STEPHENVILLE, Texas — Sacramento State's JP Smith and Jakob Poturnak each finished with three hits and the Hornet hitters managed to draw 13 walks and seven hit by pitches on the day, but a late eighth-inning rally by host Tarleton State allowed the Texans to steal game three with a come-from-behind 14-12 victory on Sunday afternoon in Stephenville, Texas.
The loss dropped Sacramento State to 15-12 overall and 3-3 in Western Athletic Conference play this year while Tarleton State improved to 13-16 overall and won its WAC opening series of the year.
Four Hornets finished with multiple hits on the day as Ryan Christiansen and Michael Perazzo collected two apiece to join Smith and Poturnak, but it was the free passes that allowed Sacramento State to jump out to an early lead and helped contribute to the team's fifth double-digit run performance of the year.
Sacramento State's 13 walks at the plate were a season high and the most since they drew 13 against UTRGV on March 24, 2019, while the seven hit batters also set a new high bar for the year and were the most since the Hornets were plunked eight times against Loyola Marymount on Feb. 16 last season.
A pair of big innings to start the game had the Hornets up early and they led by four following the top half of the sixth before Tarleton State made its comeback. The Texans scored two in the home half of that inning to make it a two-run game before completing the rally with a big eighth inning, scoring five times on three hits and taking advantage of an error to take their first lead of the game.
The Hornets managed a run in the ninth on a two-out bases-loaded balk, which also put the tying run in scoring position, but a fly ball to center put an end to the rally and the game.
Smith added three RBI to his three-hit game, while Elie Kligman, who slugged his second home run of the year in the third and Tyler White added two RBI apiece. Cameron Sewell, who had an RBI single as part of a three-run third, extended his hitting streak to nine games in the process — the second-longest by a Hornet hitter this season.
Poturnak's three-hit game was his sixth of the year, giving him 11 multi-hit games for the season to tie Luis Pimentel-Guerrero for the team lead. Smith's three hits tied a career high and earned him his seventh multi-hit contest of 2025.
Seven of Sacramento State's starters finished with at least one walk on the day, including freshman Orlando Cobarrubias, who drew four of the 13 Tarleton State walks — the most by a Hornet since Keith Torres was walked five times at Northern Colorado on May 5, 2019.
Kade Brown (1-1) suffered his first loss of the year, charged with five runs on three hits over two innings of relief. Aden Lucas (2-2) earned the win for Tarleton State, allowing just one hit and striking out two in two innings of work, while Andrew Hardin picked up his first save of the year despite allowing a run in the ninth.
Sacramento State returns to John Smith Field for a midweek clash with California on Tuesday (April 1) at 6 p.m., before making a return trip to the state of Texas the following weekend, taking on Abilene Christian in a three-game series on April 4-6.
