[Box score]
SALEM-KEIZER, Ore. - Sonoma State used a clutch pitching performance by Morgan Rodriguez and a ninth inning rally to defeat Western Oregon 3-2 in a loser’s out game on Saturday at the NCAA Division II west regional at Volcanoes Stadium.
The win kept Sonoma State’s season alive as they advanced to a 3 pm game against UC San Diego. A Triton win gives UCSD the regional championship, while a victory for Sonoma State would force a Sunday title game at noon.
Western Oregon’s season ends at 34-14 on the year, while Sonoma State improved to 34-15.
Nick Ramos’ ground ball with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth inning got through the legs of Wolves third baseman Bill Clontz to score pinch-runner Brian Wright with the winning run. Wright was running for Danny Pignataro, who was hit by reliever Jesse Nunley’s pitch with one out.
Mark Pestorich then followed with a double down the leftfield line to move Wright to third. Jonathan Lewis was then walked to set up the force play, but Ramos’ ground ball caught Clontz on an in-between hop to end the game.
“I was proud of the way our guys competed until the end,” said Wolves head coach Jeremiah Robbins. “Our guys never quit, which is what we have preached to them all year. Baseball is a crazy game sometimes.”
The loss wasted a gutsy pitching performance by senior Mike Eisenhauer along with a ninth inning rally by the Wolves offense. The right-hander cruised through the first five innings of play before Ryan Stevens broke a 0-0 deadlock in the sixth inning with a two-run homer over the right-centerfield fence. Prior to Stevens’ home run, Eisenhauer had only given up three hits and two of them never left the infield.
Meanwhile, Rodriguez kept the Wolves hitters at bay all day with an assortment of breaking pitches in and out of the strike zone. He gave up just five hits, walked two, and struck out four.
WOU’s initial best opportunity to get to Rodriguez came in the eighth inning. JJ Mascolo singled with one out and Travis Fox then moved him to third with a double. Rodriguez then fanned Eric Renander (two outs) and headed to the dugout as Kendall Davis came out of the bullpen to face hot-hitting Thomas McCarthy.
McCarthy, who was hitting .465 coming into the game, was hit by Davis’ first pitch to load the bases. But Davis then got Justin Speer to ground out to second base to end the threat.
But the Wolves rallied to stay alive in the ninth inning. After pinch-hitter Jason Moseby worked a walk against Davis, Drew Humphrey drilled a shot off the left-centerfield fence for a triple to bring him home. Taylor Mieras then followed with a fly ball to left to easily score Humphrey with the tying run.
Eisenhauer gave up just four hits, walked two and struck out four in the no-decision. “I had all of my pitches working today and I was throwing strikes,” he said.
Fox and Humphrey had two hits each for WOU, while Pestorich had the same for the Seawolves.