LOS ANGELES -- Cal State LA's baseball team came on strong in the final innings of Saturday's California Collegiate Athletic Association doubleheader against Sonoma State.
The Golden Eagles scored seven runs in their final two at bats to record an 8-5 win over the Seawolves and earn a doubleheader split. Cal State LA (21-15, 18-13 CCAA) dropped the opener, 8-7. The Golden Eagles are in third place, one game behind UC San Diego and three back of Cal State Monterey Bay. Sonoma State (21-16, 17-14 CCAA) is one game further back.
Cal State LA collected eight of its 11 hits in the fifth and sixth innings to turn the nightcap around. The Golden Eagles won despite issuing nine walks in the seven innings.
Joey Deceglie pitched five innings to get the win, allowing four hits and three earned runs while walking seven and striking out five. He improved to 6-2 on the season.
Dylan Suppan gave up an unearned run over the next 1 2/3 innings and
Sean Watkins retired the only batter he faced to preserve the win in the seventh.
Anthony Ayala went 4-for-4 with two runs scored, while
Jorge Garcia and
Nic Bereaud each had two hits and drove in three.
Andre Gregory scored twice and drove in two.
The Golden Eagles trailed, 4-1 entering the bottom of the fifth, but scored four times to take the lead for good.
Spencer Sundahl,
Randy Buenrostro and Ayala singled to load the bases to start the inning. Gregory drew a bases-loaded walk to force in one run and Garcia singled to left to make it 4-3. Bereaud delivered a clutch two-out, two-run single to give the Golden Eagles the lead for good.
Cal State LA added three more runs in the sixth. Garcia drove in two runs with a single and Bereaud singled in one to make it 8-4.
Sonoma State got one run in the seventh on a double by Zach Guardino, but Watkins came on with two on and two out and got the only batter he faced on a fly out to end it.
Cal State LA saw a late rally come up short in the opener. The Golden Eagles trailed 6-3 heading into the bottom of the seventh, but got two runs back on a run-scoring triple by Garcia and a sacrifice fly by Watkins. The Seawolves scored two runs courtesy of a key throwing error to take a 8-5 lead in the ninth.
Cal State LA got a two-run single by Watkins to make it 8-7, but Grant St. Martin struck out the final two batters of the game to record the save for the Seawolves.
Ayala was 3-for-4 with two runs scored, Watkins had three RBI and
Adam Gordon was 2-for-3 for the Golden Eagles.
James Mendez allowed five hits and two runs over five innings while walking three and striking out four.
Cal State LA will conclude the series with Sonoma State on Sunday with a single game beginning at 11 a.m.
