Mustangs Complete 12-8 Comeback in UCR Series Rubber Match

Sunday, March 29

Riverside, CA

1:00 PM

16-10, 10-2

UC Riverside

8-19, 3-6

Cal Poly

UC Riverside

Photo by: Owen Main | Cal Poly Athletics

Mustangs Complete 12-8 Comeback in UCR Series Rubber Match

3/29/2026 8:15:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Trailing by as many as four runs through the first seven innings, Cal Poly scored six runs in the eighth to turn an 8-5 deficit into an 11-8 lead and held on to beat UC Riverside 12-8 Sunday afternoon, clinching its fourth consecutive Big West series.

Posting their 10th come-from-behind win of the season, the Mustangs improved their overall mark to 16-10 and conference mark to 10-2, a half-game ahead of UC San Diego (8-1 Big West), which completed a sweep of its series at UC Davis with a 9-5 triumph.

UC Riverside fell to 8-19 (3-6 Big West).

At the Riverside Sports Complex, Cam Hoiland led off the eighth with his third home run of the year and, after the first out of the inning was recorded, the next seven Mustang batters reached base.

Casey Murray Jr. tripled into the right-field corner to extend his hitting streak to 16 games and Xander McLaurin's third hit of the game, an RBI single up the middle, trimmed UC Riverside's lead to 8-7. Dylan Kordic and Jake Downing followed with run-scoring singles to give Cal Poly its first lead of the game, 9-8.

Alejandro Garza drew a bases-loaded walk for a 10-8 cushion and Hoiland's sacrifice fly to center field capped the rally.

The Mustangs added an insurance run in the ninth on a high-bouncing double over first base and down the right-field line off the bat of Kordic for a 12-8 lead.

Nick Bonn pitched two innings for his nation- and Big West-leading eighth save. He struck out one.

Cal Poly trailed 3-0, 4-2, 7-3 and 8-5 before mounting what proved to be its game-winning rally in the eighth.

For the 12th time in its last 16 games, Cal Poly produced double-digit hits. McLaurin drove in three runs with his three hits, including his second home run of the year, a solo shot in the third inning. Downing, who had four hits in Friday's series-opening 22-4 victory, also had three hits Sunday, including a double.

The Mustangs' 15-hit offensive attack also featured two hits each from Kordic (two RBIs), Nate Castellon (two-run double in the seventh) and Ryan Tayman (solo home run, his seventh of the year, in the fourth).

Freshman right-hander Brady Estes (3-0) pitched the seventh inning and was the pitcher of record when Cal Poly scored six times in the eighth. Starter Carson Turnquist struck out eight batters over 3 2/3 innings, including four in a row, while allowing four runs and four hits.

For the series, McLaurin was 7-for-13 with three extra-base hits and four RBIs while Garza was 8-for-17, also with four RBIs. Downing was 7-for-15, Tayman 6-for-13 and Castellon 5-for-13.

As a team, the Mustangs hit .386 in the three-game series with 11 doubles, 10 home runs and 38 runs scored.

The loss was charged to Joshua Martinez (1-4), the fourth of eight Highlander pitchers used in the game.

Cal Poly wraps up a five-game Spring Break road trip Tuesday with a 5:05 p.m. single game at Fresno State before returning home to host UC Santa Barbara for a three-game Big West series Thursday through Saturday at Baggett Stadium. Game times are 6:05 p.m. Both Thursday and Friday and 1:05 p.m. Saturday.