Dennis Laurel, who is now in his fourth and final season with the ball club, says, "We have better players now than when I first came here, and this comes from our recruiting. Once our players jell, we will have a winning team. It's just a matter of time." The team proved it can win the day they beat eighth ranked Fresno State who was previously unbeaten. With some improved pitching, clutch hitting, and a few breaks they haven't been getting, USF could make a run at the second half crown in the NCBA.
After shutting out the visiting Bulldogs for five innings, Ogden was hit hard in the sixth giving up two home runs to Kip Bagley and Greg Funk that enabled Fresno to tie the score 4-4. USF, to their credit, kept their poise, and with the help of Reelhorn they regained the lead in the bottom of the eighth. John Mangiante opened the inning by getting in on an error. Joe Torrise sacrificed him to second, and two walks to Jewett and Johnson loaded the bases. Dennis Laurel followed with a ground ball to second that Fresno could only take to first, getting Laurel and scoring Mangiante. Ogden went all the way for the victory despite the rocky sixth inning.
In the first game of a doubleheader the next day, the Bulldogs once again broke open a 2-1 game with two runs in the eighth to win 4-1. The victim for USF was freshman Matt Allio who gave up just six hits and two earned runs in eight innings of work. The Dons only run came on a homerun by Dennis Laurel while David Holt keyed the Bulldog's eighth inning rally with a two run single (TheFoghorn).
