PULLMAN, Wash. – Sophomore Shane Matheny homered and drove in a career-high five runs and sophomore reliever Scotty Sunitsch threw five innings for Washington State in a 9-2 victory over USC at Bailey-Brayton Field Sunday afternoon.
The Cougars (13-23, 6-12 Pac-12) jumped out to a 5-0 lead after Matheny's three-run home run in the second inning and never looked back. Matheny added a two-run double later in the game and finished 3-for-3 while catcher Stefan Van Horn added three hits and shortstop Jack Strunc also tallied two hits and scored twice.
WSU received three-plus solid innings from starter Damon Jones. The lefthander allowed just one earned run and struck out three before exiting in the fourth inning. Sunitsch (3-0) picked up the win after allowing just one earned run (a solo homer in the ninth) on five hits and struck out four in five-plus innings of work.
USC dropped to 18-20 overall and 7-8 in Pac-12 play. Trojan starter Mitch Hart took the loss after allowing five runs in three innings.
The Cougars caught a couple breaks early as Trek Stemp and Dugan Shirer each beat out infield hits in the first inning. Stemp later scored after Patrick McGrath ripped a single to centerfield and Shirer came home on a Mason Cerrillo sacrifice fly to left field.
Washington State backed Jones with three more runs in the second inning. Jacob Thurber beat out an infield single and Strunc followed with an infield single of his own before Matheny pulled the first pitch he saw over the right field wall for his first homer of the season and a 5-0 Cougar lead.
USC got to Jones in the fourth, doubling home a run before loading the bases with nobody out. The Cougars went to the bullpen and called upon Sunitsch who came up big. The sophomore lefthander struck out the first hitter he faced and then induced an inning-ending double play to Strunc at shortstop who fielded the ball, stepped on second and threw to first for the double play.
Shirer gave the Cougars a 6-1 lead in the fourth with a two-out base hit back up the middle to score Strunc. WSU put the game out of reach with three runs in the seventh. McGrath and Van Horn each reached with singles and Thurber was intentionally walked to load the bases with one out. Strunc came through with a RBI-single to right field and Matheny followed with a two-run double to right field, opening up a 9-1 lead.
Lefthander Trenton Dupre got the final three outs in the ninth to seal up the win for Washington State.
GAME NOTES…Stemp extended his hitting streak to 10 games, his third different hitting streak of 10-plus games this season…the Cougars will hit the road next weekend for a three-game series at Oregon beginning Friday in Eugene.
