Bulldogs Win Second Straight Over Hawai'i
Updated Apr 11, 2003 22:31:19
RUSTON, La. - Adam Kirkendall pitched 7 1/3 solid innings as Louisiana Tech won its second straight game in a 7-6 victory over Hawaii in Western Athletic Baseball on Friday night.
The Bulldogs will go for the sweep over the Rainbows on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Tech (12-21-1, 5-9 WAC) rallied from an early two run deficit with five unearned runs in the fourth inning to take the lead good as Bulldogs went on to win their sixth straight home game. The Bulldogs took advantage of five Hawaii (18-19, 1-13 WAC) errors in the contest.
Kirkendall (3-6) allowed seven hits and five runs while striking out four Rainbow hitters in his outing.
Antonio Sabatini made a game saving catch with one out in the ninth inning when he made a leaping catch of a ball that would have hit high off the wall in centerfield.
Matt Varner picked up his first save of the season by getting the final two outs of the game.
Hawaii scored two unearned run in the fourth inning when Tim Montgomery hit a two-out opposite field home run also scoring Matthew Innouye who had reached on an error.
Tech came back in the bottom of the inning to take advantage of four Rainbow errors to take the lead with five runs.
The big blow was a three-run, two-out home run by Kyle Spangler down the right field line to put the Bulldogs up 4-2.
Ricky Bauer (2-3) pitched 5 1/3 innings allowing seven hits and struck out six. Bauer allowed seven runs but only one was earned.
The Bulldogs added another run in the inning when John Brandon reached on an error when Hawaii shortstop Brian Finegan could not handle a ground ball as Ryan Jackson scored on the play to give Tech a 5-2 lead. It was Finegan's third error of the inning and fourth for the Rainbows during the frame as Tech sent 10 batters to the plate.
The Bulldogs added two more runs in the sixth inning. Jody Wood singled in two runs through a drawn in Rainbow infield to give Tech a 7-3 lead.
Hawaii came back to score two runs in the top of the eighth inning on back to back home runs by Innouye and Montgomery to cut the Bulldog lead to 7-5.
Jody Wood and Wade Robinson each posted two hits each for the Bulldogs.