Baseball Rallies Past ASU 5-3

Sunday, February 26

Baylor Ballpark

1:00 PM

Baylor

Arizona State

Baseball Rallies Past ASU 5-3

2/26/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Feb. 26, 2006

Box Score

WACO, Texas -- Matt Sodolak's two-out, three-run double in the bottom of the seventh erased a 3-2 deficit as Baylor rallied for a 5-3 victory over Arizona State in Sunday's series finale at Baylor Ballpark. With the win, the Bears (6-2) avoid being swept by the Sun Devils (10-5), who won both ends of Saturday's doubleheader.

Baylor also maintained its streak of not losing three consecutive games since May 21-23, 2004. In that time, the Bears have lost consecutive games six times.

Trailing 2-0, Arizona State took a 3-2 lead with single spots in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings. Brett Wallace tied the game in the sixth with a pinch-hit solo home run. In the seventh, Colin Curtis put the Sun Devils ahead with a one-out RBI single through the right side.

Baylor answered in the bottom of the inning but not without some help. After consecutive one-out walks by Beamer Weems and Zach Dillon, ASU had a chance to get out of the inning unscathed as Kevin Russo hit an apparent double-play ball to second baseman Joe Persichina. However, shortstop Frank Mesa dropped Persichina's flip at second, loading the bases. Two batters later, Sodolak laced his first double of the season down the right-field line, clearing the bases and putting the Bears ahead for good.

Cliff Springston (1-0), who allowed one unearned run on two hits with a strikeout over 2.0 relief innings, earned the victory. Springston spelled starter Tim Matthews, who was touched four two runs on four hits and four walks with two strikeouts in 6.0 innings; Matthews left with the score tied 2-2. Jeff Mandel pitched a perfect ninth with two strikeouts for his second save of the season.

Chase Gerdes started the scoring for the Bears, plating two runs on a bases-loaded, two-out single in the bottom of the second. Arizona State got on the board in the fifth when Curtis bounced a single off the out-stretched glove of Baylor first baseman Ben Booker down the right-field line.

Zach Dillon and Gerdes both had two hits on the day for the Bears.

Baylor returns to action Tuesday, traveling to San Marcos, Texas, for its first road game of the 2006 season. The Bears face Texas State for a 6:30 p.m. CST first pitch at Bobcat Field.

NOTES: Arizona State leads the all-time series 6-2. This is ASU's first trip to Waco. ... Dillon extended his streak of consecutives games reaching base safely to 16 games dating back to the 2005 season. ... Baylor improves to 126-6 when leading after eight innings since the beginning of the 2002 season. The Bears have won 51 of their last 52 games when leading after eight. ... Russo went hitless for the third consecutive game. It marks just the second time in his career he has gone hitless in three consecutive games. In 78 games at Baylor, he has gone hitless in consecutive games only eight times.