Feb. 21, 2009

Box Score

FRESNO, Calif. - Senior starter Tyler Cheney held Fresno State to one run on two hits over his five innings as the Washington baseball team beat the Bulldogs, 11-4, Saturday at Beiden Field in the second game of a three-game series.

Cheney, a lefty from Richland, picked up the win as the UW squared the series with the defending national champions at one win apiece. Sophomore Forrest Snow held the Bulldogs hitless over his three innings.

Second baseman Doug Cherry led the UW offense, finishing with four runs batted in on 3-for-6 hitting.

The Huskies (1-1) notched five hits to post three runs in the top of the second inning. After singles from Brett Wilcox and Julien Pollard, Jake Rife lined a ball to shallow center. Fresno State center fielder Gavin Hedstrom made a diving attempt, but came up empty with the ball rolling all the way to the track. Rife ended up at third with a two-run triple. He scored on a single from David Bentrott, giving the UW a 3-0 lead.

The UW tacked on another in the top of the third when preseason All-American Kyle Conley belted a leadoff homer to left, his first of the year, to increase the lead to 4-0.

Fresno State scratched its first run in the bottom of the third as Danny Muno walked, stole second and scored on a Jake Johnson double, the Bulldogs' first hit of the game.

Washington broke the game open in the fourth as a crucial error led to five runs. With the bases loaded and one out, Conley bounced a possible double-play grounder to Muno at short, but he bobbled the ball, allowing one to score and keeping the inning alive. Brett Wilcox and Pollard each followed with RBI singles and Cherry capped the big inning with a two-run single, making it 9-1.

Cherry's two-out, two run double in the ninth tacked on two more in the ninth. Fresno State rallied for three in the bottom of the ninth, scoring one on a bases-loaded walk and two more on a single from Gavin Hedstrom.

The Huskies and Bulldogs conclude the three-game series Sunday at 1:00 p.m. Live audio is available at gohuskies.com.

LINESCORE
Non-Conference Game
Washington 11, Fresno State 4
Washington      031 500 002 -- 11 15 1
Fresno State    001 000 003 --  4  5 3
Tyler Cheney, Forrest Snow (6), Paul Dickey (9) and
Brett Wilcox. Sean Bonesteele, Josh Poytress (4), Cody
Kendall (6), Tom Harlan (8), Gene Escat (9) and Danny
Grubb, Trent Garrison (8). W - Cheney (1-0). L - Bonesteele
(0-1). 2B - UW, Pierce Rankin, Doug Cherry; FS, Jake
Johnson, Garrison. 3B - UW, Jake Rife. HR - UW, Kyle Conley
(1). T - 2:59. A - 2,849.