WSU Cougar Baseball: 9-7 Upset of No. 1 Cal State Fullerton Sign of Things to Come?

Jun 8, 2013; Fullerton, CA, USA; Cal State Fullerton Titans players react after a 3-4 loss against the UCLA Bruins during the Fullerton super regional of the 2013 NCAA baseball tournament at Goodwin Field. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

In baseball, things move a little differently than in other sports. Upsets are easier to accomplish, after all, you get three or four shots at knocking off the team you’re playing. So winning a game doesn’t necessarily count as much as winning the series. If you do that you accomplished a true ‘victory’.

That said, when you can knock of No. 1 in even one of three opening weekend games, it’s pretty tough to you haven’t done anything on opening weekend. The Washington State Cougars did that on Saturday and gets an even bigger boost because it was on the road at Cal State Fullerton.

I won’t pretend to have watched the game (for a recap you can click HERE), I’m not much of a baseball guy anymore and Lew might do more with the baseball side than I do this Spring, but I know more than a few people that think this Cougar baseball team could be the start of something special at WSU. I think we may have seen a glimpse of that on Saturday.

Anytime a No. 1 team comes back from a 7-3 deficit and takes you to extra frames (especially after a 12-0 romp the night before), you expect that somehow they’re going to find a way to beat you. When you come out on top with your best players coming through in the clutch (thank you for the two-out, bases-loaded game winning single Jason Monda) it gives you a certain confidence about the season.

We’ll see if coach Donnie Marbut the Cougs can get the series today at 1 pm, which would be a truly huge accomplishment to start their season. But even if they don’t they’ve done a big thing in taking a game out of Fullerton and can build confidence around it. Hopefully that’s a sign of things to come on the Palouse this Spring. If it is I have a feeling a few more Cougs than normal, including myself, may be paying more attention to our baseball team.