UC Irvine Clinches Big West Series Against Cal Poly With 6-5 Victory

Sunday, May 10

Irvine, CA

1 pm

23-25, 10-8

UC Irvine

31-17, 13-5

Cal Poly

UC Irvine

UC Irvine Clinches Big West Series Against Cal Poly With 6-5 Victory

5/10/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

MOTHER'S DAY WISHES FROM THE MUSTANGS

IRVINE, Calif. – Despite home runs by Zack Zehner and John Schuknecht in the late innings, Cal Poly dropped a 6-5 decision to No. 23 UC Irvine in the finale of a Big West Conference baseball series Sunday afternoon, Mother's Day, at Anteater Ballpark.

The Anteaters (31-17 overall) clinched the series, two games to one, with the win and moved back into a tie for first place with Cal State Fullerton. Both are 13-5 in Big West ganes as the Titans fell 3-2 to UC Santa Barbara. The Gauchos are third at 12-6 while the Mustangs are fourth at 10-8 and 23-25 for the season.

Cal Poly scored an unearned run in the fourth inning to close an early UC Irvine lead to 2-1 before the Anteaters took command of the game with a pair of runs in both the fifth and sixth frames.

Cal Poly mounted a comeback, scoring twice in both the seventh and eighth innings and loading the bases with three singles in the ninth, but Ryan Drobny's hard comebacker off the foot of UC Irvine closer Sam Moore resulted in the final out of the game.

Zehner belted a two-run home run in the seventh, his ninth of the year and driving in his 42nd and 43rd runs. Schuknecht led off the eighth with his fifth homer of the season and Cal Poly added another run on a sacrifice fly to left by Mark Mathias.

Cal Poly outhit UC Irvine 12-9.

Jordan Ellis, Drobny and Tommy Pluschkell, the seventh, eighth and ninth hitters in the Mustang batting order, each had two hits along with Zehner. Mathias led off the game with a single, extending his hitting streak to a career-best 18 games, while Ellis and Zehner have hit in 12 straight games.

Kris Paulino, Mikey Duarte and Keston Hiura, the top three batters in the UC Irvine order, all had two hits apiece.

Senior southpaw Evan Manarino (6-2) allowed three runs and seven hits in 6 2/3 innings for his sixth win, striking out five and walking three. Moore secured the final six outs of the game for his fifth save.

The loss went to Taylor Chris (2-2), another senior left-hander. In his first career start after 77 relief appearances as a Mustang, Chris gave up six runs and eight hits in 5 2/3 innings with two walks and four strikeouts.

Cal Poly plays its final three home games of the 2015 season next weekend, hosting UC Riverside for a Big West series at Baggett Stadium. Friday's game begins at 6 p.m., followed by 1 o'clock contests Saturday and Sunday.