CARSON – For the second consecutive homestand the Cal State Dominguez Hills baseball team had to race against daylight to get two games in Sunday. With merely minutes remaining, the Toros and Cal State San Marcos as the Cougars took game one 12-10 in 13 innings and game two 4-2 to take the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) series.
 
The highlight of the day for the Toros (5-9, 2-6 CCAA) was Nick Suniga, who in despite taking the game one defeat threw five solid innings of relief allowing one hit and striking out nine to miss his personal best by one set last season.
 
Game 1 – CSUSM 12, CSUDH 10 (13 Innings)
Although the Cougars (9-5, 4-4 CCAA) struck first with a run in the fourth inning, they became their own enemy when three errors benefited the Toros with seven runs to take a 7-1 lead. Dominguez Hills tallied seven of their 19 hits in that inning, including two from Daryl Donerson.
 
Even though the Toros got another run in the sixth, they couldn't maintain the six-run lead as the Cougars scored four runs in the seventh and eighth innings to tie the game 8-runs apiece.
 
Suniga kept the Cougars as soon as he checked in with two outs in the eighth, throwing no-hit ball until the 13^th. San Marcos got a base hit and a pair of walks to load the bases and a two-run single broke the tie. The Cougars got two more runs that inning to take a 12-8 lead.
 
Dominguez Hills did try to answer back in the bottom half of the inning. Charles Steele led off with a single up the middle and Donerson got his third base hit of the game to setup for a two-run double by James.
 
Joe Mercado made it through five innings with five strikeouts and allowing three earned runs on eight hits and two walks. His opposite Taylor Greene went 5.1 innings allowing one earned run, seven unearned.
 
Game 2 – CSUSM 4, CSUDH 2
In his first start as a Toro, right-hander Ray Diaz went from the beginning to the end allowing one earned run in the sixth and striking out six.
 
But errors haunted the Toros as three had allowed as many unearned runs across that proved to be the difference in the game.
 
Dominguez Hills did get two runs back on extra-base hits. Gomez and Duarte each doubled to score in the first run in the third and Kaelen Crisosto hit his first homer of the season in the fourth to make it a 3-3 game.
 
The Toros had one chance to break the tie in the fifth inning when Duarte reached third on two singles but was stranded.
 
Duarte and Gomez each had two of the seven combined hits.
 
Cougar starter Troy Lamparello also went from start to finish on the mound, striking out seven on the way.
 
The Toros will begin a four-game series with Cal State San Bernardino Thursday at 2 p.m.