CHICO, Calif. - The 23rd-ranked UC San Diego baseball team was swept by No. 27 Chico State in a California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) doubleheader at Nettleton Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
The Tritons took a 5-2 lead early in game one but were unable to hold on, conceding a 7-6 walk-off decision. They then surrendered a four-run fourth en route to a 5-1 defeat in the nine-inning nightcap.
The results dropped UCSD to 20-11 overall and 10-9 in the CCAA. Chico State matched its season-long win streak of six and improved to 20-6 overall and 10-4 in the CCAA. The Wildcats had blanked the Tritons, 7-0, to begin the three-game set on Friday night, and with Saturday's early triumph, clinched the series victory. It marked Chico's first regular-season series win over UCSD since a 3-1 decision, also at home, in 2007.
Triton senior Troy Cruz, a 2014 All-American and three-time All-CCAA selection as a utility player, made just his second appearance of the year and first on the mound in game two. The Chula Vista native out of Bonita Vista High School, came on in relief to begin the bottom of the fifth inning, and worked around a one-out single.
UCSD returns home on Sunday and awaits another three-game set against an opponent from the CCAA North in Stanislaus State next Saturday and Sunday, April 2-3. First pitch for the Saturday doubleheader is 2 p.m. at Triton Ballpark.
Game One - CSUC 7, UCSD 6
UCSD struck first in the opening frame with one run on three hits, beginning with a leadoff opposite-field single through the right side by JD Hearn, and ending with an RBI double deep to left by fellow first-year transfer Vince Mori.
The Tritons doubled their advantage in the second. Redshirt freshman catcher Michael Palos worked just the second walk of the season off of Wildcat starter Hunter Haworth, but made the second out on a fielder's choice grounder by Brandon Shirley. Shirley then swiped second and took third as Haworth uncorked a wild pitch. That proved costly when Hearn beat out an infield single to plate Shirley.
UCSD already had more hits at that point through two, with four, than it did in getting handed a three-hit shutout in that Friday opener.
Chico State got both runs back in its half of the second. Dillon Kelley drew a leadoff walk from Preston Mott and Cody Snider chopped a double over first baseman Justin Flatt and down the right field line. Josh Falco then lifted a sacrifice fly toward the gap in right center. Shirley made the tough catch, but Kelley tagged to put the home side on the board. Snider moved to third on a groundout, and came to the plate on a perfect bunt single back to Mott by Cody Bistline. The Tritons' freshman left-hander then walked and hit the next two batters to load the bases, and went down 2-0 to Chico's RBI leader, Cameron Santos, before getting him to line out to his shortstop.
UCSD batted around during a three-run fourth to reclaim a 5-2 advantage. Junior leftfielder Christian Leung lead off with his first career home run, skied high and just over the wall in right center. With one away, Palos worked his second walk in as many at-bats off of Haworth, and a play that resulted in two errors on third baseman Andru Cardenas left Tritons at the corners for the top of the order. Haworth fanned Hearn, but Shirley took second on another wild pitch, which made it an easy decision to intentionally walk Jack Larsen and fill the bags. Flatt made the miscues hurt, finding the hole between the first and second baseman for a two-run single.
Chico State pulled one run back in each of its next two turns, starting in the fourth via two-out rally. Three straight singles, the last of them of the run-scoring variety from Sonny Cortez off of new pitcher Tim Nelson, made it 5-3. Back-to-back singles to open the fifth then ultimately led to a two-out RBI single by Cardenas through the right side, after the Tritons were narrowly unable to turn the double play moments before. Nelson finally got Bistline swinging to end it with 'Cats at the corners.
UCSD loaded the bases again in the fifth on a leadoff infield single by Leung, a third walk to Palos, and a two-out hit-by-pitch to Hearn. The Wildcats went to AJ Epstein on the hill to face Larsen, who grounded one to third base for a fielder's choice.
The Tritons extended back to a 6-4 lead in the sixth, taking advantage of some more poor defense by the opponent. Flatt opened with a single up the middle, but as Plantier hit a comebacker to Epstein for what appeared to be a routine double play, the Wildcat middle infielders miscommunicated and let the throw get into center to leave runners at the corners. A double play then brought Flatt across.
Momentum kept shifting as both sides had supreme difficulty putting zeroes on the scoreboard, and Chico got within a run again in the sixth. Kyle Mora relieved fellow freshman right-hander Tim Nelson, and issued a one-out single, and a two-out stolen base set up an RBI single up the middle by Ben Gamba to make it a 6-5 game.
After three straight innings with a single Wildcat run, Mora finally stopped the bleeding with a 1-2-3 seventh on two groundouts around his first strikeout.
