SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — The Cal State San Bernardino baseball team completed a dominant doubleheader sweep of Cal State Los Angeles on Saturday at Fiscalini Field, winning 10-2 in game one and 12-9 in game two.
With the sweep, CSUSB improves to 12-12 and 6-5 in CCAA play. Their winning streak improves to seven games.
Game 1: CSUSB 10, Cal State LA 2
The Golden Eagles struck first with a pair of solo home runs in the opening inning, but the Coyotes quickly responded and never looked back.
CSUSB loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the first and capitalized shortly after. Sophomore Noah Betanco (San Diego, Calif.) delivered an infield RBI single to put the Yotes on the board.
One batter later, sophomore Keedan Nadeau (Highland, Calif.) launched a grand slam to give CSUSB a 5-2 advantage. Greg Luna (Moreno Valley, Calif.) later drew a bases-loaded walk to extend the lead to 6-2.
Redshirt senior Garret Barto (Pittsburgh, Pa.) added to the momentum with a leadoff home run in the third inning, pushing the lead to 7-2.
The Coyotes continued to add insurance in the fourth, as Barto and Betanco each recorded RBI singles to make it 9-2. Eddie Alfaro (Moreno Valley, Calif.) capped the scoring with an RBI single in the seventh.
On the mound, junior Ivan Rodriguez (San Bernardino, Calif.) turned in a strong performance, tossing seven innings and holding Cal State LA scoreless over his final six frames while striking out seven to earn his first win of the season.
Game 2: CSUSB 12, Cal State LA 9
The Coyotes completed the sweep in a high-scoring contest, using timely hitting and a key relief effort to hold off a late push from the Golden Eagles.
CSUSB jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the first inning. Freshman Tyson Pettingill (Overton, Nev.) reached on an error that brought home two runs, and senior Patrick Fregoso (Eastvale, Calif.) followed with a sacrifice fly.
After Cal State LA cut the lead to 3-2 in the second, the Coyotes responded in a big way. Alfaro hit a two-run home run, while senior Dom Dominguez (Victorville, Calif.) added a solo shot. Later in the inning, Juni Rodriguez (Hemet, Calif.) scored on a wild pitch to give CSUSB a 7-2 advantage.
The Golden Eagles answered with a four-run third inning to close within 7-6, but Dominguez delivered the biggest swing of the game in the bottom half, crushing a three-run home run to extend the lead to 10-6.
Cal State LA continued to battle, scoring twice in the fourth and adding another run later to make it 11-9. However, Nadeau provided an important insurance run with a sacrifice fly in the sixth to push the lead to 12-9.
Junior Aidan Colin (Garden Grove, Calif.) secured the win in relief, allowing just one run on one hit over four innings to earn his first victory in a Coyote uniform.
CSUSB will look to complete the series sweep against Cal State Los Angeles on Sunday, with first pitch scheduled for noon at Fiscalini Field.
#GoYotes
