TURLOCK — It started slow, sped up, then finished with dramatics.
 
That is, Grant Bunker's final at-bat – AND – Tuesday's game itself did.
 
Bunker came up with two outs in the bottom of the ninth and got ahead in the count, then fell behind, finally working the count full before sending a walk-off home run over the center field fence to beat visiting Holy Names, as the Warriors earned a thrilling 5-4 non-conference win over the Hawks at Warrior Field.
 
Bunker stepped up to the plate with two outs in the bottom of the ninth as the Warriors' leader in home runs and second in RBIs. The Hawks (17-29) had just tied the game at 4-4 in the top half of the ninth on a wild pitch, erasing a 4-3 lead that Stanislaus State (14-28) had held since the fifth. And the Warriors' first two batters of the ninth had both worked deep into counts, but came up empty.
 
Bunker did the same – but with a different result.
 
He got ahead in the count, 1-0, then fouled two pitches off to fall behind, 1-2. Extra innings looked imminent until he took back-to-back balls and worked the count full at 3-2.
 
That's when he launched a ball deep to center field. Holy Names center fielder Colton Combs at first ran back calmly, then sped up his pursuit of the ball, and as he kept running back – looking like he was tracking the ball to make an inning-ending catch – he ran out of room and the ball sailed over the center field fence to end it.
 
"I definitely wasn't trying to hit a home run, I'm just trying to hit a ball hard," said Bunker. "3-2 count, you kind of just gotta expect fastball and if he throws a good pitch, he throws a good pitch. But he threw a fastball over the middle.
 
"I don't really try to pull the ball. I try to hit fastballs the other way, and if he throws offspeed pitches I'll pull those."
 
Bunker finished the game going 2 for 4 with a home run and a double. He scored three of the Warriors' five runs and had an RBI. Trevor McInerney went 1 for 3 with two RBIs, a run scored and a stolen base. Matt Elser also homered in the game, hitting a two-run shot in the bottom of the first that put Stan State up, 3-0, at the time.
 
Tuesday's game was destined to be a long one in terms of game time. Both teams were coming off grueling four-game conference series over the weekend, and each were planning on going "Johnny All-Staff" for the day. As expected, the first 1 1/2 innings took 43 minutes – on pace for a nearly 4 1/2-hour game. The teams combined for six runs on nine hits and an error in the first 1 1/2 innings, including one big Stanislaus State error that let three unearned HNU runs come across.
 
But then the game sped up, and by the time the top of the ninth came, the game hadn't yet reached the 2 1/2 hour mark. But Holy Names went to work.
 
Pinch-hitter Jake Creamer battled for a one-out, eight-pitch walk. Then Neko Capsaliaris singled and Creamer moved all the way to third. Two pitches later, he came home on a wild pitch and tied the game at 4-4. But Trent Huff (1-0) came in for his second consecutive appearance, and like Sunday's two-inning save he earned, was very efficient. He got the final two outs on five total pitches.
 
The game wound up having a mini pitchers' duel in the middle of it between Stan State's Austin Balentine and HNU's Ryu Umeda. Balentine threw five innings of one-hit, shutout relief, striking out six and only walking one. Umeda threw four innings in relief, only allowing one run and striking out three. Holy Names had three multi-hit performances from Capsaliaris, Combs and Tyler Georgeson.
 
Stanislaus State takes the weekend off before hosting Cal State San Marcos in a season-ending, four-game California Collegiate Athletic Association series starting May 5. The Warriors will honor their seniors on Senior Day on May 7. Fans can purchase tickets and find all live coverage links on WarriorAthletics.com.