventh and another solo shot from
Eddie Madrigal in the eighth. Since coming back from injury last season, Madrigal has gone 11-for-29 from the plate with a team high 13 RBI and three homers.
Adam Enyart and
Noah Waldeck completed the final three innings to seal the 11-3 victory over Fresno State, the team's first win over the Bulldogs in 30 years. This was the third game of the season Saint Mary's recorded 10+ runs and 10+ hits. Madrigal finished 3-for-4 from the plate with two RBI while
Cody Kashimoto and
Brian Duroff each had two hits.
Senior outfielder
Brian Duroff was a 2024 WCC Honorable Mention selection and was named to the 2025 preseason all-conference team and gained some needed confidence today with a pair of doubles and an RBI. Head coach
Eric Valenzuela moved Duroff up to the two hole in an effort to get him better pitches and as a result he had his best game of the season thus far.
Fellow outfielder
Tanner Griffith also put together a quality performance, finishing 1-for-4 from the plate, scoring two runs and swiping a base. The speedy outfielder was hitless in four games dating back to the series finale against Saint Louis but has recorded hits in back-to-back games.
Cody Kashimoto was also great again at the top of the order, going 2-for-4 with a run scored and a walk. Kashimoto leads the Gaels with nine walks and a .538 on-base percentage.
LOOKING AHEAD
Saint Mary's improved to 5-4 on the season with their 11-run performance against Fresno State. They will remain at Br. Ronald Gallagher Stadium for a three-game series with San Diego State starting on Friday, February 28th. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 PM and tickets can be bought online at smcgaels.com/tickets.
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