The Tritons likewise went down in order in the eighth. Cameron Kurz (Encinitas/La Costa Canyon HS) took over for Mora and his lengthy, eight-pitch battle with pinch-hitter Jerrett Maas resulted in a leadoff walk, ahead of a successful sacrifice to bring up the top of Chico's order. Kurz went 2-0 to leadoff man Cortez, triggering a rare mound visit from Eric Newman as the UCSD head coach called his entire infield in. Kurz (1-1) still threw two more outside the strike zone. Santos then somehow dropped a single down the right field line between Larsen, Hearn and Flatt, and the bases were loaded for Gamba, whose sacrifice fly tied the game once more at 6-6 and was deep enable to advance his other two teammates as well. Kurz then managed to get a groundout to keep the score level.
UCSD gave itself an opportunity to go back ahead in the ninth, but was unable to convert. Mori singled to lead off and was bunted over by pinch-hitter Tim White. Mori then moved to third on a fortuitous wild pitch by Stuart Bradley, but Tyler Howsley's fly ball to left center was a bit too shallow, and Mori was out at the plate.
Kurz hit Snider to begin the last half, and in an effort to cut down the lead runner, threw wide of Howsley on the ensuing sacrifice attempt. A successful bunt by Dallas Porter put the winning run at third with just one gone. Kurz went 0-2 to pinch-hitter Braxton Phillips, who then hit a comebacker that skipped off the leg of Kurz and bounded toward Mori at third while Snider sprinted home with the decisive run.
Mott allowed three runs on four hits, two walks and a hit-by-pitch over 3.2 innings, striking out none. The Clovis product, in the first road action of his young college career, cruised through a quick first on three ground-ball outs, and also retired the heart of the Wildcat lineup in order in the third.
Hearn, in his first appearance at the top of the Triton batting order, went 2-for-4 with a hit-by-pitch and an RBI. Leung finished 2-for-4 with his solo shot. Flatt was 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBI, and also contributed a nice defensive play at first base to open the home fourth, gloving a low throw from Howsley at short. Shirley scored twice. Palos walked a season-best three times, with one run.
Haworth gave up five runs, three of them earned, on seven hits, five walks, one hit-by-pitch and two wild pitches in 4.2 frames. The sophomore right-hander struck out three and had one perfect inning in the third. He had walked just one in 21.1 frames entering the day. Bradley (3-1) picked up the winning decision.
Game Two - CSUC 7, UCSD 2
UCSD saw the first two 'Cats reach in game two, but a 5-3 double play with Mori at third, and a flyout, got Triton starter Alon Leichman out of it.
Just when it looked like Leichman and UCSD had control of the home third, Santos roped a two-out double into the gap in right center, and scooted all the way to third on a bobble there by Shirley. Gamba lined the next pitch into left for an RBI single.
Hearn came right out and opened the fourth with a looped single into center, and on a well-executed hit-and-run play, was able to take third on Larsen's infield single. Plantier's team-best third sacrifice fly tied the game at 1-1.
The deadlock was short-lived, as three straight hits began a Chico fourth that saw the home side bat around and take a commanding 5-1 lead. An RBI triple into the left field corner just past a diving Gradeigh Sanchez, was sandwiched in between a couple of singles. With two away and men at second and third, UCSD's second error of the contest brought in another pair.
Leichman (2-2), a senior right-hander, gave up five runs, three of them earned, on 10 hits and no walks over 4.0 frames. He struck out one.
Junior right-hander Dalton Erb (5-1) retired the first seven Tritons he faced and went 7.0 innings in all. He allowed one run on six hits and one walk, striking out seven, including the side around a one-out single in the third.
Triton Notes: UCSD is 5-6 on the road ... The Tritons have dropped four straight for the first time this year ... Tyler Howsley has started 88 straight games, all at shortstop, dating back to the 2015 opener ... Howsley and Jack Larsen are the only Tritons to start all 31 games in 2016 ... Brandon Shirley hit No. 9 for the third and fourth straight games ... Gradeigh Sanchez was not in the starting lineup in game one for the first time since the doubleheader nightcap on Feb. 13, but entered as a defensive replacement and has appeared in all 31 games with 29 starts ... Game One: Preston Mott drew his seventh collegiate start and took his sixth no-decision ... Vince Mori's first-inning double was his fourth ... Shirley's second-inning steal was his team-best sixth on six tries, and UCSD's 20th on the season on 27 attempts ... Christian Leung's fourth-inning home run was the Tritons' ninth ... Tyler Howsley's fifth-inning sacrifice bunt was his team-best sixth after also pacing the squad with 10 a year ago ... UCSD lost just its second game when scoring three or more runs, now at 19-2 ... The Tritons have now suffered two walk-off defeats in 2016 ... UCSD is 6-4 in one-run games ... Game Two: Alon Leichman made his 20th start for UCSD and team-high eighth this year … Leichman surrendered 10-plus hits for a third outing in a row.
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