College Baseball Roundup : Titans Lose Opener of Crucial Series

Cal State Fullerton’s crucial series against Cal State Long Beach opened Friday night with a duel of unbeaten pitchers, the Titans’ Huck Flener against the 49ers’ Andy Croghan.

After a bottom-of-the-ninth rally fell just short at Titan Field, the first game of the three-game series ended with just one undefeated pitcher remaining--Long Beach’s Croghan, a freshman from Servite High School whose record is 9-0 after a 7-6 victory over Fullerton.

Croghan, a 6-foot-5 freshman right-hander, worked his way into the rotation by the beginning of the Big West Conference season this year, and coming into Friday’s game, he had a streak of four complete games. He was working on his fifth with a 7-2 lead entering the ninth, but after two runs scored with none out, Long Beach Coach Dave Snow brought in Tom Urbani.

Urbani gave up a single to the first batter he faced, Mate Borgogno, to load the bases. Brent Mayne hit into a double play, but John Paboojian scored from third on the play, cutting the lead to 7-5.

Next up was Rex Peters, who singled to right, scoring Jones and making it, 7-6.

Next to the plate, with one man on, was Dave Staton, who has hit 16 home runs.

Greg Hays relieved Urbani, and Staton sent a one-one pitch towering toward the wall in right-center, where it was caught by Dan Berthel on the warning track, ending the game and preserving Croghan’s unbeaten record.

Long Beach broke a 12-game losing streak against Fullerton that stretched back five years to the day, May 5, 184.

The 49ers lead the Big West by 1 1/2 games over Fresno State. Fullerton is in third, 4 1/2 games back and trying to hold ground in season-ending series against Long Beach and Fresno in hopes of returning the the National Collegiate Athletic Assn. Regionals.

“We had the situation we wanted, it just didn’t work out for us,” Fullerton Coach Larry Cochell said.

In other Big West Conference baseball:

UC Santa Barbara 6, UC Irvine 4--Irvine loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the ninth inning, but Jon Damush grounded into a fielder’s choice to end the game at Santa Barbara.

In the California Collegiate Athletic Assn.

Chapman College 5, Cal State Northridge 3--David Berg pitched a four-hitter, striking out 11, for Chapman (23-25, 11-15) at Hart Park.