April 12, 2005
Stanford, Calif. - No. 14 Stanford (20-11) scored five runs in the first two innings and four pitchers limited San Francisco (23-12) to one run in a 7-1 non-conference victory for the Cardinal on Tuesday at Sunken Diamond. Erik Davis (1-0) notched his first collegiate victory as the local Mountain View product allowed just one run and scattered five hits with three strikeouts in a career-best 5.0 innings. Relievers Jeff Stimpson (1.2 IP, 1 H, 4 BB), Greg Reynolds (1.1 IP, 2 H, 2 SO) and Matt Manship (1.0 IP, 2 SO) blanked the Dons over the final 4.0 frames.
"We are able to get a couple of key hits in the first two innings and take advantage of two errors that USF made," said Stanford head coach Mark Marquess. "It was big to get a lead early in the game, and then we pitched very well after that."
"It takes a lot of pressure off you when your team gives you great run support early in the game," added Davis. "I was able to go out there and just pitch. I was happy I could just help the team win."
Adam Sorgi (3-3, RBI) had three of Stanford's 14 hits and reached base in all four of his plate appearances by adding a walk. Chris Minaker (2-3, 2B, 2 RBI) and Brendan Domaracki (2-4, 2B, 2 RBI) each added two hits and two RBI, while Jim Rapoport (2-3) and Michael Taylor (2-4) also had two-hit contests with Rapoport extending his career-high hit streak to 10 games.
Royce Fukuroku (2-3, HR, RBI) accounted for the only San Francisco run with his solo homer to lead off the second inning. Tavo Hall (2-3) and Cy Donald (2-4) also had two hits each for USF.
USF starter T.J. Franco (2-3) took the loss, allowing five runs (three earned) on nine hits with one strikeout over the first 4.0 innings.
Stanford jumped out to a 2-0 run lead with a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning. Sorgi led off the Cardinal first with a single and scored when Minaker doubled him home with a long shot to the gap in leftcenter. Minaker moved over to third two batters later on John Mayberry Jr.'s fly ball to right field and scored when Hall made an error on a John Hester's groundball to the USF shortstop.
After Fukuroku's solo shot over the left field wall led off the second inning to cut the Cardinal lead to 2-1, Stanford answered with three more runs in its half of the second to take a 5-1 advantage. This time an error started the rally when Donald failed to cleanly field a groundball hit by the speedy Rapoport, who beat the USF third baseman's late throw to first. On the next play, Chris Lewis hit into what seemed to be a 6-4-3 double play but Franco was called for a balk before the pitch. Lewis made the most of his second chance and singled home Rapoport before he moved to third on a double by Domaracki and scored on an RBI single from Sorgi. Minaker gave the Cardinal its final run of the frame when he plated Domaracki with a sacrifice fly.
Stanford's lead would remain 5-1 until the bottom of the eighth when a two-out, two-RBI single by Domaracki scored a pair of insurance runs. Hester had led off the inning with a single to extend his career-high hit streak to eight games before Taylor singled and Rapoport sacrificed the runners to second and third. USF reliever Patrick McGuigan (1.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 SO) struck out Lewis for the second out before giving up Domaracki's run-scoring single.
USF had chances to get closer, putting runners in scoring position in the third, fifth, sixth and seventh innings. The Dons brought the tying run to the plate by loading the bases in the seventh but Reynolds got Stefan Gartrell to fly out to Rapoport in centerfield to end the threat.
Stanford returns to Pac-10 play with a critical three-game series at Arizona State (22-15, 3-3 Pac-10) this Friday-Sunday, March 15-17 (6:30 pm, 6:30 pm, 1:00 pm, MT). The two-time defending Pac-10 champion Cardinal is currently in fourth-place in the conference standings with a 4-2 mark, sitting 2.5 games behind early league leader and sixth-ranked Arizona (8-1 Pac-10). Oregon State (5-1 Pac-10) and USC (6-3 Pac-10) are also ahead of Stanford in the conference standings.
STANFORD NOTES
Stanford won for the sixth time in its last eight games
Erik Davis picked up his first collegiate victory in the longest outing of his career (5.0 IP)
Jim Rapoport extended his career-high hit streak to 10 games, the longest by a Stanford player this season, and hit safely for the 16th time in his last 17 contests to increase his team-leading overall batting average to .370
John Hester extended his career-high hit streak to eight games
Matt Manship (1.0 IP, 2 SO) pitched a perfect ninth frame and has now not allowed a run in 12.1 innings over 10 relief appearances this season
Stanford's pitching staff lowered its season ERA to 3.80 by giving up just one earned run as the Cardinal is attempting to record an ERA under 4.00 for the fourth time in the last six seasons