SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Sacramento State closed its four-game series with the Seattle U Redhawks on a high note, taking Sunday's finale, 11-4. The Hornets scored 11 times on 15 hits in the winning effort.

The win was Sacramento State's (22-10, 14-6 WAC) first of the weekend after dropping three straight to open the series. For Seattle U (13-17, 7-9 WAC), Sunday's loss kept the team under .500 in league play.

Sacramento State had more hits on Sunday than it did in the rest of the series, piling up 15 against Seattle U's staff en route to an 11-run afternoon. Three of those hits came off the bat of sophomore outfielder Trevor Doyle, who finished 3-for-6 with a double, an RBI, and a run scored.

Five other Hornets had two hits, including Chris Gonzalez, whose go-ahead home run in the fifth inning proved to be the game-winning run. The blast was his first of the year, a solo shot that cleared the wall in right-center. The senior outfielder reached base four times on Sunday, going 2-for-3 with a home run, two walks, and a run scored. 

Matt Smith (2-4) and Steven Moretto (2-4, 2B) each drove in two to lead the Hornets, though seven different players collected at least one RBI on Sunday. Eight different players scored a run, including two by each Keith Torres, Dawsen Bacho, and Dylan McPhillips.

For the fourth time this weekend, Sacramento State fell behind early on Sunday as the Redhawks tagged the Hornets' Noah Takacs for three in the third. Unlike this weekend's previous three games, however, the Hornets responded in a big way, scoring three times in the home half of the inning.

After Seattle U went up again, 4-3, in the fourth, the Hornets answered back right away a second time, tying things up in the bottom of the inning. 

It was Gonzalez's leadoff home run in the fifth that put the Hornets ahead, and just for good measure, Sacramento State continued to add on, scoring twice in the fifth, four times in the seventh, and once in the eighth.

The Hornets' pitching staff, meanwhile, shut out Seattle U over the game's final five innings.

It was all hands on deck on the mound for Sacramento State on Sunday as the team entered the contest with a pre-planned staff day. Left-hander Rylan Tinsley made his second start of the year and threw two excellent innings, striking out four and not allowing a hit or a walk.

Takacs got the third and struggled a bit, giving up three runs, though just one of them was earned, on two hits and a walk. Wesley Harper was responsible for Seattle U's fourth and final run, giving up one in the fourth on just one hit. 

From there, Sacramento State's bullpen was lights out, limiting the Redhawks to just four hits over the final five innings.

Kevin Haynes earned his first collegiate win, improving to 1-1 overall after throwing a scoreless fifth and sixth innings. Haynes gave up just one hit, a single up the middle, and struck out three. He did not walk a batter and threw 20 of his 26 pitches for strikes.

After Haynes, Eli Saul made his third appearance out of the bullpen, firing a scoreless seventh. He gave up one hit and struck out one. Jack Zalasky closed things out for Sacramento State, tossing two shutout innings while allowing two hits. He struck out one and did not walk a batter.

In total, Sacramento State's pitchers struck out 10 and walked just one.

Sunday's win was a big for the Hornets, as it snapped a three-game skid, the team's longest since four in a row late in 2019. In addition, Steven Moretto's RBI-double in the third inning snapped a 26-inning scoreless streak. 

Sacramento State will look to keep the offense rolling when they hit the road again next weekend for the first time in over a month. The Hornets head to Greely, Colorado to take on the Northern Colorado Bears in a four-game set starting Friday, April 23. Next weekend's series with the Bears will be streamed live online on the WAC Digital Network with live stats available at HornetStats.com. 

For the latest news, notes, schedule updates, and more, including direct links to streaming and live stats, be sure to visit the Sacramento State baseball schedule online at HornetSports.com.