SAN DIEGO (Interstat) — Neil Jansen homered twice and drove in three runs to lift San Jose State to a 9-4 victory over San Diego State on Saturday in a Mountain West series at USD Sports Center.

Jansen, the Spartans’ designated hitter, went 2 for 4 with his fourth and fifth home runs of the season. He broke a scoreless tie in the second inning with a solo shot to left center and added a two-run blast in the fifth that extended San Jose State’s lead. The Spartans improved to 21-25 overall; the Aztecs fell to 31-20.

San Jose State struck first in the top of the first when Alex Fernandes drew a leadoff walk. The Spartans stranded him after a pop-up, a lineout and a strikeout. The game remained scoreless until the top of the second, when Jansen launched his first homer of the day, giving the Spartans a 1-0 lead.

San Diego State answered in the bottom of the second. Max Farrell hit his seventh home run of the season to left field, tying the game 1-1. The Aztecs, however, could not sustain momentum.

The Spartans regained control in the third. Rocco Caballero singled up the middle, and Fernandes followed with a two-run homer to right center, his seventh of the year, scoring Caballero to make it 3-1. The Spartans added three more runs in the fourth. After a single by Caballero and a balk that put Cota on third, Liam Mendoza delivered a sacrifice fly to left center, scoring Cota. Caballero then singled to third, driving in Jansen for a 5-1 advantage.

San Diego State cut the deficit in the bottom of the third. After a walk to Kelly and a groundout, Jake Jackson doubled to left center, driving in Kelly to make it 5-2. Jackson later homered in the fifth, a two-run shot to left center that scored Santana and brought the Aztecs within 9-4. That was as close as they would get.

The Spartans broke the game open in the fifth. Peyton Rowles singled, stole second and third, and scored on a fielder’s choice by Cota. Jansen then followed with his second homer, a two-run blast to deep left that scored Cota and pushed the lead to 9-2. Rowles added a sacrifice fly in the sixth that plated Caballero for the final margin.

San Jose State’s offense totaled 10 hits, led by Caballero’s 3-for-3 performance with an RBI and a walk. Fernandes went 2 for 4 with a home run, two RBIs and a stolen base. Rowles drove in a run and stole two bases.

San Diego State managed five hits, with Jackson going 2 for 4 with a home run and three RBIs. Farrell also homered and had two hits. The Aztecs were held scoreless after the fifth inning.

On the mound, San Jose State starter Jesse Gutierrez worked five innings, allowed four earned runs on no hits – the runs came via homers and a double – and struck out two. Luka Pintar relieved Gutierrez in the sixth and threw four perfect innings, facing the minimum 12 batters and striking out one to earn a hold.

San Diego State starter Simon Lemke pitched two scoreless innings in relief, allowing no hits and striking out one. Evan Miranda worked the ninth and gave up one hit but no runs.

The game was the second of a three-game series. San Diego State had won the opener 11-1 on Friday. The series concludes Sunday.

Interstat’s game simulator projected a 7-6 San Diego State victory. Interstat’s ELO system gave the Aztecs a 57.10 percent probability to win.