Game 1 Box

Game 2 Box

LOS ANGELES – Cal State L.A.'s baseball team had leads in both ends of a California Collegiate Athletic Association doubleheader with No. 3 UC San Diego, but wound up with nothing to show for it.

 

The Golden Eagles lost a 3-1 lead halfway through a 13-6 defeat in the opener and then watched a 4-1 lead get away late in a 5-4 loss in the nightcap to the Tritons. Cal State L.A. (17-24, 15-17 CCAA), after winning the opener of a four-game series, lost the final three games to the conference-leading Tritons (37-6, 27-5 CCAA).

 

The Golden Eagles had a frustrating afternoon. Cal State L.A. actually outhit the Tritons, 18-17, in the opener, but UC San Diego got home runs from Aaron Bauman, Evan Kehoe and Kyle Saul and its pitchers stranded a staggering 16 runners on base.

 

The Golden Eagles then rode the outstanding starting pitching effort from Rory Young in the nightcap, only to see the Tritons bunch together four hits, two walks and one hit batter to score four times in the sixth and erase a 4-1 deficit. Daniel Simmons took it from there, blanking the Golden Eagles over the last two innings to close things out.

 

The opener was a wild contest that featured 35 hits, nine walks and 27 runners left on base.

 

Mario Ramirez was 4-for-5 for the Golden Eagles, while Sam Wiley and Max Moya had three hits each. Brandon Gregorich had four hits for the Tritons, while Saul had three hits and three RBI, Evan Kehoe had two hits and four RBI and Grant Bauer had two hits and three RBI.

 

The Tritons got a first-inning home run from Bauman, but Cal State L.A. scored three times in the third on a run-scoring double by Wiley and run-scoring singles by Jordan Castro and Moya to take a 3-1 edge.

 

Cal State L.A. starter Camron Collard kept the Tritons in check until tiring in the fifth. Kehoe slugged a grand slam home run to give the Tritons the lead for good at 5-3. Bauer added a two-run double later in the inning off reliever Brendan McQuaid.

 

UC San Diego broke things open with three runs in the sixth on a three-run home run by Saul and two more in the seventh.

 

Cal State L.A. scored its final three runs in the seventh. Joe Park scored on a wild pitch, Ramirez drove in a run with a sacrifice fly and Wiley singled in a run.

 

Kirby St. John got the win for the Tritons, scattering 14 hits and allowing only three runs over 5 2/3 innings.

 

The nightcap was much different as starting pitchers Young and UC San Diego's Guido Knudsen kept the offenses quiet. The Tritons scored a run in the second on a sacrifice fly by Bauer, only to see the Golden Eagles tie it in the bottom half of the inning on a home run by Moya.

 

Cal State L.A. scored three times in the third to take a 4-1 lead. Ramirez doubled in two runs and later scored on a sacrifice fly by Castro.

 

Young allowed only five hits and one run through five strong innings. He turned things over to Matt Stropoli, who had earned the save in the first game of the series with a perfect ninth inning. On Saturday, he was greeted by a two-run home run by Kellen Lee to make it 4-3. Gregorich, who was 8-for-9 in the doubleheader, tied it with a run-scoring single and a single by Saul put the Tritons ahead, 5-4. Centerfielder Park alertly nailed base runner Kehoe taking too large a turn around second, which wiped out an apparent second run on Saul's two-out hit.

 

Cal State L.A. will play its final four home games next week beginning with a Friday night game against Sonoma State beginning at 6 p.m.