The Chico State Wildcats’ baseball team lost its first series in over a month, dropping three of four games to the Cal Poly Pomona Broncos in their second series of CCAA conference play.
The Broncos took games one, three and four with scores of 6-1, 4-0 and 6-2. The ’Cats’ took game two with a score of 2-1, narrowly avoiding the sweep.
Game 1: March 13, 6 p.m.
Hoping to start the series off strong, the ’Cats turned to their freshman ace and right-handed pitcher Jack Tews, who has a 2.37 ERA.
Both teams started slow offensively, as Tews and the Broncos’ senior right-handed pitcher Andrew Campbell held both teams’ offenses off the board.
The ’Cats were the first team to break through in the fourth inning, sparked by a single by junior infielder Jackson Snitko. Snitko then advanced to second on a single by senior outfielder Stefan Foley.
Senior first baseman Jesse Gadd singled and advanced to second base on a throw; Snitko was thrown out at third and Foley replaced him at third. Junior catcher Cole Nachreiner singled to third to score Foley. Both Gadd and Nachreiner would advance on a wild pitch and senior outfielder Carson Case walked on four pitches to load the bases with one out.
Looking to take advantage of the bases being loaded, junior infielder Michael Baker stepped up to the plate looking to add more runs for the ’Cats. Unfortunately, Baker grounded into a double play and the ’Cats came out of the fourth inning with the lead, 1-0.
The ’Cats’ lead didn’t last very long as Broncos redshirt senior outfielder Jack Sanders crushed a 1-2 pitch to left field. The ball sailed over the fence for Sanders’ seventh home run of the season, tying the game at 1.
Sanders home run flipped the momentum of the game for the Broncos as they added four more runs in the fifth inning.
After Tews put two men on base, senior right-handed pitcher Aaron McCurley took over. Junior outfielder Daniel Ruiz doubled down the left field line to score two more runs. Redshirt freshman Austin Duarte singled up the middle to score Ruiz.
With only one out in the inning, junior right-handed pitcher Tyler Eastham replaced McCurley. Eastham got the last two batters to fly out as the Broncos took the lead 5-1.
The Broncos added one more run in the seventh inning as junior infielder Bryan Richman singled to right field to make the score 6-1.
Unfortunately, the ’Cats couldn’t add any runs in the last three innings as the Broncos took the series opener 6-1.
Game 2: March 14, 2 p.m.
Looking for a better outing, the ’Cats sent out junior right-handed pitcher Thomas Meyer.
The ’Cats struck first again as they got on the board in the second inning.
Nachreiner reached base on a hit-by-pitch. Foley reached on an error and sophomore outfielder Myles Walton reached on a fielder’s choice to shortstop, as Foley was thrown out at second.
Junior utility Joel Gutierrez singled down the right field line to score Nachreiner and give the ’Cats the lead 1-0.
The Broncos answered back with a run of their own in the fourth inning. A pitch with two outs hit junior infielder Julian Angulo. Center fielder Tyler Blade singled to left field, and redshirt junior catcher Evan Nahra was the second batter to be hit by a pitch in the inning to load the bases. Richman walked on four pitches to walk in a run and tie the game at 1.
The ’Cats would retake the lead in the sixth inning, adding another run. Nachreiner walked and Walton singled to left field. With two outs and a runner in scoring position, Gutierrez singled to left field to score Nachreiner and give the ’Cats the lead 2-1.
The Broncos threatened to score in the eighth inning as two men got on board. Sophomore left-handed pitcher Dane Padrnos replaced freshman right-handed pitcher Nathan Hikes with no outs in the eighth inning and runners on first and second. Padrnos struck out the next three batters swinging as the ’Cats held the lead going into the ninth inning.
After a Nahra and Richman strikeout, the Broncos threatened to score as freshman infielder Justin Yeutter doubled down the left field line. Just as the Broncos had a glimpse of a comeback, Padrnos snatched it away, striking out redshirt senior outfielder Diego Murillo and securing a ’Cats win 2-1.
Game 3: March 14, 5 p.m.
After winning game one of the doubleheader, the ’Cats looked to carry the energy into game two of the doubleheader with senior right-handed pitcher Rocco Borrelli.
Borrelli started the game strong and racked up a season-high seven strikeouts against the Broncos, but the offense couldn’t touch junior right-handed pitcher Anthony Vasquez, who went the full seven innings.
The Broncos finally answered the stalemate in the fourth, as Ruiz drew a walk. Sanders doubled to left-center to score Ruiz and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Duarte drew a full count walk, but Borrelli bounced back by striking out Angulo and Blade.
Unfortunately, Borrelli couldn’t limit the damage as Richman cracked a double to right-center to extend the Broncos’ lead to 3-0.
The ’Cats finally seemed to figure Vasquez out in the sixth inning. Nachreiner pinch-hit for Gutierrez and singled to third. Baker pinch ran for Nachreiner and advanced to second on junior infielder Jaylen Hodges’ single to right field. Sophomore infielder Brady Wright pinch-hit and advanced Baker to third, but Snitko grounded out to the catcher to keep the ’Cats scoreless.
The Broncos added one more run in the sixth inning and the ’Cats had one last shot to come back in the seventh and final inning.
Freshman infielder Myles Cooper pinch-hit for Foley and singled up the middle. Sophomore catcher Jared Cantu walked and advanced Cooper.
Walton and Baker hit consecutive singles to load the bases. Unfortunately, the ’Cats couldn’t make the opportunity count as Hodges grounded out to second and the ’Cats took the loss 4-0.
Game 4: March 15, noon
Hoping to avoid their first series loss in over a month, the ’Cats turned to freshman right-handed pitcher Jakob Poole.
The Broncos struck early, in the second, as Angulo crushed a home run to left-center. Angulo’s third home run of the season gave the Broncos the lead 1-0. They added another run in the second as Richman singled up the middle and Nahra doubled to left center to make the score 2-0.
The Broncos added another run in the fourth inning as senior infielder Gage Gonzalez hit a sacrifice fly to score Richman to increase the lead 3-0.
The Broncos weren’t done as they added three more runs in the fifth inning. Blade singled to right field to score Ruiz. Richman reached on a fielder’s choice to score Duarte and Nahra walked in another run as the Broncos closed the fifth up 6-0.
Looking to rally in the eighth inning, Wright singled down the right field line. Cooper singled to right field and senior utility Keoni Coloma was hit by a pitch to load the bases.
Case pinch-hit for Gutierrez and walked in a run. Senior catcher Juan Nunez pinch-hit for Nachreiner and was also hit by a pitch to add another run. The ’Cats couldn’t add runs anymore after the Broncos clinched the finale 6-2.
The ’Cats continue CCAA conference play next week with another four-game series at Nettleton Stadium against Cal State San Marcos, starting on Friday at 6 p.m.
Nettleton Stadium grants free entry with a Chico State student ID card or a student’s Canvas home page.
For information about all Chico State athletics or to keep up with the game live, visit the Wildcat home page, or watch through FloSports.
Jamison Leung can be reached at [email protected]
