LOS ANGELES – Cal State L.A.'s baseball team got an absolute gem from senior pitcher Icezack Flemming in a series-opening win over UC San Diego on Thursday.
 
In a pitcher's matchup that drew a dozen or so scouts, Flemming pitched the Golden Eagles to a 3-2 victory over UC San Diego in a California Collegiate Athletic Association game at Reeder Field. Cal State L.A. (27-18, 22-15 CCAA) scored three times in the first inning off conference earned run average leader Justin Donatella and Flemming made it stand up in an electric complete-game performance.
 
Flemming picked up his conference-leading ninth win and allowed only three hits – all singles – and no earned runs while walking two and striking out eight.
 
Donatella, who surrendered a season-high 11 hits while falling to 8-2, went 7 2/3 innings, didn't walk a batter and struck out six. UC San Diego (30-16, 25-12 CCAA) fell out of a share of the conference lead with the loss.
 
Trent Zaks and Dakota Hernandez collected three hits each for the Golden Eagles, while Jesus Cuevas went 1-for-4 with a big two-run double that opened the scoring. Hernandez singled in Cuevas to complete the first-inning rally.
 
Flemming sailed through the first seven innings and carried a one-hitter into the eighth when he had to dig deep to preserve the lead in an inning he should have escaped unscathed. Andrew Hobson reached on an error to start the inning and Brandon Shirley got another chance after his fly ball was lost in the lights and fell just foul. He then singled to put two on with no one out instead having two outs with no one on.
 
Tyler Howsley drove in the first run on a fielder's choice and Troy Cruz hit a sacrifice fly to right for the second run. Flemming then struck out Michael Mann to end the inning.
 
He then retired the Tritons in order in the ninth inning to record his third complete game of the season.
 
After a two-out single to Howsley in the third, Flemming retired 13 of the next 14 batters before the streak was broken by the error in the eighth.
 
The Golden Eagles had chances against Donatella after the first, but the UC San Diego starter was able to keep his team in the game and seemed to get stronger as the game went on. Cal State L.A. had three hits in the fourth inning, but couldn't score and had hits in every inning until the sixth. Donatella then retired nine in a row until allowing a two-out hit to Jake Jelmini in the eighth. Javier Carrillo retired the only batter he faced to get out of the inning.
 
Cal State L.A. will play its final home game of the season on Friday night and will honor 16 seniors. The senior ceremony is scheduled to begin at 5:50 p.m.