The Fresno State Bulldogs completed a Cinderella season Wednesday night, beating the other Bulldogs- the Georgia Bulldogs – 6-1 at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha to clinch an improbable College World Series championship. It was the first championship in the history of the program out of a men’s sport.
Fresno fought off elimination time and time again. They were only the fourth seed in what was probably the toughest regional and emerged as the lowest seeded team to ever go on and win the title.
Local product Erik Wetzel had a big hand in that championship. The junior second baseman out of Don Lugo High School went 14-for-32 in seven games with 11 runs scored and five RBI.
Now he will have the tough decision of whether to return for a senior season to help defend that title or turn pro. He was drafted in the 13th round by the Colorado Rockies earlier this month.
Two other locals also factored for their teams. Norco product Toby Gerhart went 4-for-14
for the Stanford Cardinal who went 2-2 in the event. He had three hits including a home run in a 16-5 thrashing of perennial title contender Florida State.
Junior first baseman Matt Clark went 2-for-8 with three walks in three games for LSU. Both of the hits for the Etiwanda High School graduate were home runs. He ended up with 28 on the season, leading the country in that category. He too was drafted, in the 12th round by the San Diego Padres.
It was an exciting event and the showing by the local players made it all the more memorable.
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