The Sacramento State baseball team dropped a critical game in a playoff race by only a single run, Friday, at Hornet Field by a score of 4-3 when seventh inning comeback fell short. In the loss the Hornets were led by redshirt freshmen Ivan Otsuka who made two sensational diving catches in right field as part of an afternoon long defensive display. He also went 2-for-4 at the plate with an RBI.

In the loss the Hornets drop to 8-12 in WAC play are a sitting just outside of the playoff picture. In order to slip into the final playoff spot the Hornets will have to win both of the final games of the series. A Bulldog win in either game would clinch the final spot for Fresno State.

The first two innings passed scoreless although not due to a lack of effort. The Bulldogs managed a single hit in the first and the runner attempted to steal second. Thanks to the awareness of Hornet catcher, sophomore Brent Hottman, the ball beat the runner to second for the out and ended any hope Fresno State had of scoring.

Junior Tim Wheeler made some noise of his own in the bottom of the first with a double that managed its way over first, staying fair just long enough to get him on base. The hit was followed by a wild pitch that allowed Wheeler to easily take third but the Hornets would be unable to capitalize on the situation before the innings end.

The Bulldogs came out in the second and quickly applied the pressure by threatening to score. With a runner on third there was a wild pitch and the runner headed home. Hottman recovered the ball and returned it to Pitcher, senior Jeff Roth who was able to make the out at the plate and save the run. The inning ended as shortstop, sophomore Derrick Chung chased a ball deep into foul territory to make a running catch in the Hornet’s bullpen.

Once again in the third the Bulldogs came out aggressively and managed to get runners into scoring position. The inning saw only one run however on an RBI single. Fresno State would do their real damage in the top of the sixth by taking advantage of a Hornet error to plate the games second run. It was followed by a two run single from the Bulldogs to advance the score to 4-0.

The Hornets responded with some offensive production of their own in the bottom of the seventh. Roth reached base on a bulldog error and freshman Aaron Crouch joined him after being walked. Both were brought home on a two run double from Hottman who sent the ball to deep left-center past the outstretched glove of the diving defensive man. Hottman was followed to the plate by Otsuka who managed to bring him home with a hit to centerfield, making the score 4-3.

The final two games of this series will be played Saturday, May 16 at Hornet Field in a double header that will mark the end of the regular season.

Andrew McFadden can be reached at [email protected]