27-22, 8-9
UC Irvine
28-20, 8-9
UC Irvine Evens Big West Series, Taking Advantage of Five Cal Poly Errors
5/14/2016 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — UC Irvine shattered a 2-1 game with nine runs in the final three innings en route to an 11-2 victory over Cal Poly in a Big West Conference baseball game Saturday night before 1,331 inside Baggett Stadium.
Coach Larry Lee's Mustangs committed a season-high five errors and, one night after scoring nine runs on 13 hits in a 9-1 victory, was held to just two runs and six hits by the visiting Anteaters as the series is even at a game apiece.
Cal Poly fell to 27-22 overall while UC Irvine improved to 28-20. Both teams are tied for fifth place in the Big West with 8-9 marks, a half-game behind idle UC Riverside.
Cal Poly and UC Irvine traded solo home runs in the first two innings. Shortstop John Brontsema hit his first of the year in the first inning and right fielder John Schuknecht answered with his fifth of the season in the second frame.
UC Irvine snapped the 1-1 deadlock in the sixth inning on Keston Hiura's sacrifice fly to center field and the Anteaters added five more in the seventh and four in the ninth to pull away.
Dylan Doherty's bloop double down the left-field line pushed across Cal Poly's final run in the bottom of the ninth.
Alonzo Garcia (5-4) pitched 5 1/3 innings for the win, allowing one run and three hits with four walks and one strikeout.
The loss was charged to Austin Dondanville (1-1) as he allowed the go-ahead run in the sixth inning. Each of the five Cal Poly pitchers used in the game gave up at least one run.
Cal Poly starter, freshman right-hander Craig Colen (pictured above), allowed one run and two hits over five innings with one walk and five strikeouts, leaving the game in a 1-1 tie.
UC Irvine's 14-hit offensive attack included a double and two singles by first baseman Mitchell Holland. Brontsema and catcher Alex Guenette each added two hits.
No Mustang collected more than one hit.
Final game of the series will be played Sunday at 1 o'clock with Cal Poly junior right-hander Justin Calomeni (3-2, 3.28 ERA) to face UC Irvine sophomore southpaw Cameron Bishop (5-4, 4.47 ERA).
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Garcia, Alonzo (5-4)
L: Dondanville, Austin (1-1)
Batting:
2B: Holland, Mitchell 1 ; Coss, Parker 1
3B: Martinez, Andrew 1
HR: Brontsema, John 1 ; Alcantara, Adam 1
RBI: Martinez, Andrew 2 ; Brontsema, John 1 ; Hiura, Keston 1 ; Holland, Mitchell 1 ; Alcantara, Adam 3
SF: Hiura, Keston 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Cassolato, Evan 1 ; Castro, Wyatt 1 ; Brontsema, John 3 ; Hiura, Keston 2 ; Holland, Mitchell 1 ; Alcantara, Adam 1 ; Coss, Parker 1 ; Guenette, Alex 1
SB: Cassolato, Evan 2 ; Brontsema, John 1
CS: Kreuter, Cole 1
Batting:
2B: Doherty, Dylan 1
HR: Schuknecht, John 1
RBI: Schuknecht, John 1 ; Doherty, Dylan 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Schuknecht, John 1 ; George, Josh 1
PO: Schuknecht, John 1
