Ohio State Plays In, Titans Pull Out 3-2 Win

Had Ohio State’s shortstop and second baseman played halfway between the infield and outfield grass, a ninth-inning grounder by Cal State Fullerton’s Steve Sisco could have been turned into a double play, and the Buckeyes and Titans would have gone to extra innings.

Instead, Ohio State Coach Bob Todd’s decision to bring in his infield with one out and the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth allowed Sisco’s hard-hit chopper to barely elude Buckeye shortstop Doug Wollenburg.

Phil Nevin, who doubled and advanced to third on a wild pitch, came home with the winning run as Fullerton beat Ohio State, 3-2, Thursday in an NCAA South I Regional first-round game before a crowd of 921 at Louisiana State’s Alex Box Field.

The Titans (39-15) will face Tulane, a 4-2 winner over South Alabama, tonight at 5:30 PDT. The Buckeyes (38-20) will play national champion Louisiana State today at 1 p.m.

Fullerton’s first inning, during which the Titans scored first on Nevin’s sacrifice fly, ended with Jason Moler getting thrown out at the plate as he tried to score on Tony Banks’ single to left field.

The Titans, trailing 2-1, rallied in the seventh when Dante Powell was hit by a pitch and took second on Jeremy Carr’s sacrifice. Chris Powell, who had singled twice and doubled, lined a run-scoring single to left-center to make it 2-2.