Fresno State senior first baseman Jordan Ribera awoke from a season-long offensive slumber on Sunday, sending a three-run home run over the center field fence to break a 2-2 tie and earn No. 9 Fresno State a series split in its four-game series with San Jose State over the weekend.
The 5-3 loss erased SJSU’s bid to take three of four from the defending Western Athletic Conference champions, as the Spartans won the opening game of the series on Friday before splitting a double-header on Saturday.
“When we’re up two to one in the series, our guys are very well aware of how important the fourth game is,” said head coach Sam Piraro. “Our feeling is that when we play at home, we want to win every series we play.”
Missed opportunities characterized Sunday’s loss, as SJSU left 11 runners on base and were one strike away from getting out of the seventh inning jam that resulted in Ribera’s tiebreaking blast.
“It was an 0-2 pitch,” said Piraro. “He (Eric LaBaron) obviously didn’t locate it where he wanted to and Ribera turned it into a game winner.”
Ribera now has two home runs in 2011 after leading the nation in that category with 27 last season.
Sophomore third baseman Tyler Christian got the initial scoring started for SJSU with a two-run homerun to left field in the bottom of the fourth
Trailing 2-1 going into the fifth inning against SJSU starting pitcher Andy Hennessey, Fresno State pushed the tying run across with two outs after a base hit by senior shortstop Garrett Weber.
SJSU’s sophomore right fielder Tim Quiery potentially took away a run earlier in the inning, leaving his feet in right-center field to take an extra-base hit away from Fresno State and preserve the lead for the time being.
“Our positioning was very good,” said Quiery. “I got a good jump on the ball and just tried to make a play.”
While Fresno State was able to tie the game later in the inning with Weber’s single, Quiery’s catch prevented what could have been a much bigger inning for the Bulldogs.
“It was a spectacular catch,” Piraro said. “Tim did a great job of diving because he felt he had a chance. He got a great jump on the ball and had the courage to make the play.”
With the game tied 2-2 heading into the bottom the seventh, senior reliever Eric LaBaron set down the first two Bulldog hitters he faced before issuing a walk and a hit batsman to bring Ribera to the plate.
LaBaron got ahead of Ribera with two quick strikes, but his third pitch hung in the zone long enough for last season’s WAC hitter of the year to belt it over the 390 foot mark in centerfield.
“He’s a big time home run hitter,” said Piraro.
SJSU managed to score a run in the bottom of the ninth on senior first baseman Danny Stienstra’s team-leading 29th RBI of the year, raising his average to .382 after a 2-for-4 day at the plate.
Stienstra has been the anchor of the SJSU offense in 2011, batting cleanup and leading the team in RBIs (29), hits (50), average (.382), doubles (12), total bases (62), at-bats (131) and games played (32).
“It really comes down to hard work and being persistent,” said Stienstra. “If you’re not having a good day, you still have to try to maintain a good attitude. I’ve just been trying to stay positive and I think that has helped a lot.”
Sunday’s 5-3 loss put the Spartans at 21-11 overall on the season, while the Bulldogs improved to 22-5 on the season.
Both teams sit at an even 2-2 in WAC play after the series split.
Despite Sunday’s loss, the Spartans became the first team to defeat Fresno State more than once during a series in 2011 and maintain a winning record (4-3) against teams ranked in the top-10 nationally, taking two games from then ranked No. 2 UCLA earlier in the season.
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