Sunday, May 31
Los Angeles, CA
1:00 PM
Saint Mary's College of California
36-26
6
at
5
UCLA
52-8
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UCLA | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 0 |
| Saint Mary's | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 15 | 0 |
#22 Tanner Griffith: 3-for-3, 1 R, 1 BB vs. Cal Poly
Photo by: Eric Brown Jr.
BSB | Saint Mary’s Makes More History with Elimination Win over No. 1 UCLA; Edged by Cal Poly in Regional Final, 5-2
5/31/2026 10:49:00 PM | Baseball
LOS ANGELES - What a magical and drama-filled Sunday afternoon as the Saint Mary's baseball team shocked the country once again, walking off No. 1 and regional host UCLA to advance to the program's first ever regional final. The Gaels erased a three-run deficit, tying the game at five in the bottom of the ninth and walking it off with an RBI single from Makoa Sniffen in the tenth to shock the Bruins and end their season on their home field.
The Gaels responded with another competitive game in the Los Angeles Regional final against Cal Poly, holding a 2-1 lead after five innings. The magic just barely ran out for the Gaels though as Cal Poly erupted for a four-run sixth inning to take a 5-2 lead. True freshman Jake Nobles came in and gave the Gaels good length with 3.1 scoreless innings to give them a chance. The Saint Mary's offense, coming into the regional with the third best team batting average in the country, had the game-tying run come to the plate in the eighth with runners on the corners but the Mustangs escaped with an inning ending double play to help seal the 5-2 victory. The Gaels went down in order in the ninth as Cal Poly was crowned champions of the Los Angeles Regional for the first time in program history, punching their ticket to the NCAA Super Regionals.
The Gaels accomplished something no other team in college baseball had done before, becoming the first four-seed to defeat the number one overall seed twice since the expansion of the NCAA Tournament in 1999. Valenzuela and his group also recorded a program-record two NCAA Tournament wins in what was their third postseason appearance in program history. All-time performances from a historic team, the 2026 Saint Mary's baseball team will forever be remembered with the program's deepest postseason run in its 55-year history.
Ian Josephson, Diego Castellanos, Jacob Johnson and John Damozonio were named to the regional's All-Tournament team.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Game 1: Saint Mary's 6, UCLA 5
Saint Mary's (36-27) got the day started in a rematch and elimination game with number one overall seed and regional host UCLA (52-8). Despite the tough loss the night prior to Cal Poly, the Gaels were up for the test again in another closely contested matchup with the Bruins. Sophomore right hander Sam Kretsch made his seventh start of the season for the Gaels on Sunday. The Bruins got to Kretsch early with an RBI knock in the first and two more runs in the second to take a 3-0 lead. The Gaels pitching staff did a good job of taking their medicine the first time around with UCLA and limiting big innings and they would do more of the same today. Kretsch settled in and went on to retire the next ten Bruin hitters to keep the Gaels offense within striking distance.
Saint Mary's got on the board with an RBI single in the home half of the second from Tanner Griffith and then Ian Armstrong smashed his team leading 16th home run of the season in the third, a solo shot over the batter's eye to make it a one run game. Saint Mary's took more medicine in the fifth, surrendering two runs to bump Kretsch from the ballgame but head coach Eric Valenzuela would call on Cam Staton for his second appearance of the regional. Staton plunked the first batter he saw to plate the second run of the inning but then got back-to-back strikeouts to strand the bases loaded, limiting the damage and leaving the Gaels down 5-2.
Staton put together another stellar outing, pitching 4.2 scoreless innings allowing just two hits to give Saint Mary's a chance. The offense would chip away one run at a time, getting a solo home run from Jacob Johnson in the fifth, his third of the regional, and then a two-out RBI single in the sixth from Diego Castellanos to make it 5-4. With the season on the line, UCLA turned to some of the best bullpen arms in the country for a second time this weekend in Landon Stump, Cal Randall and Easton Hawk.
