NCAA South Baseball Regional : Kaub Powers Titans Past Missouri, 6-3 : First Baseman Hits Two Home Runs as Fullerton Wins Its Opener

Given an extra day to survey this town, Keith Kaub already has chosen the spot he likes best.

It lies just beyond the left-field fence at Dudy Noble Field, a hodgepodge arrangement of bleachers known as the Left Field Lounge.

During games, barbecue smoke drifts onto the field from the lounge, and word is that even a stranger is greeted there with a full plate and cup.

Gather, then, that this is what happened to Kaub as he wandered about on the first day of the NCAA South Regional on Thursday, which was an off-day for Cal State Fullerton.

On Friday, a game against Missouri kept Kaub from visiting left field himself. But he sent two baseballs in his place, hitting solo homers to left-center in the second and fourth innings to help Fullerton to a 6-3 victory over Missouri in the Titans’ first game.

Greg Mannion, returning to the starting lineup for the first time since April 29, also found left-center to his liking. His three-run homer in the fourth sealed the victory.

Mark Beck (9-6) earned the victory, scattering eight hits in his seventh complete game.

Mike Potthoff (8-4) took the loss for Missouri (41-21).

Kaub, for his part, remained impressed with the scene in left field.

“It’s something out there,” he said. “We walked around out there (Thursday). In California, we’ve got the Angels, the Dodgers, Disneyland, you name it. But we don’t have that.”

Kaub, a senior first baseman, hit two home runs in a game one other time this year, in a victory over UC Irvine.

This was a game with negligible suspense. Fullerton took a 6-1 lead after five innings, scoring a final run on three singles, and Brent Mayne had extended his hitting streak to 36 games with a single in the second inning.

Missouri scored a run in the third inning on a walk, a stolen base and a double by Tim Hawkins, and added two runs in the seventh on a walk and two singles.

“I thought it was a well-played game,” Fullerton Coach Larry Cochell said. “I was glad to see those balls go out.”

Mannion, who had not started since being ejected from a game against Fresno State in April, returned to left field and was 1 for 5 with the 3-run homer.

Mannion had appeared to have lost his position after Jim Osborn replaced him the day after that ejection and hit two home runs in a game.

“(Mannion) is a senior,” Cochell said. “We want him in the lineup when it gets down to it, and it has. He went in a little slump against left-handed pitching, but tonight I felt like Greg was the one I was going with. When a game’s on the line, he’s the one we want out there.”

Mannion said he took the benching in stride.

“I felt confident,” he said. “I never doubted myself.”

Longo Garcia (8-5) will be the Fullerton starter today, when the Titans play Mississippi State at 2 p.m.

It will be the second game for both teams.

Mississippi State (43-18), the host team and the second-seeded team at the regional, beat Western Carolina Thursday. Western Carolina has since been eliminated, losing to Texas A&M; in the other game Friday.

Should the Titans beat Mississippi State today, they would not play again until Sunday. Should they lose, they would a second game today, against a team to be determined, at 6 p.m.

Fullerton (38-16) will face a formidable task today against Mississippi State, and those in the Left Field Lounge will no longer be rooting for Kaub or any other Titan.

Those are the home folks out there, and they are fans of the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

They may have offered Kaub a plate as he mingled Thursday, but their hospitality is done. They will not appreciate any more baseballs amid their coleslaw, thank you.

A crowd of about 2,000 turned out for Fullerton’s game against Missouri, but more than 5,000 are expected to cheer on Mississippi State.

“Tomorrow’s going to be incredible, I know that,” Kaub said.

Titan Notes

Keith Kaub strained the arch in his left foot as he rounded first after his first home run. “I was thinking it was going to be a double so I was churning in out,” he said. Although he limped around the bases, he returned to play first base the next inning and expects to play today. “It’s adrenaline now,” he said. Kaub did not put any strain on the arch after his second home run, however. “I knew the second one was out when I hit it,” he said.