SACRAMENTO, Calif. – A trio of early runs helped Sacramento State hold off the Saint Joseph's baseball team, 4-2, at John Smith Field on Saturday.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
• Sacramento State (2-4) took the lead on a fielding error in the second and tacked on two more in the third on a two-run home run by Jakob Poturnak.
 
• Saint Joseph's (2-4) got on the board in the top of the fifth.  After singles by Carson Applegate and Alex Venezia to start the inning, a wild pitch moved the runners to second and third; two batters later, Alex Kelsey singled home Applegate to make it a 3-1 game.
 
• The Hawks got closer in the seventh on a solo home run by Richard Beggy, but the Hornets got the run back in the bottom of the frame on an RBI single by Brett Ott.
 
• The Hawks brought the tying run to the plate in the top of the ninth but could not push across a run.
 
BEHIND THE BOX SCORE
• Kurt Marton worked into the seventh for Sacramento State, allowing two runs on eight hits in six and two-thirds innings for the win, while Andrew Monson earned the save with a shutout ninth.  Cole Fehrman allowed three runs, two of them earned, on two hits while striking out four in five innings to take the loss.
 
• Kelsey and Beggy each notched three hits and a run batted in on Saturday.
 
UP NEXT
The teams will wrap up the series on Sunday afternoon.