June 16, 2008

Bulldogs, Synonymous with Underdogs

Fresno State doesn't mind the monicker

By Phil Stanton

CollegeBaseballInsider.com Co-Founder

OMAHA, Neb. – They don’t mind being underdogs.

Fresno State has been on the road since mid-May. Since winning their third consecutive WAC title on May 25, the Bulldogs have been underdogs.

FS was the four-seed in the Long Beach Regional. The Bulldogs beat the host Dirtbags and then beat No. 2 San Diego twice to take the title, just the second four-seed to win a regional.

The Bulldogs advanced to the Tempe Super Regional to face Arizona State, the No. 3 national seed. After dropping the opener, FS won the final two games to return to Omaha for the first time since 1991.

Fresno State kept it going in its first CWS game, throttling No. 6 Rice 17-5.

“This is our fifth week in a row on the road,” said FS head coach Mike Batesole, “and each week has gotten a little bit more difficult. Beating Long Beach in Long Beach might have been the toughest one of all of them, and then getting a great USD staff there also. Tempe is a tough place to play. We’ve seen some great pitching the last couple weeks.”

The players don’t mind being underdogs.

“I think that’s been a big part of what’s gotten us this far,” said Bulldog junior Gavin Hedstrom. “As far as being an underdog, I think that’s almost an advantage. We love proving that we’re better than everybody says we are. That’s really, really helped us from the start.”

Even the fans have embraced it. One t-shirt said “From Underdogs to Wonderdogs.”