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Long Beach State (9-17, 4-7) appeared to be in control on multiple occasions on Saturday night, earning multiple leads of four or more runs against the visiting UC Irvine Anteaters (10-16, 2-6).

Unfortunately for the home side, their recurring bullpen issues returned, with an array of Dirtbags hurlers struggling to find the strike zone, opening the door for multiple UCI comebacks.

It took over four-and-a-half hours and 11 innings, but the visiting Anteaters eventually emerged with a 12-9 victory to even the weekend series on Bohl Diamond at Blair Field.

“This was a tough one,” said Long Beach State head coach TJ Bruce. “I think today was all self-inflicted. Just too many freebies. I think we had 17 freebies, and when you do that, when you play a really well-coached team, it’s tough to overcome. So like I told our guys, you’ve got to shower well, you’ve got to move on. It’s going to be a quick turnaround. They won’t get in bed ‘til midnight tonight, but they’ve got a chance to win the series and that’s always the goal going forward.”

After scoring four runs in the bottom of the first inning, the Dirtbags had some breathing room with freshman Luke Howe on the mound. He held UC Irvine scoreless through the first five innings, and Luke Taylor’s RBI single in the third made it a 5-0 advantage for Long Beach State.

But things changed in the 6th, as Howe opened the frame with a 10-pitch walk to UCI cleanup hitter Zach Fjelstad. Howe would surrender five hits in the inning–three singles and two doubles–as the Anteaters pushed five runs across to tie the game.

Three of those runs scored with two outs, on three consecutive base hits for UCI. Howe’s pitch count swelled into triple digits during the inning, and he was sitting at 107 pitches before Frankie Carney’s at-bat, which resulted in the game-tying single. He eventually got out of the inning with 117 pitches thrown in his outing.

Bruce explained the decision to stick with Howe, who was entrusted to figure things out without a mound visit as UCI sent all nine of their hitters to the plate during the inning.

“The last two weeks, our two freshmen have given us chances to win games,” said Bruce, in reference to Howe and Sunday starter Jason Gerfers. “And as you saw by the result of the game, there’s a reason why we left him out there as long as we could. I think leaving him out there will pay dividends for his career down the road and the program. He’s going to have the ability to work through some things. I think it shows him confidence from a coaching staff perspective. It may or may not have been the right move. I think it was the right move for that time. But I think long-term it’ll pay off.”

Including the leadoff walk that started the 6th inning rally, the six Dirtbags pitchers used on Saturday issued 12 walks over the final six innings of the game. Five of those came during a back-breaking 8th inning, which saw a pair of runs score via bases-loaded walks.

Another two-out hit for the Anteaters got the game tied, as Noah Alvarez singled up the middle to bring home a pair of runners and tie the game, 9-9.

That erased LBSU’s second four-run inning of the night, which came as an immediate response back in the bottom of the 6th. After three walks loaded the bases for LBSU, Reid Montgomery delivered a clutch go-ahead single to make it a 7-5 Dirtbags lead. Jake Evans tacked on an RBI double, followed by a run-scoring grounder from Trotter Enright.

Unfortunately, that was the end of the offense for the Dirtbags, as they mustered just two hits the rest of the night.

An infield single and a pair of free passes set the table for Irvine in the 11th, and Alonso Reyes delivered a bases-clearing triple, under Montgomery’s diving attempt in left and all the way to the outfield fence.

The nine runs were a bright spot for the offense, led by leadoff man Trevor Goldenetz who reached base five times thanks to two hits, two walks and a hit by pitch. He also scored twice while bumping his season average to an impressive .411 mark.

Montgomery and Luke Taylor each had a pair of RBIs for Long Beach State, and Enright also had a multi-hit effort.

While it was a tough night overall for the bullpen, Joey Iglesias threw the ball well, striking out four in 2.1 scoreless frames, though he did allow a pair of inherited runners to score. Ka’imi Kahalekai also had a productive cameo, striking out both batters he faced as he looks to get back on track after some recent struggles.

The Dirtbags will turn to standout freshman Jason Gerfers on Sunday at 1 p.m. with a chance to win the series. He’s coming off a pair of complete game performances and is the two-time Big West Pitcher of the Week.