Posted: Apr 24, 2018
SANTA CLARA, Calif. – The Bronco bats came alive against Cal Poly for 14 hits and 10 runs to beat the Mustangs 10-7 in a non-conference game on Tuesday night at Stephen Schott Stadium. Reliever Penn Murfee pitched the final 5 2/3 innings to pick up the win for Santa Clara.
The 9-1-2 hitters for the Broncos, Austin Reyes, Joe Becht and Jason Dicochea combined to go 10-for-13, scoring seven runs and driving in four runs.
Santa Clara (17-21) got off to a quick start scoring a pair of runs in the first two frames to take a 4-0 lead.
Joe Becht (3-for-4, 2 R, RBI) and Jason Dicochea (4-for-5, 2 R, 2 RBIs) led the bottom of the first with back-to-back singles before coming home on John Cresto's (1-for-4, R, RBI) RBI single and on a wild pitch by Mustangs starter Cam Schneider.
In the second, the ninth place hitter Austin Reyes (3-for-4, 3 R, RBI) drove home Jake MacNichols (1-for-4, R, 2 RBIs) on single and advanced to third on a fielding error by Cal Poly left fielder Cole Cabrera. Reyes would score on Becht's RBI bunt single to put Broncos up 4-0.
Bronco starter Alex Waldsmith was cruising along through the first three innings, limiting the Mustangs to just one hit and three base runners. However, in the fourth, the Cal Poly lineup got to Waldsmith scoring four runs to tie the game. Murfee came in relief and allowed an inherited runner to score the tying run before getting Alex McKenna to ground out to a double play to escape the inning.
Santa Clara quickly answered back, getting the go ahead run in the bottom of the fourth when Reyes started a two out rally with a single against Cal Poly reliever Matt Arens. Becht walked to put the runners at first and second before Dicochea drove home Reyes with an RBI single to left to put SCU up 5-4.
Reyes was the catalyst again in the two run sixth inning, reaching base on an infield single before coming home on Dicochea's RBI double to extend the Bronco lead to 7-4.
Cal Poly (19-20) cut the Broncos lead to 7-5 in the eighth on Josh George's RBI double and were a hit away from tying the game with runners in scoring position but Murfee hunkered down to retire McKenna to end the inning.
In the bottom of the eighth, Santa Clara added insurance runs to expand its lead to 10-5. With the bases loaded and two outs, pinch hitter Niko Holm grounded to the shortstop Kyle Marinconz who threw the ball offline to pull the first baseman off the bag, allowing a run to score. MacNichols followed with a two RBI single to make it 10-5.
The three unearned runs would prove to be the difference as Cal Poly's Tate Samuelson hit a two-run homer in the ninth make it a 10-7 ball game for the final margin of victory.
Santa Clara recorded 14 total hits, the most since getting 15 hits against San Diego on March 18.
Dicochea posted his third four hit game of the season and raised his season average to a team-high .317
The Broncos next play WCC co-leader San Francisco at The Hilltop in a weekend series. It is the first of eight straight road games.
HIGHLIGHTS/INTERVIEW | @ustinReyes stops by the press box after a three-hit outing in tonight's 10-7 victory over Cal Poly! The second baseman also had an RBI and three runs scored. #StampedeTogether #SCUBroncos pic.twitter.com/j43MqIuAyg
— Santa Clara Baseball (@SCU_Baseball) April 25, 2018
