Chico, Calif. – Dave Taylor spent two seasons building the Cal State L.A. baseball team into a perennial West Region power. He’s been dealing with the consequences of that job well done ever since. Cal State L.A. beat Taylor’s Wildcats 9-5 at Nettleton Stadium Sunday. It was the Golden Eagles’ ninth win in 13 meetings against Chico State since Taylor left Cal State L.A. to become the head coach of the Wildcats, including their seventh win in eight games at Nettleton Stadium.
Max Ramirez tripled home the go-ahead run in the seventh. He was one of seven Golden Eagles to drive in a run, as they improved to 15-8 overall and 8-4 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). Chico State dipped to 11-9 overall and 7-5 in the CCAA.
The Wildcats got here hits and two RBI off the bat of Josh Meagher, who hit a solo home run (his seventh of the season) in the first inning. Meagher has now hit safely in 18 straight games and he’s hitting .453 during that streak. The Wildcats stranded nine runners on base, however, including seven in the first five innings.
Adam Arakawa and Bret Ringer chipped in two hits apiece.
Ian Waldron, who got Chico State out of a bases-loaded, no out jam in the sixth, allowed three runs on five hits in the seventh to absorb the loss. He dropped to 1-1 on the season.
The Wildcats trailed 4-2 before rallying to tie the game in the sixth. Ringer led off with a single and Kyle Eveland reached on an error. Deven Braden’s bunt moved both runners up 90 feet, and Jordan Larson’s ground ball brought Ringer home. Eveland then scored on a wild pitch to knot the score 4-4.
That’s when Ramirez came through. The CCAA’s leading hitter entering the weekend, Ramirez was just 1-for-12 in the series before grounding a triple inside the third-base bag to put the Golden Eagles ahead to stay. Ramirez scored on Travis Tartamella’s bunt single and L.A. tacked on another run on Chris Matzner’s RBI-single to take a 7-4 lead.
Chico State tried to rally in the ninth on Arakawa’s triple and Meagher’s RBI-double with one out, but Camron Collard came out of the Cal State L.A. bullpen to retire the final two hitters and secure the Golden Eagles’ victory.
Chico State now embarks on an eight-game road trip beginning this weekend at San Francisco State. That four-game series is scheduled to begin Friday at 3 p.m. The Wildcats will return to Nettleton Stadium for a five-game series against Hawaii-Pacific beginning March 26 at 6 p.m. That begins a string of 24 games, including 22 at Nettleton Stadium, between Match 26 and April 26.
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