CHICO – The Chico State and Cal State Dominguez Hills baseball teams both saw their respective pitching step as the two sides split Thursday's unscheduled doubleheader. The Wildcats took game one 7-2 while the Toros responded and held on to take the nightcap 5-3.
 
With anticipation of rain on the forecast Friday, the two teams agreed to move their 7-inning game to Thursday. Weather permitting, the two teams will hope to play a single game Friday at noon. If that doesn't happen, they will try and play a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 11 a.m.
 
The series opener belonged to Chico State's pitching corps led by Marco Ibarra, Joseph Loubert and Tyce Ochs, while on the other side Dominguez Hills' Julian Diaz appeared to be untouchable for four innings of the scheduled 7-inning game.
 
Game 1 – CHICO 7, CSUDH 2
The Wildcats (17-10, 12-10 CCAA) did all the scoring they needed to win the game in the first inning. Going up against Toro starter Bryan Kraft, the Wildcats quickly went to work against the southpaw. Alexander Johnson led off with a single up the middle and Elijah Pascual was hit by the pitch. Troy Kent laid down a sacrifice bunt to put two runners in scoring position and with reigning NCBWA West Region Player of the Week Daniel Vierra at the plate, he hit a ground ball back to Kraft. Kraft decided to throw home to get Johnson out but the right fielder slid just in time to score the first run of the game.
 
Chico State took a 4-0 lead on back-to-back doubles by Thade Miller Carson Stevens. Miller knocked in Pascual while Stevens' two-bagger brought home Vierra and Miller.
 
It was in the fifth inning when the 'Cats got the two runs. Vierra led off with a single, Stefan Foley successfully laid down a sacrifice bunt, but a bad throw allowed him to reach second and move the lead runner to third. Miller hit into a groundout to bring in the sixth run of the game and Stevens singled to left to knock in the seventh.
 
Ibarra appeared to have rebounded well after taking the loss to Cal State LA in his last outing. Today, the senior went six innings with four strikeouts and no walks. He gave up a run in the third and had struggled in trying to close out the sixth inning. He had given up the second run and was being threatened with runners at the corners and one out. He got the strikeout and Vierra made a brilliant unassisted play to end the inning and hype the senior pitcher on the way to the dugout.
 
Loubert came in the seventh and was outstanding, striking out five of the first six batters he faced. He only conceded a walk in his two innings of work. Tyce Ochs closed out the ninth only allowing a runner reach first because of a fielding error he made.
 
Chico State finished with nine hits, Dominguez Hills had eight.
 
Game 2: CSUDH 5, CHICO 3
Much like the Wildcats pitching were in the first game, the Toros got the same in the nightcap with Diaz on the mound. The right-hander was perfect for the first four innings. It was Vierra hitting a leadoff single to right that broke up the perfect bid in the fifth. But the Wildcats couldn't get anything out of it as the Toros quickly got out of the inning with a line drive double play and a groundout to third.
 
It was the second inning where the Toros got on the board. Reigning CCAA Pitcher of the Week Kevin Lyons got out of the first inning giving up a game-opening walk, but in the second he ran into trouble when two hits and a hit-by-pitch loaded the bases with two outs. Former Wildcat-now-Toro Jeffrey Ray did the damage by hooking a bases-clearing double to left and give Dominguez Hills a 3-0 lead.
 
Dominguez Hills got one run in the fourth and an insurance run in the sixth.
 
Chico State had the door knocking in the sixth. With two down, Andrew Crane came in to pinch hit and ignited a double to the center field wall and back-to-back walks by Johnson and pinch-hitter Stefan Foley loaded the bases, setting it up for the Wildcats top hitter Troy Kent. But Diaz won the battle by getting the strikeout and lead the bases loaded.
 
The seventh inning rally began with Vierra getting hit by the pitch and Jeremy Keller followed with a big RBI double down the left field line to put the 'Cats on the board and end Diaz's day. With Chris Cornelius coming out of the bullpen, retired the first two batters, but gave up a walk to Michael Baker, who returned to the field after taking a heartbreaking injury earlier in the month.
 
Late-inning substitution Patrick Barnum came up clutch with a two-run single to cut the deficit to two and it also gave the top of the order a chance. Cornelius, however, was able to get the third out and preserve the Toros' win.
 
Lyons went six innings striking out two and allowing one walk and six hits. Caden Reitzenstein pitched a shutout seventh inning with a pair of strikeouts.