By Max Garcia (@Maxgarci09)-Spear Reporter | Redshirt Sophomore Neil Jansen celebrating with coach Paul Wiebens after hitting a grand slam against Portland; the final score was a 9-4 win in favor of SJSU on Mar. 19, 2025. (Photo by Lucas Quick – Spear Photographer)
San Jose State baseball (14-8, 3-2 MW) rolled past Air Force (7-15, 2-3 MW) in back-to-back games to clinch the three-game series with a 14-3 win Saturday, improving the series to 2-0 in favor of the Spartans.
It was almost déjà vu from Friday’s opener, which also ended in dominant fashion, 14-1. Both games ended under the seven-inning mercy rule.
Each player recorded a hit in Saturday’s game, a repeat of Friday’s performance. San Jose State finished with 15 hits and 10 RBIs.
“I thought our offensive approach was mature. We didn’t try to do too much,” head coach Brad Sanfilippo said. “I’m happy that our runs are coming in different ways — a line drive up the middle, a ground ball through the four-hole, or a sac fly. We’re not just relying on one big swing.”
In the first two innings, right fielder Alex Fernandez stole two bases, tying him for the lead in stolen bases in the Mountain West Conference.
One of Saturday’s many runs came off a two-run home run by center fielder Jeriah Lewis, who brought in infielder Jake McCoy. It was Lewis’s fourth homer of the season. He finished the day going 3-for-4 with three runs scored.
“We just came out and tried to continue what we did last game — just hitting the ball hard and having a good energy day,” Lewis said. “Honestly, I was trying to hit the ball as hard as possible. I was up 2-0 in the count, so I was trying to get my swing off regardless of what pitch it was.”
David Thomas, a right-handed pitcher, threw six innings, striking out three batters and allowing just three runs. Cade Crushing came in to finish the game, needing only one pitch, which resulted in a fly ball that secured the win.
“Just getting ahead with pitches and letting the defense work, that’s the key,” Thomas said. “I was just trying to throw some strikes and let the defense do their thing.”
