Bauer pitches UH over Fresno State, 4-2
Advertiser Staff
Ricky Bauer notched his first victory as a starter in seven weeks to lead Hawai'i over Fresno State, 4-2, last night in Western Athletic Conference action at Beiden Field in Fresno, Calif.
But it was an important win for the Rainbows (8-5 WAC, 24-13 overall), who remained in sole possession of second place, 5 1/2 games behind Rice (15-1), a 4-1 winner at Louisiana Tech, and one game ahead of third-place Nevada (7-6), a 3-2 winner at San Jose State.
Outfielder Greg Kish sprained his left ankle in the fourth inning while beating out an RBI single to the pitcher. Hawai'i coach Mike Trapasso said Kish, the team's leading hitter at .383 after batting 2 for 2 yesterday, will miss the rest of the series and possibly next week's series against Nevada in Hawai'i
"It's going to be tough, but it's something we just have to overcome," Trapasso said. "He's our energy guy. We feed off his energy and toughness. But injuries are a part of the game and something we have to deal with."
Josh Green finished the game for Kish and will start the rest of the series.
Bauer (7-2) also had a close call. He was struck on the back of his shoulder by Richie Robnett's liner in the first inning. But it apparently did not affect him, as he went 7¡ innings, allowing two runs on nine hits with three strikeouts. Bauer, who got a save in Wednesday's win at San Francisco and a win in relief against Sacramento State on April 7, won his first start since March 4 against The Citadel.
"He was the story of the game," Trapasso said of Bauer. "We weren't able to generate any offense for the most part. He continued to keep them off-balance. His changeup was good today; it had a lot of life."
Darrell Fisherbaugh allowed a hit and struck out three in 1á scoreless innings of relief to record his fifth save.
The Rainbows struggled against starter Michael Cooper (2-7), who was charged with four runs (three earned) on 11 hits and a walk with four strikeouts in seven innings for the Bulldogs (5-8, 17-25).
The Rainbows made three crucial defensive plays to stop Bulldog threats. Third baseman Schafer Magana threw a runner out at home on a safety squeeze in the fourth; first baseman Andrew Sansaver started a first-to-shortstop-to-pitcher double play in the sixth; and a relay from center fielder Matt Inouye to shortstop Brian Finegan to catcher Creighton Kahoali'i got Chris Patrick out at the plate on a double by Robnett in the eighth.
The last play ended Bauer's night. Fisherbaugh got one out before allowing an RBI single to pull FSU to 4-2, but he struck out the next batter and had a perfect ninth with two more strikeouts.
Sansaver had a two-run home run in the UH seventh.
The series continues today at 3:30 p.m., HST. Stephen Bryant (5-2, 2.03) will pitch for UH against FSU's Matt Garza (2-2, 5.58).
