The payback bracket got going full swing in Game 3 of the Blair Field NCAA Regionals on Saturday afternoon, when the Dirtbags took sweet revenge on the Berkeley Golden Bears, who swept them earlier this season when they played up north. Even though Cal was in the home dugout and the ‘Bags were in their unfamiliar grays beneath the SoCal sun, Long Beach State felt right at home in Saturday’s win, hammering the Bears with 13 hits on the way to a 9-2 win.
A small but loud CSULB student section posted up in the stands behind the home dugout and spent all game vocally reminding Berkeley that they were a long way from home, and that while Cal may edge the Beach in some categories, nobody beats CSULB’s students at drunken heckling. Even the sound guy at Blair got in on the action, playing the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “Dani California” early in the game—you know, the song whose chorus begins “California, rest in peace.”
The Dirtbags got a big boost from starting pitcher Brett Lorin, who solidified his status as a rising star in the bullpen with a strong five inning performance, allowing two earned runs and four hits in five full innings. The relief pitchers backed him up impressively, not allowing a single hit for the game’s last four innings. The Bears, on the other hand, struggled from start to finish on the mound, using six pitchers (and pulling the starter after just three) to try and stem the tide of Beach scoring. The Dirtbags scored in the second through fifth innings, including a three run fourth that buried the Bears by five runs; they scored their only two runs in the game in the bottom of that inning, but it was clear from body language alone that the fight was out of them. In the fourth and fifth innings, the ‘Bags sent sixteen batters to the plate, scoring five runs and going through three pitchers.
Almost every Dirtbag with an at-bat had a hit, including a three-for-five effort from catcher Travis Howell, and two-for-four performances by Jonathan Jones, Jason Corder (who had 3 RBIs), and Danny Espinosa. When playing at home, Berkeley lit up the ‘Bags, but on Saturday the only standout offensive performance came from right fielder Blake Smith, who was one-for-three with a two run homer on the day, producing Berkeley’s only runs.
After the game, head coach Mike Weathers expressed his satisfaction with his team’s play. “That was how it should be done, and what we failed to do last night,” he said. Danny Espinosa said that the attitude in the dugout before this game was completely different than last night’s loss to Fresno, saying that before Friday’s game there were a lot of nerves, and that the atmosphere was much more relaxed for the second game, despite the Dirtbags’ win or go home status. It was typical Dirtbags, with the team’s best play coming when they needed it most, when their backs were shoved firmly against the wall. Referring to Long Beach State’s resilience and ability to take advantage of walked batters and other Cal mistakes, Berkeley’s head coach David Esquer said it best: “Weathers takes a lot of pride in Dirtbags baseball, in that style. Well, today we got beat by Dirtbag baseball.”
The victory, before a decent-sized crowd of over 1,500 at Blair, sends Long Beach State into the second game of the losers bracket, Sunday at one o’clock. Vance Worley will get the start for the Dirtbags, who will face San Diego, after the Toreros’ 6-0 loss to Fresno earlier tonight.
