8-21, 2-8
UC Riverside
3-22, 1-9
Pitching Shines as Cal Poly Sweeps Saturday Doubleheader from UC Riverside
3/28/2026 7:03:00 PM | Softball
SAN LUIS OBISPO – Freshman righthander Kaylee Davis (above) allowed just two hits and matched a career high with five strikeouts in six and two-thirds innings as the Cal Poly softball program opened a three-game home series and Saturday doubleheader against UC Riverside with a 6-0 victory. The Mustangs completed Saturday’s sweep with a 6-2, second-game win as sophomore Bree Brennan went the same distance with three strikeouts in a 7-2 decision.
During Saturday’s opening 6-0 victory, Cal Poly took the game’s only lead during the bottom half of the third as right fielder Maddy Bermudez singled home second baseman Sienna Erskine.
The Mustangs then went up 4-0 in the fifth as Bermudez and freshman first baseman Myleigh Cooper singled successively to lead off the bottom half. A Highlanders defensive interference call moved both baserunners into scoring before a wild pitch by UC Riverside starting righthander Emory Cheng (3-7) brought in Barrios. Sophomore catcher Maya Venegas next delivered a run-scoring double (right) before senior third baseman Mylina Garza supplied an RBI single.
Run-scoring hits from Venegas and junior center fielder A’Niyla Byrd in the sixth completed Cal Poly’s scoring.
In the circle, Davis (3-10) conceded UC Riverside’s hits in the second and third. UC Riverside advanced baserunners to third twice, but Davis and senior reliever Amy Ross – who pitched to one Highlander in the seventh – combined to strand eight baserunners.
Bermudez and Venegas each finished with three hits for Cal Poly as the Mustangs produced a season high 14.
Maya Venegas gives the Mustangs some insurance with an RBI double!#RideHigh pic.twitter.com/v48rQIhMDb
— Cal Poly Softball (@CalPolySoftball) March 28, 2026
During Saturday’s second matchup and 7-2 win, Cal Poly stranded three total baserunners between the first and second innings before breaking open the game with a five-run third. Venegas began the spree by doubling with one down to plate Bermudez. Freshman shortstop Leilani Allen (right) and senior left fielder Kiara Blanchard then added two-run hits to hand Cal Poly the 5-0 advantage.
Staked to the lead, Brennan (5-6) kept UC Riverside hitless in the fourth and sixth innings while conceding just one hit during the fifth. She allowed UC Riverside’s only runs in the top half of the seventh through shortstop Trendee Kahunahana’s two-run double (after Cal Poly had completed its scoring with a two-run fourth) before giving way to Ross, who secured the final out.
Bermudez enjoyed another team leading three hits to fuel the second-game win.
Cal Poly and UC Riverside complete the three-game series on Sunday, March 29 at 1 p.m.
Venegas and Allen go back-to-back for the 3-0 lead!#RideHigh pic.twitter.com/RKrnoXg1mR
— Cal Poly Softball (@CalPolySoftball) March 28, 2026
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Davis, Kaylee (3-10)
L: Cheng, Emory (3-7)
Batting:
2B: Penor, Kayla 1
SH: Marx, Aubrey 1 ; Wren, Taylor 1
Base Running:
HBP: Lauti, Eta 1
Batting:
2B: Venegas, Maya 1
RBI: Byrd, A'Niyla 1 ; Garza, Mylina 1 ; Bermudez, Maddy 1 ; Venegas, Maya 2
SH: Choi, Karina 1 ; Byrd, A'Niyla 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Erskine, Sienna 1 ; Martinez, Sehren 1 ; Cooper, Myleigh 1 ; Bermudez, Maddy 2 ; Barrios, Aly 1
SB: Bermudez, Maddy 2
HBP: Allen, Leilani 1
