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COLLEGE BASEBALL / BIG WEST CONFERENCE : Fullerton Has Plenty of Offense for Dixon

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TIMES STAFF WRITER

Cal State Fullerton pitcher Tim Dixon and associate head coach George Horton agree on one thing for certain.

“It’s a lot easier to pitch when you have a 10-run lead,” said Horton, who handles the pitchers for Coach Augie Garrido.

That being the case, the Titan hitters definitely made it easy on Dixon in a 17-1 Big West Conference victory over San Jose State Saturday at Titan Field. Dixon (7-0) had a very good day, however, giving up only two hits and one run in eight innings. He struck out 12, his season high.

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The Titans, the nation’s No. 1-ranked team, are 26-3 and 2-0 in the Big West going into the final game of the series with the Spartans at 1 p.m. today. It was Fullerton’s 11th consecutive victory and marked the fourth game in a row the Titans have scored 11 or more runs.

“That’s the best eight innings Tim has pitched this season,” Horton said. “He probably was more consistent today than he has been. He got his slider going and when he does that, his fastball is that much more effective.”

Fullerton’s 13 hits included home runs by outfielder Tony Miranda and pinch-hitting specialist Ruben Hernandez.

“We really seemed to be staying focused and the result is consistency,” Garrido said.

Fullerton took control of the game early with five runs in the second.

Jeremy Giambi singled to lead off the second and scored on Joe Fraser’s hit after a sacrifice bunt and a hit batter. Tony Martinez drove in Brian Loyd, and C.J. Ankrum’s single scored Joe Fraser, who had singled. All four hits were through holes in the infield.

Kotsay quickly changed that pattern with a line-drive double that scored Martinez and Ankrum for a 5-0 lead.

The Spartans got their only run off Dixon in the third. Dixon hit the leadoff batter, Adrian Phillips, who advanced on Eric Stevens’ two-out walk and scored on Jason Boesch’s single.

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The Spartans gave up three more runs in the fifth after they should have been out of the inning. San Jose starter Norman Fujiwara gave up two walks after two outs, then second baseman Patrick Walsh lost D.C. Olsen’s high popup in the sun, allowing both runners to score. Brian Loyd tripled, driving in Olsen.

Miranda’s three-run homer came in the sixth. Fujiwara again had two outs before Jack Jones doubled and Kotsay was walked intentionally. Miranda hit the top of the scoreboard in left-center.

Garrido started pulling regulars out of the lineup in the eighth, but the Titans added six more runs in the inning. The big hit was Hernandez’s two-run home run that bounced high off the screen behind the 400-foot mark in center.

In another Big West game:

Long Beach State 2, Nevada 0--Kyle Wilson (6-2) pitched 7 1/3 innings for the victory and pinch-hitter David Stevenson drove in the winning run with a single in the bottom of the seventh inning for Long Beach State (14-11-1, 2-0). Jason Minici, from Irvine High, went two for four with a run batted in for the 49ers.

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