SALT LAKE CITY, Utah -- Aaron Casillas doubled off the wall in right field with two outs in the ninth inning, driving in two runs to snap a 4-4 tie, as Cal Poly clinched its non-conference baseball series at Utah with a 6-4 victory Sunday afternoon.
Carlo Lopiccolo pitched 3 1/3 scoreless hitless innings with four strikeouts for his first win of the season and second as a Mustang, leading Cal Poly to its first series win on the road this season.
Cal Poly is 18-31 for the season while Utah fell to 21-29-1. The Muistangs are 11-4 in their series against the Utes, which resumed this weekend after a 21-year absence.
Carlo Lopiccolo celebrates 6-4 win over Utah
with catcher Ryan Stafford on Sunday.
Cal Poly jumped to a 3-0 lead in the first inning. A comebacker off the bat of Collin Villegas tallied the first run, Casillas doubled down the right-field line to make it 2-0 and Joe Yorke capped the rally with an RBI single to right-center field.
Utah scored twice in the third and the Mustangs got that run back in the sixth as Tate Shimao doubled and came home on a single up the middle by Jake Steels.
The Utes produced another two-run rally in the home half of the sixth to tie the game at 4-4, Matt Flaharty hitting an 0-2 pitch up the middle for a two-run single.
It stayed that way until the ninth. Steels and Ryan Stafford both drew walks and, with two outs, Casillas hit an 0-2 pitch over the head of Utah right fielder TJ Clarkson, scoring both Steels and Stafford.
Lopiccolo retired the side in order in the bottom of the ninth, two via strikeout, to close it out.
Lopiccolo (1-3) did not allow a walk and threw just 37 pitches in a dominating performance on the mound. He faced the minimum 10 batters, one reaching base after he was hit by a pitch but erased on a double play.
He followed two Mustang left handers -- starter Travis Weston and reliever Jakob Wright, both of whom gave up two runs. Wright struck out four over 3 2/3 innings before giving way to Lopiccolo.
Cal Poly's 12-hit offensive attack included a 4-for-5 day at the place by Casillas, his first four-hit game as a Mustang. The CSU Bakersfield transfer doubled twice, singled twice and knocked in three runs.
Steels and Yorke each had two hits and one RBI for the Mustangs.
Jayden Kiernan led Utah with a single and double while Kai Roberts added a double.
The loss was charged to Blake Whiting (2-3), who retired the first six Cal Poly batters he faced before allowing both runs in the ninth. Starter Cam Day struck out seven over five innings but allowed all three runs in the first inning and walked three.
The Mustangs, who won three of four games in a week for the first time this season, was led in the series by Steels as the Allan Hancock College transfer went 7-for-12 at the plate. Casillas was 7-for-14 with two doubles and seven RBIs while Ryan Fenn was 5-for-12.
Cal Poly plays its last midweek game of the year Tuesday, hosting Fresno State at 5 p.m. inside Baggett Stadium. The Mustangs already own 15-5 and 11-3 victories over the Bulldogs.
Cal Poly returns to Big West Conference play next weekend at UC Santa Barbara.
