13-7, 7-0
UC Davis
9-10, 4-3
Mustangs Outlast Aggies 12-11 in Explosive Offensive Duel
3/21/2026 10:07:00 PM | Baseball
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Cal Poly's 12 runs and 19 hits almost were not enough. Nick Bonn, however, closed the door on UC Davis in the ninth inning for his Big West-leading sixth save as the Mustangs held on for a 12-11 win over the visiting Aggies on Saturday afternoon.
Cal Poly led 12-6 before UC Davis tallied five runs in the eighth and had the potential game-tying run at second base in the ninth before Bonn recorded his third strikeout to preserve the victory for the streaking Mustangs.
With the win, Cal Poly (13-7 overall) extended its winning streak to nine games, improved to 7-0 in Big West contests and widened its early lead in the conference standings as UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara and Cal State Fullerton all lost on Saturday. The Gauchos and Titans also fell in series openers Friday.
Cal Poly's nine-game winning streak is the fourth-longest active run in the nation at this time, trailing UCLA (14), Auburn (12) and Southeast Missouri (12). The Mustangs elevated their RPI to 46 by winning a game in come-from-behind fashion for the eighth time this season.
Second baseman Alejandro Garza produced his first four-hit game of the year and third of his three-year Mustang career with one double and three singles Saturday, driving in a pair of runs.
Shortstop Nate Castellon added a double and two singles for his fifth three-hit contest of 2026 and his 15th game of three or more hits in two seasons at Cal Poly, knocking in one run.
Center fielder Casey Murray Jr. continued his torrid hitting pace with two singles and four RBIs while third baseman Gavin Spiridonoff doubled once and singled twice. Left fielder Dante Vachini, right fielder Cam Hoiland and catcher Ryan Tayman each added two hits.
Murray, who extended his hitting streak to 10 games and his reached-base safely run to all 20 games this season, is hitting .462 with 10 extra-base hits and 11 RBIs during Cal Poly's winning streak while Tayman has a .424 average and 15 RBIs. Also during the streak, Vachini is hitting .423, Spiridonoff .419, Castellon .400 and Hoiland .394.
In a game lasting three hours and 37 minutes, Cal Poly scored the first run in the second inning as Vachini tripled down the right-field line and came home on a single to right field by Braxton Thomas.
UC Davis, however, produced leads of 3-1 and 5-4 before the Mustangs grabbed the lead for good with a four-spot in the fourth. Garza doubled in the first run, a passed ball accounted for the second run and Murray's two-run single to right field gave Cal Poly an 8-5 lead.
A run in the fifth on Castellon's RBI single and three more in the seventh on RBI singles by Garza and Murray plus a wild pitch gave the Mustangs a seemingly comfortable 12-6 advantage.
Not so, said the Aggies, as they responded with five runs in the eighth on three hits and five walks to close the gap to a single run. After issuing two bases-loaded walks and allowing all three inherited runners to score, Bonn secured his first strikeout to end the eighth.
Bonn gave up a one-out walk in the ninth but struck out two Aggie batters to end the game.
UC Davis scored 11 runs on 15 hits, led by shortstop Elijah McNeal with a double and two singles, driving in two runs. Right fielder Tyler Howard, first baseman Houston Hirschkorn, center fielder Kai Mault and first baseman Ryan Lee all added a pair of hits.
Junior southpaw Chris Downs (1-0), who posted an 8-0 win-loss mark in his first two years at Cal Poly, earned his first triumph of 2026 by scattering five hits over four innings, allowing three runs with two walks and a pair of strikeouts.
The loss was charged to UC Davis starter Keenan Anzai (2-1) as he allowed seven runs and nine hits over 3 2/3 innings.
At 7-0, Cal Poly pulled away from UC San Diego (4-1), Cal State Fullerton (5-3), UC Davis (4-3) and UC Santa Barbara (4-4) in the Big West standings.
Second game of the series will be played Sunday at 1 o'clock with Cal Poly freshman right-hander Corden Pettey (2-1, 4.15 ERA) to face UC Davis senior right-hander Noel Valdez (1-2, 3.90 ERA).
Monday's series finale also starts at 1 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Downs, Chris (1-0)
L: Anzai, Keenan (2-1)
S: Bonn, Nick (6)
Batting:
2B: Wright, Joey 1 ; Lee, Ryan 2 ; McNeal, Elijah 1
3B: Mault, Kai 1
RBI: Hirschkorn, Houston 1 ; Lee, Ryan 1 ; McNeal, Elijah 2 ; Burnham, Eli 1 ; Wooldridge, Braydon 2 ; Howard, Tyler 1 ; Mault, Kai 2
SH: Lee, Ryan 1
SF: Burnham, Eli 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Wright, Joey 2 ; Hirschkorn, Houston 1 ; Lee, Ryan 1 ; Williams, Korey 1 ; McNeal, Elijah 2 ; Burnham, Eli 1 ; Wooldridge, Braydon 1 ; Howard, Tyler 1 ; Story, Zach 1
SB: Castagnola, Jack 1
Batting:
2B: Garza, Alejandro 1 ; Castellon, Nate 1 ; Spiridonoff, Gavin 1
3B: Vachini, Dante 1
RBI: Murray Jr., Casey 4 ; Garza, Alejandro 2 ; Vachini, Dante 2 ; Castellon, Nate 1 ; Thomas, Braxton 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Garza, Alejandro 3 ; Vachini, Dante 1 ; Castellon, Nate 1 ; Spiridonoff, Gavin 2 ; Hoiland, Cam 3 ; Tayman, Ryan 2
