CARSON, Calif. – The Cal State East Bay baseball team claimed a thrilling 4-3 CCAA victory over Cal State Dominguez Hills on Friday afternoon at Toro Baseball Field, highlighted by a ninth-inning home run from Luke Brown.
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GAME SUMMARY |
The game was closely contested, with the Toros scoring first in the bottom of the second inning on a sacrifice fly by Kaleb Castro, which plated Dylan Schumacher after his leadoff double.
The Pioneers remained scoreless until the seventh inning when Jaylen Hodges walked and advanced to third on a single by Quinn Ayres. Nick Thomson then singled home Hodges, and Dominick Najar followed with an RBI single to bring in Ayres, putting East Bay ahead 2-1.
Cal State East Bay extended the lead to 3-1 in the eighth inning. Jacob Klinovsky doubled and was replaced by pinch runner William James, who promptly scored on Gio Martini's RBI single. However, CSUDH rallied to tie the game in the bottom half on a two-out, two-run triple by Noah Karliner.
The decisive moment came in the top of the ninth when Luke Brown crushed a solo home run to right field, his second of the season and fifth in his Pioneer career, providing the go-ahead run.
Caleb Schaeffer entered in relief in the bottom of the ninth. Despite the tying run for the Toros reaching scoring position and the winning run on first, Schaeffer secured the victory, recording his third save of the year.
Gabe Tanner earned the win, improving to 4-1 after delivering eight solid innings with six strikeouts, bringing his season total to 49, tied for second-most in the CCAA.
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NOTABLE STATS |
- Brown went 2-for-5 on Friday, including his eighth inning home run. He leads the Pioneers in RBIs with 23.
- Thomson hit 2-for-4 with an RBI.
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RECORDS |
Cal State East Bay: 14-13, 10-7 CCAA
Cal State Dominguez Hills: 18-12, 14-7 CCAA
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UP NEXT FOR CAL STATE EAST BAY |
The Pioneers return to action with a doubleheader against the Toros at Toro Baseball Field on Saturday, March 29. The first pitch of game one is scheduled for noon, followed by the second game at approximately 3 p.m.
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