Box Score
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – Strong pitching has carried the San Francisco Diamond Dons for much of this season, but it was the offense that has picked up the load lately, scoring nine runs for the second day in a row in a 9-8 win over San Diego at Fowler Park Saturday night. Dons first baseman Zachary Turner drove in the last of his four runs in the top of the tenth, and
Adam Cimber pitched two shutout innings for the win as the Dons took sole possession of second place in the West Coast Conference..
After San Diego scored the tying run in the bottom of the ninth, Turner drove in
Bradley Zimmer in the top of the tenth for the winning margin. The junior extended his streak of consecutives games with RBIs to 13, including eight over the past two games. Turner has driven in 26 runs in those games and is second in the conference with 44 RBIs.
The Dons wasted no time getting on the board when
Bob Cruikshank lined a bases-loaded double in the first to give his team a 3-0 lead. It was Cruikshank's 17
th double of the season, tops in the West Coast Conference.
After trading runs through five innings, the Dons expanded their lead to 8-4 in the middle of the eighth before allowing a three-run home run to designated hitter Dylan Haupt to cut the lead to one. San Diego tied it in the ninth before Turner came through in the tenth.
Bradley Zimmer was 2-for-5 with three runs scored and stole a pair of bases after swiping three last night.
Alex Balog started for the Dons and battled through seven innings, scattering eight hits and striking out seven.
“We had a great effort tonight,” said USF head coach
Nino Giarratano. “
Alex Balog was great again, and the offense was great giving us nine runs. We had some really nice clutch hitting and Zachary Turner,
Bob Cruikshank and
Bradley Zimmer were great again. Cimber did his thing and we need to stay focused for tomorrow's game.”
The teams conclude the series tomorrow at 1 p.m. tomorrow. A live broadcast and live stats are available at USFDons.com/live.
Inside the Numbers
After being in a four-way tie for first entering the weekend, the Dons are just two back of Gonzaga for first place. They lead third-place Pepperdine by one game.
Line of the Game
Zachary Turner – 3-for-4, run, 4 RBI
