Stanford center fielder Christian Robinson and catcher Maverick Handley teamed up Monday night to end Fresno State’s baseball season one game short of the NCAA super regionals.
Playing on their home field at Sunken Diamond, Robinson and Handley combined for seven RBI in Stanford’s 9-7 victory over the Bulldogs in an NCAA regional elimination game.
Handley a junior catcher, hit two home runs.
Closer Saved Stanford on Sunday
The Bulldogs appeared to be in the driver’s seat for a super regional berth after winning the first two games in the regional — including a 7-2 victory over Stanford on Saturday.
But the Cardinal bounced back with an 8-6 victory Sunday night as closer Jack Little recorded the final nine outs. Little notched the save Monday as well, giving him 12 this season.
That forced the Bulldogs to turn to their own closer, sophomore left-hander Jaime Arias, to start Monday’s game. Arias survived four innings, allowing four hits and four earned runs.
Bins Powers the Bulldogs
Fresno State catcher Carter Bins had a home run, double, and three RBI. However, the other Bulldogs had just five hits with their 3-4-5 hitters going to 1-for-11.
Fresno State closed its season at 40-16-1 after winning the Mountain West regular season and tournament titles.
You can access Monday’s boxscore at this link.
Super Regional Matchups
The best-of-three super regionals will be played this weekend, with the eight winners advancing to the College World Series starting June 15.
The matchups: Michigan (44-19) vs. UCLA (51-9); Oklahoma State (39-19) vs. No. 8 Texas Tech (42-17); No. 6 Mississippi (40-25) vs. No. 5 Arkansas (44-17); Florida State (39-21) vs. No. 13 LSU (40-24); Duke (34-25) vs. No. 2 Vanderbilt (52-10); East Carolina (47-16) vs. Louisville (47-16); No. 11 Stanford (45-12) vs. No. 6 Mississippi State (49-13); and Auburn (36-25) vs. No. 14 North Carolina (45-15).
The higher seeded team typically plays at home for super regionals. If the participants have the same seeding, a bid process is used to determine the home team. The NCAA will make sites official Tuesday.
