BSB: Cougs double up Stephen F. Austin to win home opener
Junior Derek Chapman drove in the go-ahead runs with a two-out two-run seventh-inning double in Washington State's 4-2 series-opening win over Stephen F. Austin in front of 806 fans at Bailey-Brayton Field Friday.
WSU (4-4) saw Chapman drive in three runs on the day while junior J.J. Hancock added two hits, scored twice and stole two bases.
Redshirt junior starting pitcher Damon Jones lasted a career-best six innings and struck out three while picking off three baserunners and receiving three double plays from the Cougar defense.
Junior reliever Colby Nealy picked up the win for the third straight game after throwing 1.2 scoreless innings and junior lefthander Scotty Sunitsch notched his fourth save with a scoreless ninth.
Stephen F. Austin (4-7) collected three straight two-out singles to score a run in the first off of Jones. The big lefthander settled in and allowed just one hit over the next five innings, picking off three runners at first along the way.
The Cougars evened things up in the third inning as Hancock punched a single the opposite way into left field and later stole second base. Hancock moved up to third base after tagging on an Andres Alvarez sacrifice fly to right field. Chapman brought Hancock home with a sacrifice fly to left field.
After allowing the run in the opening frame, Jones cruised until exiting in the seventh after allowing a leadoff walk. SFU tied the game at 2-2 with an RBI double into the left-centerfield gap off the WSU bullpen.
The Cougars came right back with two runs in the seventh. Hancock drew a two-out walk and stole second before Alvarez also earned a walk to put two runners on for Chapman, who pulled a two-strike pitch into the right field corner to score both runners.
Nealy, who got a double play to end the seventh, retired the side in the eighth before giving way to Sunitsch to start the ninth.
The Lumberjacks opened the ninth inning with a single back up the middle but the Cougar defense turned in another nice play to end a threat. Following the single, the next batter fouled out to first baseman James Rudkin who made a nice over-the-shoulder catch near the fence and then fired to Alvarez at second to get the runner attempting to tag up and advance to second for a double play.
Sunitsch then froze the next batter with a game-ending strikeout.
The four-game series continues Saturday with a doubleheader set to begin at Noon. Game two will be seven innings.
