1987_05 The Daily Collegian May 1987

              Monday, May 11.1987
Page 6
n
'Dogs win PCAA titles
Softball does
in Titans 8-1
By Jim Bohannon
Co-Sports Editor
All season long, the Fresno State softball
team has played second-fiddle to No. 1 -ranked,
defending national champion Fullerton State in
the Pacific Coast Athletic Association race.
^ But Sunday afternoon at the Titan Softball
Complex in Fullerton — that all changed;
Fresno State, the hottest team in the land
and winners of 21 of its last 22 games, buried
the Titans 8-1 to earn a PCAA co-
championship. Both teams finished league
play with 31-5 records, but because of the tie¬
breaker rule (that saw the Bulldogs outscore
Fullertoon State 12-5), FSU will be awarded
an automatic bid into the postseason
tournament.
"It's fantastic," freshman Carie Dever said
of the victory. "Were just peaking at the right
time. Everything's falling into place like it's
supposed to. I just knew we were going to win
— we're playing so well as a team."
Head coach Margie Wright said, "We were
extremely fired up because we had a shot to
accomplish one of our goals (winning the
PCAA). "It didn't matter who was on the other
side of the field — we were going to win."
It took an almost lunbelievaBte^ turn of
events, for the 'Dogs to get a shot at the
Titans. FSU entered the weekend needing to
sweep double-headers against UNLV and No.
14 Cal Poly-Pomona, while hoping that either
UC Santa Barbara or No. 16 Long Beach State
would topple the Titans.
Fresno State (51-14 overall) did its job,
bombing UNLV 7-1 and 11-1 and then taking
care of Pomona 1-0 and 5-1. Fullerton State
squeaked by UCSB and won the-first game
against Long Beach State on Saturday, but the
49ers won the nightcap 7-3 to set up the
championship game.
"Once we were done playing (against Cal
Poly), we just stood around the parking lot and
waited for the Fullerton score," said center
fielder Kim Mecum. "When we heard (that
Long Beach had won) we were real excited. We
See SOFTBALL, page 7
FSU tracksters tops at Irvine
By Jon Matsune
Sports Writer
The Pacific Coast Athletic Association
Championships in Irvine this weekend saw
one dynasty come to an end and another firmly
re-established. Y    ,
Fresno State's women's track and field team
scored in all 19 events to capture first place
and break Nev ada- Las Vegas' three-year hold on
the confeatnoe title. The FSU men's squad,
meanwhile, utilized a dominance of field
competition io win an unprecendented fifth
consecutive PCAA title.,
The victory by the Bulldog women marked
the first time in the four year-history of the
PCAA women's meet that a team other than
UNLV took first place. Fresno State tallied
159 points to take the top spot, the Runnin'
Rebels finished second with 127 points and
UC-Irvine and San Diego State tied for third
with 92 each.
"We thought it was a possibility," FSU
women's coach Tom Pagani said of his team's
scoring in every event. It didn't surprise me,
it pleased me. (Team spirit) very much played
a role. Everybody took a piece of it, took a
piece of the res pons iblity. They all got
involved."
Lacy Barnes, Chris Healy and Tamara
Compton were among the very first to get
involved as they brought Fresno Stale three
first-place finishes in the four events Friday as
the 'Dogs grabbed a 47-28 lead over UC-Irvine.
Barnes triumphed in the discus with a 177-10,
Healy won the javelin with a 154-10 and
Compton took first in the triple jump with a
40-7 1/2.
In the 10,000 meters, the only first-day
event in which Fresno State didn't receive first-
place points. Bulldog Janine Ogas clocked a
37:13.9 and finished second only to the
37:05.3 of San Diego State's Maureen Bradley.
Ogas accomplished second despite an
accidental mid-race collision with Long Beach
State's Sarina Wong that left both runners
See TRACK, page 7
OmMbom/TTwMvGoftyhn
Lacy Barnes* discuss throw of 177-10 ptecedfirst In thi6 weekend's PCAA championships as both the men's and women's team captured PCAA league titles.
Bulldogs hit a low at Long Beach
Season end§
with 2 losses
to49ers
By Mike Butwell
Co-Sports Editor
The Long Beach State 49ers struck it rich
this weekend against the faltering Fresno State
Bulldogs at Forty-Niner Field in Long Beach.
Although FSU salvaged Sunday's series and
season finale 10-9, the 49ers clubbed FSU
pitching for 44 hits and. 27' runs over the
course of the weekend in potting a pair of
losses on the 'Dogs Friday arid Saturday by
scores of 9-5 and 10-8, respectively.
The stumbling finish against, the Pacific
Coast Athletic Association's doormat, leaves
Fresno Stale 34-26 and 9-12 in the PCAA.
Long Beach finished the season 16-41-1 and 6-
15 in conference.
Fullerton State won the PCAA title with a
18-3 record to claim the NCAA automatic
berth, while FSU's mark leaves it in fifth
place.
The Bulldogs relied on a five-run fourth and
also tallied runs in the first, second, third and
sixth. FSU bats emerged for 14 hits, paced by
Harvey Hill, who tagged a pair homers and
grabbed six RBIs. Also doing damage with
their sticks were Steve Hosey and Tom
Goodwin.
< Hosey went 3-forMyvidi a pair of RBIs,
while Goodwin crushed four hits and stole two
bases to give him 41 and add to his season
record.
Rich Crane pitched two and one-thirds
innings of relief and was awarded the win to up
his record to 2-2. Starter Steve Buckholz was
relieved in the fourth after letting three runs
cross — slicing the score to 10-6 at that time.
Crane too was rattled,- giving up three runs
in the sixth that dwindled FSU's lead down to
a single run. But, after blowing a lead against
the 49ers Saturday, Jim Gagnon came on and
permitted just three hits in the final three and
two-thirds to net the save.
Saturday the Bulldogs ballooned to a 5-0
lead by the third inning, but quickly watched it
deteriorate as the 49ers came up with three
runs in rhe third, one in the fourth, then six
big ones in the sixth to take a 10-6 advantage
and wipe out FSU's fast start
After retiring the first six 49ers he faced,
Mike Goff was bombed for nine hits and seven
runs in the third through fifth innings. The
loss dumped Goff to 6-3 for the season.
Shawn Gilbert banged out three hits,
including a double, to anchor FSU's 13-hit
attack. Steve Bates bashed two hits and drove
in two runs.
Also noteable were the FSU base runners.
The 'Dogs snatched six bases for the game.
Goodwin and Hosey nabbed two, while Gilbert
and Micheal Stewart stole one. Stewart's was
his 20th, meaning this is the first time since
1952 that two Bulldogs have stole 20 bases or
more in a season.
Friday's opener saw FSU ace John Salles
endured his worst beating of the year. Salles
was battered for 15 hits in six and two-thirds
innings, slipping his record to 10-8.
FSU tied it in the first 1-1, when Gilbert
doubled and scored It deadlocked again in the
second at two on George Haruta's second
homer of the year.
• After trailing 4-2 after four, FSU mounted
two runs to tie it in the fifth, but Long Beach *
emerged with three runs in the seventh. With
runners on first and second, 49er Derek Stewart
knocked a shot to right field that FSU coaches
insisted was foul. The umpires, however, ruled
it fair. The hit cost the Dogs two runs.
Final PCAA Standings
W-L
GB
FuBerton SL
18-3
—
UC Irvine
13-8
5
UC Santa Barbara
12-9
6   :
UNLV
11-10
7
Fresno State
9-12    :,
9   •
San Jose State
8-13
10    1
Pacific
7-14
11
[ Long Beach State
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