Stump got through a clean seventh before turning things over to the flamethrower Randall to start the eighth. Randall struck out a pair of batters and then started the ninth with a one-run lead. Tanner Griffith battled to a full count and then rifled a single up the middle to represent the tying run for Saint Mary's and force John Savage to go to Hawk who the Gaels scored off of on Friday to win the regional opener 3-2. Castellanos would bunt over Griffith to second and then two batters later and down to their final out, Ian Armstrong would hit a high chopper over the first baseman's head into right field, good enough to score the speedy Griffith from second and tie the game. Hawk is known as one of the best closers in the country with 14 saves but was running out of gas as he went on to walk the next two batters and load the bases. Jared Mettam would come to the dish and tag a ball to third but the fielder would play it cleanly and step on his own base to end the inning, but not before Saint Mary's erased a three-run deficit to force extras.
Staton could not go a fifth inning for the Gaels but made way for redshirt freshman David Roberts in the top of the tenth who sat the Bruins down in order with soft contact, letting out an emphatic yell to the Gael faithful and send Saint Mary's back to the plate with a chance to do the improbable; beat the number one overall seed twice to end their season.
The rally started with a one-out infield single from none other than Cody Kashimoto, four-year senior and starter for the Gaels. Kashimoto found his way to second after a hit-and-run from Griffith that resulted in a ground out to first. UCLA chose to intentionally walk Castellanos who had two hits in the game, making way for a hitless Makoa Sniffen. On a 1-1 pitch, Sniffen would go to the pull side and yank a single through the 5-6 hole, scoring Kashimoto from second and sending the Gaels dugout and crowd into a frenzy. Saint Mary's became the first four-seed in NCAA Tournament history to single handingly eliminate the number one overall seed, walking off the Bruins 6-5 in ten innings.
Saint Mary's outhit UCLA 15-9 in the game including a game high three hits from Griffith and Armstrong. Roberts would get credit for his second win of the season while Sniffen recorded the walk-off hit to make more history for Saint Mary's and keep its season alive. The Gaels were set for a rematch with Cal Poly later that evening in their first ever NCAA Regional final.
Game 2: Saint Mary's 2, Cal Poly 5
Despite all the theatrics in the day's first game and another upset win over UCLA, Saint Mary's refocused and jumped out to a two-run lead thanks to an RBI double from Jared Mettam in the second and an RBI single from Makoa Sniffen in the third. Senior transfer Jake Hilton has been a pleasant surprise all year for the Gaels and got the ball for Sunday's nightcap. Hilton's unique style got the Gaels through four scoreless innings but Cal Poly (39-22) put traffic on in the fifth and sixth to get to Hilton. The Mustangs rattled off a pair of hits for their first run of the ballgame in the fifth and then connected on two homers in the sixth to take a 5-2 lead.
A four-run sixth inning would prove to be the difference as Cal Poly held on to win 5-2 and claim its first-ever regional championship. Jake Nobles came in and went 3.1 scoreless to give the Gaels a chance but the Mustangs got an inning ending double play in the eighth to erase the best chance in the second half of the game for Saint Mary's. A magical Sunday would come to an end as the Gaels went down in order in the ninth, ending their historic 2026 campaign.
Tanner Griffith had arguably his best game of the regional, going 3-for-3 out of the leadoff spot and was just a home run shy of the cycle. Diego Castellanos had a single in the eighth inning to extend his record-breaking hit streak to 39 games.
GAME NOTES
Final statistics and season results can be found at smcgaels.com. Be sure to follow your Gaels on Facebook, Instagram, and X to get all the latest Saint Mary's athletics updates and information.
#GaelsRise
The Gaels responded with another competitive game in the Los Angeles Regional final against Cal Poly, holding a 2-1 lead after five innings. The magic just barely ran out for the Gaels though as Cal Poly erupted for a four-run sixth inning to take a 5-2 lead. True freshman Jake Nobles came in and gave the Gaels good length with 3.1 scoreless innings to give them a chance. The Saint Mary's offense, coming into the regional with the third best team batting average in the country, had the game-tying run come to the plate in the eighth with runners on the corners but the Mustangs escaped with an inning ending double play to help seal the 5-2 victory. The Gaels went down in order in the ninth as Cal Poly was crowned champions of the Los Angeles Regional for the first time in program history, punching their ticket to the NCAA Super Regionals.
The Gaels accomplished something no other team in college baseball had done before, becoming the first four-seed to defeat the number one overall seed twice since the expansion of the NCAA Tournament in 1999. Valenzuela and his group also recorded a program-record two NCAA Tournament wins in what was their third postseason appearance in program history. All-time performances from a historic team, the 2026 Saint Mary's baseball team will forever be remembered with the program's deepest postseason run in its 55-year history.
