FULLERTON, Calif. - Cal State Fullerton's five-game winning streak came to an end Saturday night as Maryland outslugged the Titans, 8-4, at Goodwin Field.
The Titans (11-7) surrendered a season-high in runs and hits to the Terrapins (8-10) as Maryland pounded out 14 hits including five for extra bases, three of them home runs.
Tanner Pinkston and Tyler Stieb each went 3-for-4 for the Titans to lead the offense and Chris Hudgins belted his third home run of the season in the loss.
Maryland starter Taylor Bloom tossed his second straight complete game and allowed four runs, two earned, on 12 hits. He walked one and struck out four en route to his third win of the season.
Connor Seabold took the loss as he allowed four earned runs on nine hits in six innings of work. He struck out five.
The Terrapins jumped out in front thanks to some fortunate bounces and then a no-doubter home run. Kevin Smith led off with a check-swing single through the right side and advanced to second on a failed pickoff attempt by Seabold. Two outs later, Nick Cieri fisted a shallow pop-fly single just out of the reach of Jerrod Bravo and Timmy Richards, allowing Smith to score and make it 1-0.
Freshman Marty Costes then blasted a 3-1 offering from Seabold over the center field wall and high off the batters' eye for a two-run bomb to put Maryland up 3-0 in the first inning.
The Titans got one back in the second inning as Hudgins launched the first pitch he saw over the left field fence to make the score 3-1.
The Terrapins answered in the third inning, getting a leadoff triple from Smith and a sacrifice fly from Madison Nickens to regain the three-run advantage and make it 4-1.
In the sixth, the Titans trimmed the deficit to two with a run on two hits. Richards was hit by a pitch with one out and then advanced to third on a single by Pinkston. Dalton Blaser then flared a single just past the infield to plate Richards and make it 4-2.
But the Terrapins put the game away in the seventh, scoring four times in the inning. Smith led off the inning with a single, his third hit of the game. After a groundout, Nick Dunn tripled to score Smith and make it 5-2. Cieri then laid down a perfect bunt on a suicide squeeze and Dunn scored to make it 6-2. Costes and Kevin Biondic capped off the inning with back-to-back home runs to make it 8-2.
Fullerton would mount a rally in the ninth, scoring twice to make it 8-4. But with the tying run on deck and runners at the corners, Bloom got Blaser to hit into a fielder's choice with Dunn recording the final out at second to end the game.
Both teams will return for the rubber match on Sunday afternoon with freshman Colton Eastman looking to pick up his fifth straight win while Brian Shaffer takes the hill for Maryland.
Notes: The nine hits allowed by Seabold were the most he's given up in his career… Prior to Saturday, the most runs the Titans had given up in a game were six against Texas Tech on March 5. The most hits they had given up were 10 against Arizona State on March 8.