COLLEGE ROUNDUP : Titan Lineup Change Pays Off in Series Sweep Over UNLV

Moving to the top of the Cal State Fullerton baseball lineup has been a step up for Phil Nevin and the Titans.

Nevin hit two home runs from the leadoff spot to lead Cal State Fullerton to a 6-1 victory over Nevada Las Vegas in a Big West Conference baseball game Sunday.

Nevin was moved from the No. 3 spot to the leadoff spot March 22 against Illinois, and he is intent on staying there.

“I like it a lot,” he said. “You get to see a lot more pitches, because pitchers don’t pitch around you--they don’t want to put the leadoff batter on base. When a pitcher gets behind you in the count, you see a lot of fastballs.”

You also get to see a lot of curveballs, which Nevin saw Sunday.

Nevin’s first home run led off the third inning to give Fullerton a 2-1 lead. The second was a wind-aided fly ball that cleared the center-field fence and gave Fullerton a 4-1 lead.

The victory gave the Titans (25-16, 8-1) a three-game sweep of the series and extended their winning streak to seven games.

“No doubt, we’re playing the best ball of the year,” Fullerton Coach Larry Cochell said. “We got off to a bad start by anybody’s standards, but we’re finally getting good defense and timely hitting at the same time.”

Fullerton had 11 hits, including a solo home run by Frank Charles and three singles by Mate Borgogno. Nevin replaced Borgogno in the leadoff spot.

Huck Flener (7-1) pitched a five-hitter. And although the Titans made two errors, Flener was helped by a diving catch by right fielder David Ayala in the ninth.

Jonathan Jarolimek took the loss, allowing six runs and seven hits in 5 2/3 innings for Las Vegas (24-18, 5-6).

In another Big West Conference baseball game:

UC Irvine 12, Cal State Long Beach 11 (11 innings)--Host Irvine rallied twice and ended its three-game losing streak. The Anteaters trailed, 10-2, entering the bottom of the seventh inning and, 11-10, in the 11th. UCI (27-20, 5-7) scored three in the seventh and five in the ninth.

Fred Combs led off the ninth inning with a home run. Irvine pulled to within one when Ed Luna, drove in two runs with a single and Chris Gallego doubled in a run. Combs’ sacrifice fly scored Gallego to tie the score, 10-10.

Long Beach (29-18, 6-6) scored a run in the 11th inning, but Billy Bardens drove in Jon Skaggs on a single to tie the score again and Gallego’s sacrifice fly scored Bardens.