Ian Josephson, Diego Castellanos, Jacob Johnson and John Damozonio were named to the regional's All-Tournament team.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Game 1: Saint Mary's 6, UCLA 5
Saint Mary's (36-27) got the day started in a rematch and elimination game with number one overall seed and regional host UCLA (52-8). Despite the tough loss the night prior to Cal Poly, the Gaels were up for the test again in another closely contested matchup with the Bruins. Sophomore right hander Sam Kretsch made his seventh start of the season for the Gaels on Sunday. The Bruins got to Kretsch early with an RBI knock in the first and two more runs in the second to take a 3-0 lead. The Gaels pitching staff did a good job of taking their medicine the first time around with UCLA and limiting big innings and they would do more of the same today. Kretsch settled in and went on to retire the next ten Bruin hitters to keep the Gaels offense within striking distance.
Saint Mary's got on the board with an RBI single in the home half of the second from Tanner Griffith and then Ian Armstrong smashed his team leading 16th home run of the season in the third, a solo shot over the batter's eye to make it a one run game. Saint Mary's took more medicine in the fifth, surrendering two runs to bump Kretsch from the ballgame but head coach Eric Valenzuela would call on Cam Staton for his second appearance of the regional. Staton plunked the first batter he saw to plate the second run of the inning but then got back-to-back strikeouts to strand the bases loaded, limiting the damage and leaving the Gaels down 5-2.
Staton put together another stellar outing, pitching 4.2 scoreless innings allowing just two hits to give Saint Mary's a chance. The offense would chip away one run at a time, getting a solo home run from Jacob Johnson in the fifth, his third of the regional, and then a two-out RBI single in the sixth from Diego Castellanos to make it 5-4. With the season on the line, UCLA turned to some of the best bullpen arms in the country for a second time this weekend in Landon Stump, Cal Randall and Easton Hawk.
Stump got through a clean seventh before turning things over to the flamethrower Randall to start the eighth. Randall struck out a pair of batters and then started the ninth with a one-run lead. Tanner Griffith battled to a full count and then rifled a single up the middle to represent the tying run for Saint Mary's and force John Savage to go to Hawk who the Gaels scored off of on Friday to win the regional opener 3-2. Castellanos would bunt over Griffith to second and then two batters later and down to their final out, Ian Armstrong would hit a high chopper over the first baseman's head into right field, good enough to score the speedy Griffith from second and tie the game. Hawk is known as one of the best closers in the country with 14 saves but was running out of gas as he went on to walk the next two batters and load the bases. Jared Mettam would come to the dish and tag a ball to third but the fielder would play it cleanly and step on his own base to end the inning, but not before Saint Mary's erased a three-run deficit to force extras.
Staton could not go a fifth inning for the Gaels but made way for redshirt freshman David Roberts in the top of the tenth who sat the Bruins down in order with soft contact, letting out an emphatic yell to the Gael faithful and send Saint Mary's back to the plate with a chance to do the improbable; beat the number one overall seed twice to end their season.
The rally started with a one-out infield single from none other than Cody Kashimoto, four-year senior and starter for the Gaels. Kashimoto found his way to second after a hit-and-run from Griffith that resulted in a ground out to first. UCLA chose to intentionally walk Castellanos who had two hits in the game, making way for a hitless Makoa Sniffen. On a 1-1 pitch, Sniffen would go to the pull side and yank a single through the 5-6 hole, scoring Kashimoto from second and sending the Gaels dugout and crowd into a frenzy. Saint Mary's became the first four-seed in NCAA Tournament history to single handingly eliminate the number one overall seed, walking off the Bruins 6-5 in ten innings.
Saint Mary's outhit UCLA 15-9 in the game including a game high three hits from Griffith and Armstrong. Roberts would get credit for his second win of the season while Sniffen recorded the walk-off hit to make more history for Saint Mary's and keep its season alive. The Gaels were set for a rematch with Cal Poly later that evening in their first ever NCAA Regional final.
