POMONA – After a 10-day break, the Chico State baseball team opened CCAA play at Cal Poly Pomona Friday evening. The Wildcats came up with a few clutch hits but the Broncos rode on the brilliant pitching from Noel Soto to take the series opener 6-3.
 
While the Broncos (5-4, 1-0 CCAA) struck early on Kevin Lyons with two runs, the right-hander settled in and retired 10 straight batters.
 
Chico State (5-1, 0-1 CCAA) got on the board in the second inning. Stefan Foley led off with a single and took second on a fielding error by the center fielder and Jesse Gadd knocked in the tying run with a base hit down the left field line. Soto would go on to retire 13 of 14 batters.
 
Down 4-1 in the seventh inning, the Wildcats got a rally going. Troy Kent led off with a walk and Foley singled down the right field line, setting up a clutch two-out double by Jeremy Keller to get the deficit to one.
 
Pomona got one of those runs back in the seventh inning with a one-out solo shot by the leadoff man Johnny Pappas, who appeared to be unbeatable in the game by going 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles and the home run. Nolan Meredith, making his Chico State debut tonight, finally got Pappas out by getting him to pop out to second.
 
Chico State finished the day with six hits, two of which came from Foley.
 
Lyons went six innings with two strikeouts. He gave up six hits but impressively gave up his first walk to Pappas in the fifth.
 
The Wildcats and Broncos will play the 9/7-inning doubleheader Saturday with game one set for 2 p.m.
 
Radio Programming Note: Game one of the doubleheader will be broadcast on KPAY Sports AM 1290 and FM 102.9. Game two will be aired on KPAY's sister station Newstalk FM 93.9.