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SMC California Athletics

Saint Mary's College Athletics Gaels
Bryce Willits
Saint Mary's Athletics / Tod Fierner
8
Winner Saint Mary's SMC 15-9
2
Cal Poly CP 9-13
Winner
Saint Mary's SMC
15-9
8
Final
2
Cal Poly CP
9-13
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Saint Mary's SMC 2 0 3 0 0 0 1 2 0 8 14 3
Cal Poly CP 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 6 2

W: Thornton, Tyler (4-0) L: Nelson, Darren (1-4) S: Hobbs, Michael (3)

Game Recap: Baseball |

BASE | Gaels Earn Series Split With 8-2 Win Over Cal Poly

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif.–– The Gaels struck early and often in the series finale against Cal Poly, earning a split with the Mustangs after an 8-2 win on Sunday afternoon. 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
  • The Gaels wasted no time going ahead, scoring a pair of runs in the first inning. The action got started with a leadoff triple from Junior Joe Vranesh which was followed by an RBI groundout from junior Ryan Novis. After loading the bases, freshman Daniel Mendez hit a ball towards left-center, but a diving play from the left fielder thwarted what would have been extra bases. On the play, Vranesh came in to score from third for a sacrifice fly. 
 
  • The Mustangs responded with a run of their own in the bottom of the first with an RBI single through the left side. 
 
  • After a scoreless second from both sides, Saint Mary's padded their lead with three runs in the top of the third. The biggest play of the inning came when sophomore Jack Murphy hit a single down the right field line with runners on second and third and an 0-2 count. 
 
  • Cal Poly was back at it in the bottom of the fourth, scoring after a leadoff walk and a double to right field. After four innings of play, SMC led 5-2.
 
  • The Gaels pushed three more across in the contest, scoring one in the seventh off of a sacrifice fly from sophomore Gio Diaz and two from junior Kevin Milam with his second home run of the season in the eighth.
 
NOTABLE NUMBERS
  • 13: Novis' hitting streak ends at 13 games 
  • 5: Freshman Bryce Willits went 5-for-5 (a career-high)
  • 13:The Gaels struck out 13 Mustangs
  • 10:SMC has had 10 games in which their pitchers have recorded 10 or more strikeouts
QUOTABLE

"I'm proud of our guys to fight these last two games and earn a split against a very good team on the road," said head coach Eric Valenzuela. "We needed two great pitching performances and got them. What a game the freshman Bryce Willits had. He's really fun to watch. We need to keep this momentum heading into a tough week."
 
COMING UP
 
The Gaels now return home for a midweek game against UC Santa Barbara before heading to Provo for a series against BYU. 
 
#GaelsRise – Tickets for all upcoming home game are available for purchase here on SMCGaels.com or by calling the SMC Ticket Office at (925) 631-GoTx. Fans can find all live coverage links on SMCGaels.com.
 
 
 
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