Baseball sweeps past BSU
Utah State’s club baseball team swept Boise State in three seven-inning games last weekend on the road, including a 28-10 offensive explosion in the second game.
“It was nice to see us score some runs,” said Aggie Head Coach Ernie Rivers. “Hopefully that will carry us through next weekend.”
Utah State won the first game 6-1 on a strong showing by pitcher Greg Ladd, who struck out 11 and went the distance in a seven-inning game. The Broncos’ lone run in the game against Ladd was unearned.
The next game was definitively tilted to the offensive side. Boise State picked up a five-run lead in the first inning, then watched as the Aggies made up the difference in chunks – first little chunks, then big ones.
USU scored two in the second, then tied it with three in the third. They built up a 14-5 lead, then unloaded in the seventh for 14 more runs, making the final score 28-10.
“They ran out of pitching,” Rivers said. “The guys they were throwing were just the right speed. I’m not taking any credit from our guys, they still had to go up there and hit the ball.”
And hit the ball they did. Prolifically.
Designated hitter Chris Gorrell cranked three homers in the game, one which was a grand slam, in finishing a 5-for-5 effort.
Center fielder Tyler Al-Imari also helped the Aggie cause, going 6-for-7 on the game with a homer and a double.
Despite Gorrell’s and Al-Imari’s standout performances, Rivers said in a blowout game like that, the rest of the team deserves credit as well.
“It’s not just one guy,” Rivers said. “Overall, it was a pretty good team effort. We had guys stepping up when we needed it.”
The final game of the series was exciting for USU in a different sort of way. Utah State trailed 4-2 in the seventh, then rallied for three runs to seal the sweep.
Tyler Kohler got the win in relief for the Aggies in game three, holding the Broncos scoreless over 4 2-3 innings.
Boise State threatened against Kohler a couple of times, but he worked his way out of the jams for the victory.
Utah State will travel to Montana for a series this weekend.
-royburton@cc.usu.edu