March 11, 2000

Box Score

CORVALLIS, Ore. -- Preseason All-American Joe Gerber went 4-for-5 with a two-run home run and three RBI to lead the Oregon State Beavers to a 8-3 non-conference win over the Washington State Cougars Saturday afternoon at Coleman Field at Goss Stadium. The game was an extension of Friday's game that was suspended after the third inning because of rain.

The win improved the Beavers 2000 mark to 9-6 by winning their sixth straight and eighth out of the last nine games. WSU saw its brief two-game win streak come to an end and are now 7-11 for the season.

OSU starter Thad Johnson was impressive in his rain-shortened three-inning outing. Johnson struck out four and allowed only one unearned run in his outing. Beaver reliever Scott Nicholson (3-2) picked up where Johnson left off when the game resumed Saturday, and picked up the win by allowing only two runs in six innings.

WSU starter Todd Meldahl was on a roll, striking out four in three innings before the game was suspended due to rain. When the game resumed Saturday, sophomore Lanakila Niles started on the mound and was shaky in his appearance taking his second loss in as many outings. Niles allowed seven hits and five runs to fall to 0-2 on the year.

WSU scored an unearned run in the first frame to jump to the early lead. After a leadoff double by Shawn Stevenson, two consecutive strikeouts nearly killed the Cougar threat. With two outs a crucial two-error play from OSU second baseman Zach Gordon scored Stevenson to give WSU the 1-0 advantage.

Oregon State regrouped after the suspension of the game to take a 3-1 lead in the fifth inning. Two consecutive singles off Niles set the table for Gerber who cleared the bases with a two-run double. Josh Carter plated the Beavers third run with a single to center field to give OSU the two-run lead.

OSU sent nine men to the plate in the seventh frame and tallied five runs to extend its lead to 8-1. Brian Barden brought a run home with a triple down the right field line and Gerber greeted WSU reliever Sean Donlin with a two-run home run over the right field fence. Three consecutive walks and two costly errors from the Cougs accounted for OSU's fourth and fifth runs of the inning. The top three in the OSU lineup of Bryan Ingram, Barden and Gerber combined to go 9-for-14 with five RBI.

WSU wouldn't go down silently though, as they scored two runs off of four hits in their last at-bat. Steve Curran extended his hitting streak to four games with a single to lead off the ninth and came around to score on a pinch-hit double by Wes Falkenborg. Falkenborg is now 4-for-5 with three doubles in pinch-hitting opportunities. Evan Hecker added the Cougs third score with a single to score Falkenborg. Hecker ended the game 3-for-4 for his second three-hit game of the year.

The two clubs took a 30-minute break after the conclusion of the first game and started the regularly scheduled Saturday game at 1:18 p.m. Nicholson continued on the mound after receiving the win in the first game. The Cougs sent right-hander Tyson Thompson to the mound for the start.

WSU   100  000  002 -  3  11  3
OSU   000  030  50x -  8  13  3
Todd Meldahl, Lanakila Niles (4), Sean Donlin (7), Les McTavish (7),
and Ryan Smith.
Thad Johnson, Scott Nicholson (4), and Bryan Ingram.
W - Nicholson (3-2), L - Niles (0-2), S - None, HR - None.
T - 2:35.
WSU Hits - Stevenson, Hecker 3, Smith, Gates, Perreira, Bode,
Curran, Falkenborg, Baeder.
OSU Hits - Gerber 4, Ingram 2, Barden 3, Carter 2, Stark, Biles.
E - Gordon 2 (7), Stark (1), Curran (1), Smith (2), Donlin (2).
2B - Stevenson (2), Falkenborg (3), Gerber (10), 3B - Barden (1).

Copy by Jeff R. Evans
WSU Sports Information