Sacramento State Eliminates Arizona State, 5-4
SAN LUIS OBISPO (AP) - Nathan Lukes was 3 for 3 and drove in three runs and Sacramento State scored three times in the eighth inning to break a tie and beat Arizona State 5-4 in an elimination game Saturday.
Sacramento State reliever Alex Palsha withstood a late rally for the Hornets.
Pinch-hitter Ryan Ybarra hit a two-run home run off in the ninth inning to bring the Sun Devils (33-24) within a run, but Palsha (6-1) froze Trever Allen with a 3-2 curveball for the final out of the game, the first NCAA Division I regional victory in program history for the Hornets (40-23).
Jordan Aboites (5-3) took the loss, allowing three runs, one earned, on two hits and two walks while recording just one out in the eighth. David Del Grande hit a two-run single off Aboites to break a 2-2 tie after Rhys Hoskins led off with a walk and Will Soto reached on an error.
Sacramento State, the regional's fourth-seeded team, will play host Cal Poly in another elimination game Sunday.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press.