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Merrell
Picks Up First Win as Titans Beat Houston Mar. 10, 2001 – Houston, Texas Darric Merrell picked up his first collegiate victory with 7.1 solid innings as Cal State Fullerton beat Houston, 8-2, in a nonconference game at Cougar Field Saturday afternoon. The Titans, who have won four of their last five games, improved to 10-8 on the season, marking the first time this year they have been two games over .500. The Cougars lost their sixth straight game and fell to 6-15. Merrell, a true freshman out of Temecula, Calif., scattered five hits and walked just one (the last batter he faced) while striking out three. Despite the effort, Merrell (1-1) actually saw his ERA rise to 1.63, still the second best mark in the Big West Conference. Chad Cordero allowed just one hit in the final 1.2 innings. For the second straight game, the Titans jumped on the board for a pair of runs in the top of the first inning and never trailed. Jason Corapci drew a one-out walk and David Bacani singled through the left side to set the stage. Houston's Gabe Lucas dropped Aaron Rifkin's fly ball to left field, which allowed Corapci to score (Rifkin was officially credited with a sac fly). Bacani scored the second run just before Rifkin was tagged out in a rundown for the final out of the inning. The Titans tacked on another run in the second and used a two-base throwing error by Houston third baseman Chris Klosterman and an pinch-hit RBI single by Matt Belfanti to tack on three runs in the fifth and break out to a 6-1 lead. Bacani was 2-for-4 with three runs and Rifkin and Shawn Norris also collected two hits each as the Titans racked up double figures in hits (11) for the third straight game. The Titans and Cougars are scheduled to meet for the finale of the three-game series on Sunday at 1 p.m. CST. Kirk Saarloos, who has not allowed a run in his last 28 innings, is slated to pitch for the Titans. Box score
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