Splits are rarely so satisfying, with the exception of the banana variety of course. Nick Baker cooked up some donuts and Juan Guerra put the icing on the cake by getting the last four outs as the Wildcats beat Cal State San Bernardino 6-4 Sunday and salvage a four-game series split at Nettleton Stadium.
After allowing a run in the first the true freshman Baker held the Coyotes without a run for the next six. He allowed just the one run on seven hits and did not walk a batter while matching his season high with six strikeouts, improving to 6-0 on the season. Cal State San Bernardino broke through against reliever Sheldon Lechuga in the eighth, scoring three times. But with runners on second and third and two down, Guerra got a fly ball off the bat of Bryce Holland to end the inning and then allowed only an infield single in the ninth to earn his ninth save of the season.
The seventh-ranked Wildcats improved to 22-7 overall and 16-6 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). The cherry on top came from the results around the rest of the CCAA. Because Cal State L.A. lost to Cal State Monterey Bay and UC San Diego came from behind to beat Sonoma State, the Wildcats actually increased their cushion atop the conference standings over the weekend. They began the weekend with a two-game lead on second-place Sonoma State and a two-and-a-half game lead on Cal State L.A. They finished the weekend with a two-and-a-half game lead on Sonoma State and a three-game lead on UC San Diego and Cal State L.A.
Four-game series’ with Cal State L.A. and Sonoma State still loom on the schedule for the Wildcats, who will play 12 of their last 18 at home. They host Cal State L.A. next weekend, beginning with a single game Friday at 6 PM.
The sacrifice bunt has been a big weapon for the Wildcats all season long and Sunday was no exception. Shane Kroker’s fourth-inning sacrifice was perhaps the day’s biggest play. He was simply attempting to move baserunners Adrian Bringas and Matt Anderson to second and third when Bryce Holland came charging in and threw wide of first, allowing two runs to score and Kroker to advance to third, giving the Wildcats a 2-1 lead. Justin Manci then ripped an RBI single up the middle to make it 3-1.
Bringas brought home Evans with a base hit in the fifth and he eventually scored when Manci was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to make it 5-1.
Chico State stretched its advantage to 6-1 in the sixth when TJ Yasuhara was hit by a pitch leading off, Cody Foster bunted him over to second, and Jackson Evans drove him in with a bloop single to left.
Evans, Anderson and Kroker collected two hits apiece while Evans and Kroker each swiped two bags as well. Manci led the team with a pair of RBI. Foster went 0-4 and saw his 16-game hitting streak come to an end.
Cal State San Bernardino fell to 15-15 overall, but at 12-10 in the CCAA, the Coyotes are among seven teams within five-and-a-half games of first. The four teams with the highest conference winning percentages at the end of the regular season will earn berths in the CCAA Championship Tournament.
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