The Hornets’ season-long struggle to reach .500 took a rough blow after a 12-6 loss on Sunday, which capped a three-game sweep by visiting Pac-10 power Oregon State.

The Hornets’ record fell to 22-25 on the season. The Beavers are 24-11.

The Hornet defense was to blame in Sunday’s loss, as six errors buried them early. The Beavers scored all 12 runs in the first three innings and Sacramento State starter Marshall Hendon was pulled after just two innings.

The rash of errors was ugliest in the second inning when the Hornets contributed four mistakes that led to six runs for the Beavers and a quick 8-2 lead.

The Beavers pushed it to 12-2 by the third inning and their bats continued to make noise pounding out 14 hits on the afternoon.

On Saturday, a third inning OSU explosion proved to be more than enough in a 9-1 win. With five runs on six singles in the decisive third, the Beavers took a 6-0 lead and forced the early exit of starter Warren Rosebrock.

The Hornets would get a run in the bottom half of the third on an RBI single from Craig Johnson, but that was their only threat of the day.

“We’ve hit a stretch where we’re not swinging the bat very well. I think maybe guys are pressing a little bit,” Hornet manager John Smith said of his team’s recent lack of power.

Smith was also quick to give praise to the Oregon State pitching staff as the primary source of their woes.

Beavers starter Dallas Buck allowed just one run in six innings. Rosebrock fell to 4-6 with the loss.

Friday’s series opener was much the same story, with the Beavers offense overwhelming Hornet pitching in a 7-2 loss.

Ethan Katz surrendered seven runs on seven hits in six innings. After starting the season 6-1, Katz dropped his third straight decision to go to 6-4 on the season.

The Beavers led 7-0 by the seventh inning. Starter Jake Postlewait improved to 8-1 after allowing just two Hornet runs in seven innings.

“We need to put like three or four hits together to get something going,” Smith said. “It seems like ever since we lost (John) Acha we haven’t been the same. Maybe with him back it will be the spark.”

Acha, the starting third baseman and one of the Hornets most consistent hitters, made his return to the lineup on Friday after sitting out the past three weeks with an injured finger.

Acha will likely be limited to a designated or pinch hitter role until his injured hand is healed enough to go back to playing third base.

The Hornets schedule won’t get any easier as they play two games against Stanford this weekend. They travel to Stanford on Friday, with the second match up back at Hornet Field on Saturday.