POMONA - The Cal Poly Pomona baseball team scored just 11 pitches in and tallied in each of the first four frames to overwhelm Cal State San Marcos, 16-1, in the finale of a four-game California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) series Sunday at Scolinos Field.
In completing a third successive home series sweep, CPP improves to 26-15 overall and 21-10 in the CCAA. Cal State San Marcos, which has lost seven straight, falls to 13-29 overall and 9-23 in conference play. Cal Poly Pomona had already clinched a fifth CCAA series victory this season, and third in a row, with a 9-2 victory on Friday night, and a doubleheader sweep Saturday by scores of 10-7 and 7-4.
The third-place Broncos are 11-1 in April, and have won 12 consecutive league games in the friendly confines. They have closed the gap with second-place Chico State, which was idle this week, down to one game.
CPP wasted no time in loading the bases in the first. CSUSM starter Ben Cisneros hit
Jacob Lopez with his very first pitch, and plunked
Johnny Pappas moments later before
Cesar Lopez dropped a single into center.
Ricky Nuñez's fielder's choice RBI groundout made it 1-0.
Ryon Knowles followed suit to plate Pappas and double the advantage.
A mere 10 tosses into the home second, the bulge was 5-0 just like that.
Tyler Chaffee singled for openers, moved to second on a wild pitch, and sprinted around on true freshman centerfielder
AJ Nimeh's double into the right field corner. Junior first baseman
Casey Slattery followed that action up with his fifth home run of the season inside the line in right.
CPP drew back-to-back two-out walks to force in a sixth run in the third. The Broncos loaded the bases again in the fourth through two more walks and another hit-by-pitch, still with nobody out, to force a third Cougar pitching change. A five-pitch walk to Knowles and RBI singles by
Nick Lugo and Chaffee grew the margin to 9-0. The visitors finally registered the first out of the inning on Nimeh's fielder's choice RBI groundout. The Broncos went on to score three more, sending 12 men to the plate in the seven-run inning to really break things open at 13-0.
Two singles ahead of four hit-by-pitches, the last three of them with the bags full, forced in three final runs for CPP in the eighth.
Edrian Rangel (2-4) allowed one run on five hits and three walks over six-plus innings. The true freshman southpaw struck out two, both called to bookend the first around a single and a lineout. Rangel got three ground-ball outs on eight pitches to register a 1-2-3 shutdown second. His third baseman, Chaffee, threw to Pappas to cut down a run at home during a second straight shutdown frame after Rangel had walked a batter and surrendered a single and sacrifice bunt to begin the third. Rangel was ultimately perfect in the second, fourth and fifth.
Drew D'Ambra took over on the mound with the bases full and no outs in the seventh, and limited the damage to the single Cougar run. The junior left-hander then navigated a scoreless eighth despite a leadoff hit-by-pitch and one-out single, and cleaned up a one-out single in the ninth by inducing a game-ending 4-6-3 double play. Despite the score, his season-high three innings of work netted him his first save as a Bronco.
Slattery finished 2-for-2 with the home run, two walks, a hit-by-pitch, two runs and a season-high five RBI. Just above him at the bottom of the order, Nimeh was 1-for-2 with a double, walk, two runs and two RBI. Chaffee, in the seven hole, went 5-for-6 with a double, two runs and an RBI. It was the third-year freshman's first five-hit effort at CPP.
The Broncos loaded the bases in five of eight innings. All nine starters scored, and seven of nine had a base on balls. CPP outscored CSUSM on the weekend, 42-14, and drew 33 walks. Of 13 hit-by-pitches, a season-high eight came on Sunday, which are the most in a CCAA game and tied for second-most in a Division II contest this year.
A second-year freshman making his first collegiate start after seven relief outings, Cisneros (0-1) lasted only one-plus frames for CSUSM and gave up five runs on four hits and two hit-by-pitches.
Cal Poly Pomona has now won all four of its CCAA weekends at home, again the last three via sweep, with one more to go against Cal State Dominguez Hills in two weeks' time. Of the Broncos' six home sets of three or more games this year, they have won five and split one.
Cal Poly Pomona is on the road next week, but nearby, as the Broncos play at area rival Cal State LA. The series opener on Friday night, April 29, is set for a 6 p.m. first pitch at Reeder Field.
All CCAA baseball contests throughout this 2022 season are streaming live online via the CCAA Network at
www.ccaanetwork.com. Fans may also download the CCAA Network app on your iOS or Android smartphone, tablet, or through web streaming devices such as Amazon Fire, Roku or Apple TV. The CCAA Network has moved to a subscription-based model at just $9.95 per month. Subscribers have access to all CCAA broadcasts, both live and on-demand.
Bronco Bits: Cal Poly Pomona is 346-215 (.617) overall and 247-158 (.610) in CCAA play under 12th-year head coach
Randy Betten ...
Edrian Rangel made his ninth appearance and eighth start ... Betten posted the same batting lineup for the fourth game in a row ... Second-year freshman designated hitter
Jacob Lopez started his 22nd straight game in the leadoff spot ...
Johnny Pappas' first-inning hit-by-pitch was his team-leading 10th ...
Cesar Lopez's first-inning single advanced his current team-best reached-base streak to 22 games ...
Ryon Knowles' first-inning stolen base was his team-best sixth on six attempts ...
AJ Nimeh's second-inning double was his fourth ... Knowles' third-inning single extended his hit and reached-base streaks both to 13 games ...
Tyler Chaffee's fifth-inning double was his seventh of the year and third of the series ...
Robert Hook's seventh-inning run was the first of his college career ... Chaffee had the first five-hit game by a Bronco in 2022, and first since Patrick Flynn went 5-for-5 against Cal State Monterey Bay in the CCAA Tournament final in Stockton on May 11, 2019 ...
Casey Slattery produced the fourth five-RBI effort by a Bronco this year ... CPP's season high in hit-by-pitches before today was three ... The Broncos had previously been hit by a pitch eight times in another home romp over CSUSM (28-12) on April 21, 2017, and nine times in a 19-3 home win over Saint Martin's before that all the way back on Feb. 4, 2012 ... CPP reached double-figure runs for the 11th time (10-1) ... Ten more walks increased the Broncos' CCAA-leading total to 237 ... CPP drew double-digit walks for the eighth time this season and second time this weekend ... The Broncos are 19-6 at home in 2022 ... CPP is 18-2 against CSUSM, all since 2016 and under Betten, with seven straight wins ... The Broncos remain perfect in Pomona against the Cougars at 12-0 ... CPP was the CCAA's preseason favorite, earning six of the 11 first-place votes, with CSUSM picked 11th.
