HONOLULU – No. 4 Cal State Fullerton shut out Hawai'i for the second time in as many games, clinching the series with a 3-0 victory over the Rainbows on Sunday afternoon at Les Murakami Stadium.
With the win, Fullerton (36-7, 12-3) maintains a one-game lead over Cal State Northridge in the Big West standings, and the Titans also complete their seven-game road trip with a record of 5-2.
Fullerton starter Grahamm Wiest (7-2) was dominant in the win, tossing eight shutout innings, and holding the Rainbows to two hits while issuing just one walk and striking out five. He faced just four batters over the minimum, and retired the final 11 batters he faced.
For the third time in the series, Fullerton scored first as Hawai'i (9-29, 4-11 Big West) starter Corey MacDonald issued a leadoff walk in the second inning to Matt Chapman. With Chapman at first and no outs, he moved into scoring position on a wild pitch, and advanced to third as Jake Jefferies lined a single to center. Chad Wallach hit into a double play, but it was enough to score Chapman as Fullerton took a 1-0 lead.
The Titans increased their lead by scoring two runs in the fourth as Michael Lorenzen led off the inning with an infield single, and quickly scored as Chapman sliced a RBI double down the left field. The inning continued as Chapman moved to third on a groundout, setting up Wallach's sacrifice fly to left that put Fullerton in the lead, 3-0.
In the loss, MacDonald (4-5) allowed three runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out one.
Lorenzen led Fullerton a 3-for-4 performance, and picked up his 13th save of the season, taking over for Wiest in the bottom of the ninth.
Hawai'i was held to just two hits in the loss.
After seven straight games on the road, Cal State Fullerton returns home on Friday to host Long Beach State with first pitch scheduled for 7 p.m. at Goodwin Field.
Notes: Fullerton's 36-7 record is the best for the program since the 1996 squad opened the year with a record of 38-5…Fullerton's 36 wins match last year's total …for the third time this season, Fullerton dropped the first game of its series, and came back to win the final two games to clinch the series…the Titans have won 10 weekend series in 2013…Fullerton is 26-3 when scoring first…the Titans shut out an opponent for the ninth time in 2013...the Titans shut out an opponent in back-to-back games for the first time since winning back-to-back shutouts (14-0; 7-0) at UC Davis (April 1-2, 2011)…the Rainbows' two hits match an opponent season low, as the Fullerton pitching staff also held Long Beach State to two hits on March 22…Lorenzen's 29 career saves rank fourth all-time at Fullerton.