After getting swept by Nevada last weekend, the Cougs returned to the Palouse and kicked off Family Weekend with a bang. 12 hits, 10 runs and no errors set the tone for the home Mountain West series.
With the bases loaded early in the first inning, junior shortstop Gavin Roy split the middle infield with a single into center driving in two runs and putting the Spartans on their heels. SJSU quickly responded, shooting a solo homer off the bat of junior outfielder Jake McCoy in the bottom of the first.
The only additional run support the Spartans would muster was another solo homer by junior Drew Giannini, who was pinch-hitting late in the eighth inning. Giannini hammered the long ball off of sophomore relief pitcher Trevor Stowe, who closed the final two innings as the Cougs held on for the 10-2 win.
The Cougs went on to tally three runs in the third, one in the fourth, one in the fifth and two in the sixth. Each run was driven in by a different hitter, highlighting the hot day at the plate for WSU. The Spartans were forced to dip into their bullpen early in the game, with their starter, senior Nolan George, only managing four innings pitched. SJSU went through six pitchers in the matchup, but were unable to stop the dominant Cougar offense.
Junior right-hander Griffin Smith put together another quality start for the Cougars, going seven innings while allowing one earned run, zero walks and three hits. Smith had nothing but praise for his defense who helped back up his one-run performance.
“They make awesome plays,” Smith said. “They work hard day in and day out, so I’ve got to tip my cap to them. They made a lot of plays which helped me out a lot.”
Smith dropped his ERA to 4.27 and has pushed several starts into the seventh inning this season. Despite the length of his starts, he still finds ways to lock down the bats.
“I’m just kind of staying focused,” Smith said. “Making sure to hit my spots and obviously my velocity is not going to be there late in the game, so I make sure I get to the right location and see what they can do.”
After ripping a double down the left field line in the fourth inning, true freshman Ollie Obenour limped into second base gripping his left hamstring, visibly in pain. He was taken out of the game and replaced by redshirt junior Luke Thiele at second base. Whether Obenour will be healthy enough to play in the remainder of the series is still unknown.
The freshman is second on the team in hits, batting 0.321 and posting a 0.859 OPS. Obenour went 2-for-3 before suffering the injury and provided stout defense in the middle infield. The California native will likely miss the rest of the series as WSU looks for production elsewhere in the lineup.
The 1,152 in attendance marked the second-largest crowd at Bailey-Brayton Field this season. Only the 1,530 against Gonzaga on March 25 topped Friday’s mark.
With the tone set and the Coug offense continuing to heat up, SJSU has an uphill battle lined up for the remaining two matchups. The Cougars and the Spartans will continue the series at 2:05 p.m. Saturday and 12:05 p.m. Sunday.
