Jensen, Anderson Lead Cal Poly to 3-1 Upset of No. 20 Stanford

Tuesday, May 24

Stanford, CA

5:30 pm

27-23

Stanford

30-20

Cal Poly

Stanford

Jensen, Anderson Lead Cal Poly to 3-1 Upset of No. 20 Stanford

5/24/2011 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

STANFORD, Calif. – Junior first baseman Matt Jensen drove in two runs with three hits and junior southpaw Kyle Anderson allowed one run in six innings as Cal Poly earned its first win against No. 20 Stanford in 10 years, beating the Cardinal 3-1 in a non-conference baseball game Tuesday night at Sunken Diamond.

The Mustangs snapped a nine-game losing streak against Stanford with the win, improving to 27-23 for the season. Cal Poly is four games above the .500 mark for the first time this year and lifts its record against top-25 teams to 7-4. The Mustangs have won three straight, six of seven and 16 of their last 23 games.

Jensen (pictured above), hitting .200 at the start of the game, hit his first home run of the season and also added a single and double for his first three-hit game of the season. Designated hitter DJ Gentile and catcher Chris Hoo both added two singles for Cal Poly.

Cal Poly, which clinched a winning season with the victory, was swept by Stanford in 2002, 2003 and 2004, all at Sunken Diamond. The Mustangs earned a 6-5 win in 12 innings over the Cardinal in the inaugural game played at Baggett Stadium in 2001.

Stanford is now 46-6 against Cal Poly in the series which began in 1949 and 17-2 since the Mustangs moved to Division I in July 1994. Stanford 35th-year head coach Mark Marquess is now 28-3 against the Mustangs and Cal Poly ninth-year head coach Larry Lee earned his first win in seven tries against the Cardinal.

Stanford scored the first run of the game as Zach Jones led off the first inning with a double, took third on a sacrifice bunt by Ben Clowe and came home on Tyler Gaffney's single.

Cal Poly tied the game in the second frame. Gentile singled and, two groundouts later, Jensen singled to left-center field to score Gentile.

The Mustangs snapped the deadlock in the fifth. Jensen led off with his initial home run of the season, a 350-foot shot over the fence in left field. Hoo followed with a single, Jimmy Allen walked, both moved up 90 feet on Bobby Crocker's sacrifice bunt and Hoo scored on Evan Busby's safety squeeze bunt.

In the sixth, Jensen doubled to right-field center which would have scored Gentile from first base, but the ball bounced over the wall for a ground-rule double and Gentile was sent back to third base. Hoo flied out to left field, ending the inning.

Trailing by two runs, Stanford had the leadoff hitter reach base in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings, but Cal Poly turned three double plays to get out of the jams.

Kenny Diekroeger drew a walk to lead off the ninth for Stanford, but Cal Poly turned its fourth double play of the game, a season high, and Lonnie Kauppila flied out to right field to end the game.

Anderson (3-5) gave up one run and five hits in six innings for the win, walking two and striking out one.

Freshman right-hander Chase Johnson pitched a scoreless inning in relief of Anderson and senior southpaw Frankie Reed tossed two shutout frames for his third save.

The loss went to Stanford starter Dean McArdle (7-4), who allowed three runs and four hits in four-plus innings with three strikeouts and two walks.

Hits were even at eight apiece. Third baseman Stephen Piscotty singled three times for the Cardinal.

Cal Poly concludes the 2011 regular season with a three-game series Friday through Sunday at Cal State Bakersfield (30-22). The Roadrunners fell 3-1 at San Francisco on Tuesday.