SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF. - On Friday, April 1st, the Sonoma State baseball team took their 2-game winning streak into San Francisco as they took on the Gators of SF State to begin a four game series. Behind another stellar pitching performance from former USF Don Nick Roth, the Seawolves would take the first game 5-2 over the Gators and extend their winning streak to three for the second time this season. Roth picked up his first win of the season as he went 6 strong innings giving up just 1 run on 5 hits. Roth threw 6 scoreless innings last week against Cal Poly Pomona but a pitchers duel would give him the no decision. This week, he picks up his first win of the season and retains an ERA below 2.50 as one of the top's on the team.  

2ND INNING:

After a clean first inning, a 1-out triple from lefty Josh Lopez would set the table for freshman outfielder Sean Pauly. Pauly would rip a 2-1 pitch to center field and record an RBI double to score Lopez easily from third. That would go down as Pauly's 4th RBI of the season. The SF State pitcher would lose some command in the inning and go on to hit the next batter and walk the one after that to load the bases with 1-out. Nick Simmons would draw another walk on 5 pitches to pick up the RBI and score Pauly from third. The Gators pitcher would get a couple of ground outs to end the inning and get out of the jam but not before the Seawolves put 2 early runs on the board.   

5TH & 7TH INNING: 

In the top of the 5th with SSU holding a 2-1 lead, senior outfielder Desmond Gates would set the tone out of the gate with a leadoff single and then a stolen base the very next at bat. Gates would put himself in scoring position with his 4th stolen base of the season. After a tough 7-pitch at bat for Joshua Medina, he would draw the 1-out walk and bring the streaking Braeden Holliday to the plate. Holliday would deliver on the very first pitch of the at bat with an RBI single to left center, scoring Gates from second and extending Sonoma State's lead to 3-1. 

Junior right hander Nick Roth would conclude his stellar outing by inducing an inning ending 6-4-3 double play in the bottom of the 6th. Roth would finish with 6 strong innings on 76 pitches, giving up just 1 walk and striking out 3 SF State batters.   

In the top of the 7th Torreahno Sweet would provide a much needed insurance run for the Seawolves as he put a charge into one and lined a ball deep into the right center gap. After the ball was fumbled around along the outfield fence, Sweet would approach third and get the green light to head for home. A head first slide and a fist pump as he popped up would result in a run for the Seawolves as Sweet helped extend the team's lead to 4-1 after 7 innings.  

9TH INNING:

A clutch 2-out RBI double from SSU catcher Cole Brodnansky would score Holliday from third after Holliday led the inning off with a single back up the box to center field. SSU now headed into the bottom of the 9th with a comfortable 5-1 lead as Michael Benz would look to close things out in his 3rd inning of relief. 

Benz would record the first two outs of the inning via the K. Two tough battles from the SF State batter's would result in a 7-pitch strikeout and then a 7-pitch strikeout with a runner on first. With 2-outs the Gators put together a brief rally as they rattled off back-to-back singles to score a run and bring the game to within 3. Three pitches later Benz would induce a ground ball back to him on the mound and make the throw to first to end the game and pick up his first save of the season. 

Braeden Holliday was the star for the Seawolves at the dish as he went 3-4 with an RBI and a run scored. SSU hit all throughout the lineup as 7 different players recorded a hit in the contest. Nick Roth picked up his first win as a Seawolf as he improves to 1-2 on the season.    

The Seawolves improve to 9-17 overall and 6-11 in CCAA play after their series opening win over SF State. SSU will play the series doubleheader tomorrow afternoon with games scheduled for 12&3:00 PM. Live stats and stream links can be found at sonomaseawolves.com and all games can be streamed live on the CCAA Network. Be sure to follow your Seawolves on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to get all the latest SSU athletics updates and information. Sonoma State athletics also has launched a new fan app in partnership with From Now On. Download the free app today in both the Apple and Google Play stores by searching Sonoma State Seawolves in the app store. @SonomaSeawolves | #NomaNation