After plating 20 runs in its Thursday series opener against Cal State San Bernardino, the Chico State baseball team continued its torrid hitting as the Wildcats and Coyotes squared off Friday in doubleheader action at Fiscalini Field. The host Coyotes, sporting an offense second only to the 'Cats in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), responded with some serious swinging of their own, belting five home runs on the day and earning a split of the twin bill. The Wildcats took the opener 8-5, with the 'Yotes prevailing 10-7 in the nightcap.
 
The doubleheader split leaves Chico State 29-10 on the season and 22-8 in the CCAA. Cal State San Bernardino moves to 20-17 overall and 16-11 in conference play.
 
As it's done all season, the Chico State offense racked up big numbers Friday, banging out 30 hits over the two games. Jacob Jablonski produced back-to-back three-hit games, with Jack Murphy and Kyle Dobson collecting four knocks apiece. Zach Morris and Elijah Jackson had three hits apiece, with Jeffrey Ray and Willie Lajoie each contributing two hits to the 'Cats' attack.
 
Grady Morgan had three safeties Friday, helping him extend his hitting streak to 20 straight games. It's the third longest streak in the Dave Taylor era, trailing only Wildcat greats Adrian Bringas (2011) and Daniel Code (2007), who share the Chico State record with a hit in 22 consecutive contests.
 
Game one of the double dip saw Cal State San Bernardino grab an early lead, using a two-run home run by Deshawn Johnson in the first inning and a single tally in the second to go out in front 3-0. Chico State whittled the deficit down to one by plating a pair in the top of the fourth—Lajoie led off the frame with a double and was promptly doubled home by Jablonski, then Morris followed with an RBI single to make the score 3-2.
 
The 'Cats took the lead in the top of the fifth—Murphy doubled and Ray drew a walk to set the table for Morgan, who sent his fifth home run of the year over the right field fence.
 
The Wildcats extended its advantage to 6-3 in the top of the seventh, when Lajoie led off the inning with a double and scored on a two-out infield single by Dobson. Chico State righthander Josh Verdon kept the 'Cats on top by tossing three innings of scoreless relief.
 
Chico State added some insurance in the top of the ninth inning, stringing together five straight singles to plate a pair of runs. Verdon surrendered a two-run homer to Kyle Csakan in the bottom of the ninth, but was able to secure the final squeezes to lock down the Wildcats' 8-5 victory.
 
Cody Gentry started for the 'Cats, tossing five solid innings to earn the victory and improve his season record to 7-2. Verdon posted his first save of the year.
 
The nightcap got off to a good start for the Wildcats, as back-to-back RBI groundouts by Morgan and Lajoie in the top of the first inning staked Austin McFarlane to a quick 2-0 lead. The Chico State defense, however, let McFalane down in the bottom of the first, as a Wildcats error opened the door for the 'Yotes to score four runs in the frame, capped off by a Csakan two-run homer.
 
Csakan struck again for San Bernardino in the bottom of the third inning, connecting on a big fly with two aboard to give the Coyotes a 7-2 lead. The 'Cats got two of those runs back in the top of the fourth, courtesy of a Nathan Meredith RBI single and an Andrew Crane sacrifice fly, but a Coyotes run in the bottom of the fourth made the score 8-4.
 
The Chico State offense appeared poised to put up a crooked number in the top of the fifth. Ray led off with a home run to left field, but despite three more hits in the inning, the 'Cats could do no more damage, and were forced to be content with the one run. In the bottom of the fifth, San Bernardino took advantage of three walks and two wild pitches to score a run and reclaim its four run cushion; then in the sixth, Brandon Galindo hit his first home run of the year to make the score 10-5.
 
Chico State, meanwhile, refused to go quietly.
 
The Wildcats loaded the bases with nobody out in the top of the seventh inning, then Dobson lined a single to left to drive in Gabe Arellano. With two outs and the bags still juiced, Meredith was hit by a pitch to force home Hunter Boylan. But the rally would fall short, as San Bernardino reliever Oscar Rouda got Murphy to fly out to end the game and give the Coyotes the 10-7 win and the doubleheader split.
 
Despite giving up just two earned runs in four innings of work, McFarlane was saddled with the loss to slip to 2-2 on the year.  
 
Chico State and Cal State San Bernardino wrap up the series Saturday with a single game beginning at 11 a.m. Fans can follow the action online with live streaming video via the CCAA Network (a monthly fee is required to view). Live Stats will also be available, with links found at www.chicowildcats.com in the calendar section of the website's homepage, and on the Chico State baseball schedule page.