POMONA – The Chico State baseball team recorded seven hits with four of them coming from a four-run sixth inning that propelled the Wildcats to a 6-2 win over host Cal Poly Pomona and split the CCAA-opening series Sunday afternoon.
Seven different Wildcats recorded a hit in the game. Patrick Barnum was the only one who stretched his knock for extra bases. The Broncos were limited to four hits, two of which were back-to-back triples that allowed them to tie the game at 2-2 in the fifth.
The Wildcats (7-2, 2-2 CCAA) and Broncos (6-6, 2-2 CCAA) were quiet in the first four innings of the game. Wildcat starter Dylan Day limited the Broncos to only four walks while picking up four strikeouts. His opposite, Aren Alvarez, gave up only a single by Troy Kent in the first and hitting Daniel Vierra by the pitch in the second.
Each side scored two runs in the fifth inning. Starting with Chico, Jesse Gadd led off with a base hit up the middle and back-to-back mistakes by Alvarez allowed Michael Baker and Phoenix Casias to reach and load the bases with nobody out. Thade Miller knocked in the first run with a sacrifice fly to right and Barnum's double allowed Baker to score. Alvarez got out of the jam with two strikeouts.
Pomona responded in its half of the inning with back-to-back, inning-opening triples to end Day's outing. Tyce Ochs came in and got a groundout to get the first out at the cost of allowing the tying run to score. Besides a double, he got a strikeout and a flyout to end the inning with the game tied at two.
The big sixth inning started with Vierra singling through the left side. Baker drew a one-out walk and back-to-back singles by Casias and Miller brought two runs home. Leadoff man Kaden Bass doubled the lead with a two-run single through the right side, giving Chico State a 6-2 lead.
Lewis went on to pitch brilliantly, throwing 2.1 shutout innings with no hits and one walk while getting two strikeouts.
Jeremy Keller came in the ninth and pitched a 1-2-3 inning to secure the win for the 'Cats.
Chico State returns home Friday to open a four-game series with San Francisco State. First pitch is at 6 p.m. The forecast as of Sunday doesn't look favorable come the end of the week so stay tuned to either ChicoWildcats.com or on social media @ChicoWildcats for any schedule changes.