Game 2: Saint Mary's 2, Cal Poly 5
Despite all the theatrics in the day's first game and another upset win over UCLA, Saint Mary's refocused and jumped out to a two-run lead thanks to an RBI double from Jared Mettam in the second and an RBI single from Makoa Sniffen in the third. Senior transfer Jake Hilton has been a pleasant surprise all year for the Gaels and got the ball for Sunday's nightcap. Hilton's unique style got the Gaels through four scoreless innings but Cal Poly (39-22) put traffic on in the fifth and sixth to get to Hilton. The Mustangs rattled off a pair of hits for their first run of the ballgame in the fifth and then connected on two homers in the sixth to take a 5-2 lead.
A four-run sixth inning would prove to be the difference as Cal Poly held on to win 5-2 and claim its first-ever regional championship. Jake Nobles came in and went 3.1 scoreless to give the Gaels a chance but the Mustangs got an inning ending double play in the eighth to erase the best chance in the second half of the game for Saint Mary's. A magical Sunday would come to an end as the Gaels went down in order in the ninth, ending their historic 2026 campaign.
Tanner Griffith had arguably his best game of the regional, going 3-for-3 out of the leadoff spot and was just a home run shy of the cycle. Diego Castellanos had a single in the eighth inning to extend his record-breaking hit streak to 39 games.
GAME NOTES
- Diego Castellanos had two hits in the walk-off win over UCLA and a hit against Cal Poly to extend his program and West Coast Conference record hit streak to 39 games
- Ian Armstrong connected for his team leading 16th home run of the season in game one on Sunday against UCLA
- Jacob Johnson homered against the Bruins as well for his 15th of the season and third of the regional with all three coming against the Bruins
- Makoa Sniffen delivered the walk-off hit for the Gaels to send them to their first ever regional final
- Saint Mary's became the first four-seed ever to beat the number one overall seed twice in its own regional
- The Gaels also recorded a program record two wins in the 2026 NCAA Regional
- Saint Mary's advanced to its first ever NCAA Regional final on Sunday against Cal Poly
Final statistics and season results can be found at smcgaels.com. Be sure to follow your Gaels on Facebook, Instagram, and X to get all the latest Saint Mary's athletics updates and information.
#GaelsRise
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Roberts, David (2-1)
L: Hawk, Easton (7-4)
Batting:
2B: Levu, Mulivai 1 ; Martin, Roman 1 ; Gudoy, Trey 1
HR: West, Dean 1
RBI: West, Dean 2 ; Martin, Roman 1 ; Gasparino, Will 1 ; Gudoy, Trey 1
SH: Call, Phoenix 1
Base Running:
RUNS: West, Dean 1 ; Cholowsky, Roch 2 ; Aguayo, Aiden 1 ; Gudoy, Trey 1
HBP: Cholowsky, Roch 1 ; Gasparino, Will 1
Batting:
HR: Armstrong, Ian 1 ; Johnson, Jacob 1
RBI: Griffith, Tanner 1 ; Castellanos, Diego 1 ; Sniffen, Makoa 1 ; Armstrong, Ian 2 ; Johnson, Jacob 1
SH: Castellanos, Diego 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Griffith, Tanner 1 ; Armstrong, Ian 1 ; Johnson, Jacob 1 ; Allred, Nick 1 ; Kashimoto, Cody 2
HBP: Sniffen, Makoa 1 ; Kashimoto, Cody 1
Game Leaders
AB
6
R
1
H
3
RBI
1
AB
5
R
1
H
3
RBI
2
AB
3
R
0
H
2
RBI
1
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
C
/ BaseballOF
/ BaseballRHP
/ BaseballOF
/ BaseballLHP
/ BaseballINF
/ BaseballINF
/ BaseballINF
/ BaseballRHP
/ BaseballINF
/ BaseballRHP/UTL
/ BaseballLHP
/ BaseballINF
/ BaseballLHP
/ BaseballBSB | Saint Mary's vs. Cal Poly NCAA Regional Postgame Press Conference 5-31-26
Sunday, May 31
BSB | Saint Mary's vs. UCLA NCAA Regional Postgame Press Conference 5-31-26
Sunday, May 31
BSB | Saint Mary's vs. Cal Poly NCAA Regional Postgame Press Conference 5-30-26
Saturday, May 30
BSB | Saint Mary's vs. UCLA NCAA Regional Highlights 5-29-26
Friday, May 29
