Cold and Hail Don’t Bother Fullerton in Victory Over USC

It was hardly perfect baseball weather with temperatures in the 40s and a hailstorm that hit late in the game, but that didn’t bother Cal State Fullerton on Sunday night.

But then nothing much has been bothering the top-ranked Titans lately.

Fullerton won its 12th consecutive game after a season-opening loss, claiming the Anaheim Hilton & Towers Baseball Classic title with a 17-4 victory over USC (10-3) in front of 2,313 at Titan Field.

Fullerton put the game out of reach long before the hailstorm hit in the bottom of the eighth. And, after an eight-minute delay, the Titans scored seven more runs for their biggest inning of the season.

Mark Kotsay, who was named the tournament’s outstanding player, joined with C.J. Ankrum and Jeremy Giambi to lead Fullerton’s 14-hit outburst. Kotsay went four for five, batted in two runs and scored three. Ankrum had a two-run homer and two doubles.