March 18, 2000
Stanford, Calif. - #12 USC (14-8) scored five times in the seventh inning to break open a tie game on its way to an 11-7 win over #2 Stanford (15-6) in a non-conference NCAA baseball game on Saturday at Sunken Diamond. The Trojans scored their five runs on just one hit, taking advantage of four bases on balls and two hit batsmen in the frame. Anthony Lunetta, who led the Trojans offensively by going 3-for-6 with three doubles and four RBI, did hit one of his three doubles in the inning. The game was the longest Stanford has played this season, clocking in at 4:14. The teams did draw an attendance of 2516, the largest crowd at Sunken Diamond this year.
Stanford had several highlights in the game as well. Craig Thompson (4-for-5, 2 2B, HR, 2 RBI, 3 runs scored) tied a career-high with his four hits, while John Gall was 3-for-5 with a pair of RBI. Thompson's home run was his team-leading fifth of the season, while Gall's second hit was the 300th of his career. He became only the fourth Stanford player to ever collect 300 hits.
USC's Rob Garibaldi (2-for-3, 2B) and Seth Davidson (2-for-5, 2 RBI) were the only other players for either team with more than one hit. The Trojans tallied their 11 runs on just nine hits, taking advantage of a total of 10 bases on balls and four hit batsmen. Stanford equaled a season-high 13 hits but left 14 runners on base. USC also left 10 runners stranded.
Both teams scored twice in the first inning. The Trojans scored a pair of runs on a two-RBI double by Lunetta. Stanford tied the score on an RBI-double by Bruntlett to score Thompson, who had led off the bottom of the first with a double. Bruntlett later came around to score on an RBI-single by Gall.
The Cardinal took a 4-2 advantage with a pair of runs in the third. Thompson scored when Lunetta made an error on Edmund Muth's ground ball to second base. Muth would score an unearned run one batter later after a throwing by Trojan pitcher Rik Currier and another RBI-single from Gall.
The score remained 4-2 until USC scored four times in the top of the sixth to take a 6-4 lead. The Trojans scored on a passed ball, an RBI-ground out by Bill Peavey, an RBI-single by Davidson and an RBI-double from Lunetta.
Stanford tied the score again at 6-6 on Thompson's two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth prior to USC's seventh-inning explosion.
Stanford tallied another run in the eighth on an RBI-single by Billy Jacobson and had the bases loaded before Trojan reliever Tim Petke came on to retire pinch hitter Jason VanMeetren on a first-pitch fly ball to right field to end the threat. The Cardinal also had its leadoff hitter on in the ninth on a single by Thompson before Bruntlett grounded into a double play. Petke then retired Muth on a foul out to catcher Alberto Concepcion to end the game and record his second save of the year.
Pete Montrenes (2-0) picked up the victory with two innings of middle inning relief.
Stanford freshman Mario Garza did pick up his first collegiate hit on a pinch-hit double to left center in the bottom of the seventh.
Stanford and USC will conclude their three-game non-conference series with a single game at Sunken Diamond on Sunday (1 pm).