Report by LBSU

Long Beach State evened the series with Washington after receiving a clutch pitching performance from Andrew Gagnon, who went the distance in a 3-1 victory. Gagnon allowed three hits and one unearned run while striking out four.

Long Beach State picked up a run in the first inning, as Brennan Metzger led off the bottom of the first, reaching base after being hit by a pitch. Pushed over on a bunt, Metzger scored on a single to give the Dirtbags a 1-0 lead.

Gagnon would cruise from there, not allowing a hit until the top of the fourth and got out of the inning after a force out at third base with runners at second and third to keep the Huskies scoreless.

The Dirtbags added to their lead in the bottom half of that inning, picking up a second run off of Washington Starter Ben Guidos on a two-out rally. Joey Terdoslavich, Jonathan Jones and TJ Mittelstaedt rattled off three straight singles to score Terdoslavich and give the Dirtbags a 2-0 lead.

Long Beach State would add a third run on an RBI single by Brennan Metzger in the seventh inning, giving the Dirtbags more insurance. Gagnon retired the Huskies in order in the eighth, and picked up two outs in the ninth before an error extended the game and scored a run for Washington. He closed out the game with a grounder to first however, to pick up his first complete game of his career and the second of the season for Long Beach State after Jake Thompson’s opening night effort.

Offensively the Dirtbags were led by Metzger who finished 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored, though the team collected seven hits overall.

Long Beach State returns to Blair Field on Sunday to try and get the series victory against Washington. Branden Pinder is set to take the mound for Long Beach State, with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m.