One bad inning cost the No. 25 UC Santa Barbara Baseball team in Sunday’s Blue-Green Rivalry Series finale at Cal Poly. A four-run second inning proved decisive, as the Mustangs went on to win, 6-3.
Both teams put a pair of men on base in the first inning, but only Cal Poly was able to capitalize, with an RBI groundout putting the hosts in front, 1-0.
Jessada Brown answered with a solo home run in the top of the second to tie the game back up, but the Gauchos could not keep it even.
Two walks then two sacrifices, a bunt and a flyout, got the Mustangs back in front, 2-1, then the hosts broke the game open with a two-out rally, hitting an RBI single, then consecutive RBI doubles, chasing Santa Barbara starter Reed Moring in the process.
Cole Tryba, who relieved Moring in the second, settled in during the middle innings, pitching 4 1/3 scoreless frames on the day to keep the Gauchos close.
The offense got on the board again in the fifth, with a Reiss Calvin double and Jonathan Mendez RBI single making it a 5-2 ballgame.
Cal Poly did get that run back, but only after Tryba left the game. After the Gauchos left two runners stranded in the top of the seventh, the Mustangs led off their half of the inning with a triple, which they turned into a run with a sacrifice fly.
Brendan Durfee’s RBI groundout got Santa Barbara back within three runs in the top of the eighth, but the Gauchos were unable to complete the rally.
Nick Oakley went 2-for-4 at the plate on Sunday to finish the weekend 6-for-14. In each of his 11 career games against Cal Poly, Oakley recorded at least one hit and has a total of 17 against the Mustangs.
Reiss Calvin went 6-for-13 at the plate over the weekend, including a 2-for-4 day on Sunday.
Cole Tryba’s 4 1/3 scoreless innings of work Sunday capped a weekend in which the rookie lefty was the Gauchos’ best pitcher, giving up just one earned run over six total innings across two games.
Santa Barbara will hit the road again on Tuesday, March 26, traveling south to visit UCLA at Jackie Robinson Stadium.
The Gauchos and Bruins will get underway at 6 p.m. in Westwood, with a live stream available on pac-12.com. An audio broadcast and live stats will also be available through ucsbgauchos.com.