Junior catcher Reece Lucero (Albuquerque, N.M./La Cueva HS) collected three hits and three RBI as part of a 15-hit night as No. 25 Dixie State defeated Fresno Pacific, 9-6, in the opening game of a four-game Pacific West Conference series Thursday night at Bruce Hurst Field. The win was DSU's (25-6/13-4 PacWest) seventh-straight overall and the fifth victory on the Storm's current eight-game homestand.

FPU (13-17/8-8 PacWest) jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead thanks to a pair of two-out run in the first and second innings. Dixie State came back to tie the game at 2-2 in home half of the second with a little two-out rally of its own thanks to consecutive RBI-hits from Lucero and junior infielder Tyler Mildenberg (Huntington Beach, Calif./Marina HS).

The Sunbirds would answer right back with two unearned runs in the third, but DSU took the lead for good with five runs in the bottom of that stanza. The Storm sent 10 batters to the plate in the frame and connected for six hits, including a two-run single from Lucero, followed by run scoring hits from Mildenberg and senior shortstop Tanner Morache (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada/Surrey HS).

DSU added a pair of insurance runs in the middle innings, with Drew McLaughlin (Scottsdale, Ariz./Desert Mountain HS) doubling home Lucero in the fifth, and Miles Bice (Henderson, Nev./Coronado HS) picked up an RBI-single in the sixth. Those runs turned out to be needed as the Sunbirds scored two runs in the eighth and almost had a third run after a two-out base hit to right field that scored one run, but Storm RF Trey Kamachi (Kapolei, Hawai'i/Kapolei HS) fired a strike to Lucero at home to cut down Sunbird baserunner Hunter Villanueva at the plate to end the threat.

In all three DSU relievers combined limited FPU to just seven hits and two runs (one earned) over the final six innings to close out the game. Junior lefthander Walker Williams (Grand Junction, Colo./Fruita Monument HS) (W, 1-0) worked 3.1 scoreless innings and scattered four hits to earn his first victory of the season, while senior closer Spencer Greer (Woodinville, Wash./Woodinville HS) (S, 3) pitched a spotless ninth to pick up the save.

Mildenberg finished with a season-high three hits, while McLaughlin, Bice and Jerome Hill II (Pittsburg, Calif./Pittsburg HS) each had two hits and an RBI.

Dixie State continues its series vs. Fresno Pacific with a doubleheader Friday beginning at 4 p.m., followed by the series and homestand finale Saturday at 12 noon.

NOTES: Dixie State scored seven two-out runs on the night, while FPU tallied three two-out runs … McLaughlin extended his current hitting streak to 12 games, which is his second double-digit hit streak of the season … McLaughlin also opened the season with a 10-game hitting streak senior 1B Samuel Hall (Ogden, Utah/Bonneville HS) saw his 15-game hitting streak halted after going hitless in five plate appearances ... after walking only five batters the entire Hilo series, including no walks in the final two games of the set, DSU walked five hitters vs. FPU Thursday … DSU has reached double figures in hits in 21 games and has scored at least one run in all 31 games this season.