FRESNO, Calif. – In another close matchup through seven innings, it was the Fresno State Bulldogs to put up a crooked number in the bottom of the eighth inning to secure the 9-3 win over the Milwaukee baseball team on Saturday afternoon.
 
Eight of Milwaukee's nine starters had at least one hit on the game, with Zach Lane leading the Panthers with a pair of singles. Sean Tillmon and Teige Lethert picked up their first RBIs on the young season for the Panther offense.
 
"It was another day where we were unable to limit the 'freebies' in the eighth inning," said head coach Shaun Wegner on Fresno State's eighth-inning offense. "Ultimately, we need to come out tomorrow and execute all the way through the game."
 
On the hill, Adrian Montilva allowed three runs through five innings of work, but did not factor into the decision. Logan Snow pitched two scoreless innings in his Panther debut before getting touched up in the eighth for four of Fresno State's six runs in the inning.
 
"Monty did a good job of mixing his pitches," added Wegner on his starter. "We expected him to be posted and prepared for the situation and he was." Wegner added on Snow, "It was good to see Logan get his shot and find success in some key situations."
 
The Panthers broke through in the first inning with an unearned run before Fresno State took the lead in the bottom of the first with a two-run home run. The Bulldogs added a run in the third on a wild pitch to take a 3-1 lead.
 
Lane led off the fourth with a base knock before a single off the bat of Justin Hausser. After the pair moved into scoring position on a wild pitch, Tillmon hit a sacrifice fly to pull Milwaukee back within one. Lethert was up next and sent the second pitch he saw through the right side to level the score at three.
 
Montilva faced the minimum in the fourth and fifth before Snow took over and worked through trouble in the sixth. Milwaukee was unable to score in the seventh with a runner on third with two down and went down in order in the top of the eighth.
 
After working around a two-out double in the seventh, Snow let up the go ahead run with a one-out double before yielding a two-run home run as Fresno State doubled up the lead at 6-3. The Bulldogs extended their lead to six with three more runs in the frame to put the game out of reach.
 
"Baseball can be a frustrating game and we have made some mistakes," Wegner added. "This is a good learning opportunity for our team to grow moving forward."
 
Snow took the loss after allowing the go-ahead run, while Jake Riding picked up the win with three innings of relief while allowing just one hit and striking out three. Noah Beal made his first career start for the Bulldogs and struck out nine over six innings of work while allowing all three Panther runs on eight hits.
 
Eddie Saldiva, Murf Gray, and Grady Morgan all had two hits and two RBIs apiece on offense for Fresno State, with Gray and Morgan each had two-run home runs.
 
Milwaukee will look to salvage the final game of the series on Sunday afternoon, when the Panthers and Bulldogs wrap-up their three-game set at 3:00 p.m. on Beiden Field at Bennett Stadium.