The Chico State baseball team dropped from first to third in the North Division of the CCAA as a result of a 2-2 split series against San Francisco State on Sunday, May 1.
Coming home with nothing but a tie, Chico State now has an overall record of 30-16 and a conference record of 20-14. This is one more loss than Cal State Monterey Bay and Cal State East Bay, the new northern leaders.
In order for the ‘Cats to get a bid into the post-season CCAA Baseball Tournament, they need to keep a tight grip on this current standing. Dropping in rank will surely ruin the team’s chances to make it further than the conference season, since only the top three in each division advance to the tournament held at Banner Island Ballpark in Stockton May 11-14.
The San Francisco Gators won the final game of the series 6-2 by attacking Wildcat weaknesses late in the game. Senior infielder Ben Gamba scored twice: once at the top of the first inning and once at the top of the seventh.
Skills started to break down as junior relief pitcher Colton Fletcher entered the game in the bottom of the seventh inning. Two San Francisco back-to-back doubles, a walk from a hit by pitch topped off with a triple, totaled five runs scored in this inning alone.
The Wildcats move forward to play the Cal State Stanislaus Warriors for a four-game away series May 6-8.
Anna Baytosh can be reached at [email protected] or @anna_baytosh on Twitter.
