STANFORD, Calif. – No. 5 Stanford's pitching staff combined for 14 strikeouts in a 3-2, series-clinching win over Washington on Saturday night at Sunken Diamond.
"We need to do a better job of being relentless on offense but credit Coach Eager and our pitchers for coming prepared and executing tonight," said the Clarke and Elizabeth Nelson Director of Baseball David Esquer. "Our pitchers made pitches all night, and defensively we were very well-prepared against a very good team."
The Cardinal (23-5-0, 9-2-0 Pac-12) played error-free defense behind 14 strikeouts, Maverick Handley finished 3-for-4 with a run and Kyle Stowers reached base twice, scoring both times. Jack Little's six-out save sealed the deal, striking out the side in the ninth inning to slam the door shut for his seventh save of the season.
Starting pitcher Will Matthiessen struck out the side in the top of the first and the Cardinal provided two runs of support in the home half. Stowers scored on a wild pitch and Andrew Daschbach's groundout to second base brought home Handley.
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The lead was short-lived as the Huskies (15-14-0, 5-9-0) plated a pair of runs in the second. Jonathan Schiffer's double brought in Connor Blair and Schiffer came home on an RBI single by Ben Baird. Matthiessen pitched through the trouble to limit the damage, striking out the side again.
The Cardinal regained the lead for good in the third with Brandon Wulff's sacrifice fly scoring Stowers and Matthiessen added another pair of strikeouts in the fourth, giving him a career-high nine.
Jacob Palisch relieved Matthiessen to start the fifth – Matthiessen's final line included two earned runs on four hits while his nine strikeouts were a career high. With Stanford's offense struggling to manufacture insurance runs, Palisch was nearly perfect in 3.0 innings, allowing just one hit while striking out a pair before making way for Little, who came on to start the eighth.
Little needed just 12 pitches for a one-two-three eighth inning, and Stanford stranded a pair of runners in the home half. Little returned in the ninth, mowing down Washington with three strikeouts, clinching the series win for the Cardinal.
Sunday's series finale is set for 2 p.m. on Pac-12 Networks with live statistics available at GoStanford.com. Stanford's Erik Miller will face the Huskies' Josh Burgmann.
Cardinal Notes
- Stanford is 8-2 in one-run games.
- Little's save was the 23rd of his career – he ranks third in program history behind Steve Chitren (26) and Colton Hock (25).
- Matthiessen equaled his previous career high in strikeouts (6) after 2.0 innings pitched.
- In accordance with NCAA rule 10, section 25-B, Matthiessen was eligible for the win despite not pitching 5.0 innings due to Stanford predetermining a pitching order.
- It was Stanford's 10th game of the season with 10 or more strikeouts.
- It was the Cardinal's 11th error-free game of the season.