May 6, 2000

Box Score

SEATTLE, Wash. -- Junior right-hander Matt Massingale pitched his third straight complete game and overcame a dramatic three-run home run in the eighth inning by Jordan Nilsen to lead the Washington Huskies to a 5-4 win over the Washington State Cougars in Pac-10 action Saturday evening at Husky Ballpark in Seattle.

The victory improved Washington's overall record to 21-23 and maintain eighth place in the Pac-10 with a 5-11 mark. WSU fell to 16-30 in 2000 and 4-15 in conference play.

Massingale (6-5) was phenomenal in picking up his sixth win of the year. The junior from Kennewick, Wash., scattered eight hits and three earned runs in his 135-pitch effort.

Cougar starter Tyson Thompson provided a great effort on the mound in his 14th start of the year. The sophomore right-hander allowed four runs, three on solo home runs, and scattered eight hits in six-plus innings in earning the no-decision. Sophomore Zach Fisher gave up only two hits and allowed the eventual game-winning run to fall to 2-4 on the year.

After threatening in the first frame with consecutive doubles from Ray Hattenburg and Jason Grove to no prevail, the Cougs jumped out to the early lead with a single tally in the second. After a leadoff double from senior Jordan Nilsen, freshman catcher Jon Baeder grounded out to plate the Cougs first run.

The Dawgs threatened in the first two innings by putting seven men on base, but left four guys in scoring position. The Huskies pulled even in the bottom of the third when senior first baseman Ed Erickson provided the equalizer with his ninth homer of the year. Freshman designated hitter Jay Garthwaite followed an out later with hit freshman-record setting ninth homer of year.

Marc Rittenhouse added to the Husky lead in the fourth with a wind-aided home run to right field. The homer was the 12th of the year for the Huskies, a team-leading mark, and gave the Huskies a 3-1 advantage.

Massingale held the Cougar bats in check through the middle innings, allowing only two hits from the second through the sixth inning. Despite the masterful pitching from the junior right-hander, the Cougars pulled even with one swing of the bat in the eighth inning when Nilsen belted his second career home run deep over the center field fence. A leadoff error by Massingale and a sharp single by Steve Curran set the table for the Cougar rally.

UW answered in the bottom half of the inning when Erickson tallied his third hit of the game. The Yakima, Wash., native plated Tila Reynolds with a double off the right field fence for the eventual game-winner.

Erickson finished the game with three hits and two RBI. Right fielder Davidson was 2-for-3 to pull the Huskies within two games of the .500 mark. Curran was 2-for-3 for the Cougs and Nilsen drove home three runs and clubbed two extra base hits in the WSU lost.

The Cougars still lead the all-time series 218-152, but trail the season series 0-3. The Cougs and Dawgs will meet for the second game of the unconventional Saturday-Sunday-Monday series tomorrow at 1 p.m. at Husky Ballpark. WSU senior lefty Todd Meldahl will square off against UW sophomore Taylor Grant.

WSU   010  000	030 - 4  8  3
UW    002  100	11x - 5 10  1
Tyson Thompson, Zach Fisher (7), and Jon Baeder.
Matt Massingale and Jefferson Thiel.
W - Massingale (6-5),L - Fisher (2-4), S - None, HR - Erickson (9), Garthwaite (9), Rittenhouse (12), Nilsen (3).
T - 2:35, A - 830.
WSU Hits - Hattenburg, Grove, Nilsen 2, Hecker, Curran 2, Stevenson.
UW Hits - Linden, Done, Davidson 2, Erickson 3, Garthwaite, Rittenhouse, Hollod.
E - Stevenson (11), Gates (15), Bailie (7), Massingale (2).
2B - Hattenburg (16), Grove (8), Nilsen (14), Hecker (3), Linden (12), Erickson (15), 3B - None.