POMONA - Cal Poly Pomona cranked out 30 hits to go along with two solid mound starts and five double plays to post a comprehensive doubleheader sweep over Cal State Dominguez Hills at Scolinos Field on Friday. Game scores were 13-7 and 3-0 in seven innings.

With the day's results, CPP improves to 31-17 overall and 26-12 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). Cal State Dominguez Hills is now 25-24 overall and 20-19 in league play. Combined with Thursday night's 8-2 victory, the Broncos have clinched yet another CCAA series victory. They will finish with six wins and a split in home sets of three games or more in 2022.

The green and gold has in fact won 11 in a row in the friendly confines, and 15 successive league contests at Scolinos Field.

Elsewhere, Chico State outlasted Cal State East Bay in Hayward, 7-5 in 10 innings, to begin that twin bill. That result actually punched the Toros' ticket to next week's CCAA Tournament in Chico. Like the Broncos, the Wildcats blanked the Pioneers (2-0) in their nightcap to sweep the day and go up 3-0 in that series. CPP and Chico State thus remain tied for second in the league table, with that spot more important than in past years, as the top two seeds get a first-day bye on Wednesday, May 11, and would enter a four-team, double-elimination tourney the following day. As it stands, the Broncos own the head-to-head tiebreaker with the 'Cats, so a win Saturday would clinch that No. 2 seed behind regular-season champion Cal State Monterey Bay, regardless of what happens up in Hayward.

CPP matched its season high of 21 hits in the first game Friday, including nine alone during a decisive seven-run seventh. Graduate student second baseman Ryon Knowles had two home runs and five RBI, both his single-game highs as a Bronco. That included his second grand slam in the green and gold during that long seventh.

On the mound, second-year freshman right-hander AJ Moreno drew his first collegiate starting assignment and provided six strong innings. Veteran right-hander Drew Atherton fired five effective frames in the nightcap, combining with closer Eric Romo on the six-hit shutout.

Defensively, Cal Poly Pomona turned a single-game high of three double plays in the opener, and had five twin killings for the day. Moreno committed a fielding error three batters in, but the Broncos played error-free baseball from there for 15 innings.

Knowles and fellow senior Cesar Lopez put together rather remarkable days. Knowles hit for the cycle across the two contests, finishing 6-for-9 with two singles, one double, a triple, two home runs, five runs scored and five driven in. Cesar Lopez reached base in all eight of his trips to the plate. The longest-tenured fifth-year Bronco was 6-for-6 with five singles, a double, two walks (one intentional), and three runs.

CPP has hit the 30-win mark for the ninth time under 12th-year head coach Randy Betten, with the 2020 season having been cut short and the 2021 campaign canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Broncos also reached 25 CCAA victories for the fifth time in Betten's tenure. Friday's game-one triumph was Betten's 350th at the helm.

These teams conclude this series and the regular season on Saturday, May 7. First pitch is slated for 12 p.m. It is Senior Day at Scolinos Field, with a recognition ceremony honoring the Broncos' 10 seniors scheduled to begin at 11:40 a.m. That group is made up of Atherton, Knowles, Romo, Cesar Lopez, Ricky Nuñez, Matt Orozco, Dante Palacio, Casey Slattery, Connor Tousignant and Bryce Wooldridge.

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.

Game One - CPP 13, CSUDH 7
The visitors opened the scoring in the first, taking advantage of a leadoff double as Alberto Luevano produced an RBI single. Moreno limited the damage by inducing a 4-6-3 twin killing.

CPP loaded the bases with no outs in the home half through a hit-by-pitch and two singles, but Knowles was cut down at the plate ahead of an inning-ending 6-4-3 double play.

Cal State Dominguez Hills filled the bags with one gone in the fourth, but Moreno did well to get leadoff man Eric Smelko, who was 2-for-2 at that point, to hit into a 6-4-3 double play to keep it just a one-run game.

CPP then flipped the script in the home fourth via two-out rally. Nick Lugo sent a first-pitch single up the middle and two tosses later, third-year freshman third baseman Tyler Chaffee sent his third home run over the wall in left for a 2-1 edge.

Moreno followed with his first perfect frame of the afternoon, a quick one on a strikeout looking, flyout and first-pitch groundout to Knowles.

CPP's first walk of the day as the CCAA leader in the category was drawn by Slattery at the bottom of the order to begin the home fifth. Knowles followed with an opposite-field double down the left field line, and with one away, Cesar Lopez was intentionally walked. Then came three straight RBI singles to right by Nuñez, Jacob Lopez and Lugo to make it a 5-1 game. Another double play ended the frame.

Moreno came through with a second straight shutdown frame in the sixth, this time dodging a one-out double with two pop-ups to Slattery at first and another called third strike.

Knowles added to the lead in the bottom of the inning by pulling a solo home run inside the right field line with two outs.

CSUDH likewise used the long ball to take a big chunk out of its deficit in the seventh. With CPP into its bullpen, the Toros got a one-out single, hit-by-pitch and three-run blast to left by Pierson Loska, his second of the series and eighth of the season.

It didn't seem to bother the Broncos any as they sent 13 to the plate and broke the game open with a seven-run home half. Cesar Lopez's team-leading 18th double, his first since April 10, opened things. Nuñez drove him in by knocking an 0-2 pitch up the middle for a single. Chaffee and Slattery later added RBI singles, and Knowles tacked on the exclamation point by belting a grand slam to right on an 0-2 offering.

Scott Ogrin's three-run home run, his 20th on the year to tie him for the league lead, capped the scoring in the ninth before CPP turned a season-best third double play ahead of a game-ending Andy Hurtado strikeout.

Moreno (2-1), who came in with 11 relief appearances, provided season bests of 6.0 innings and five strikeouts, allowing one run on six hits, two hit-by-pitches and a walk. He navigated a leadoff single and one-out walk in the third with an infield lineout and called third strike.

Knowles wound up 3-for-5 with a double, two home runs, three runs and five RBI. Chaffee was 2-for-5 with his long ball, two runs and three RBI. Cesar Lopez went 4-for-4 with a double, walk and two runs. Nuñez was 2-for-4 with a run and two RBI. For the second game in a row to begin the series, all nine Bronco starters produced a hit.

Matthew Henry threw the seventh for CPP. Scott Armstrong set the Toros down in order in the eighth with two punch-outs.

For the Toros, Dylan Steen (3-6) gave up eight runs on 13 hits, a hit-by-pitch and two walks over six-plus frames. The senior right-hander struck out two, both in a 1-2-3 second.

Game Two - CPP 3, CSUDH 0 (7)
CPP loaded the bases in the first frame with two away on singles by Knowles and Cesar Lopez and a four-pitch walk to Jacob Lopez. Lugo then came through with the clutch two-out, two-run single to left for 2-0.

A fourth Bronco double play of the day, 5-4-3, cleaned up a single to lead off the second. Matt Mecate then doubled for CSUDH, but a groundout to Chaffee ended the inning.

A leadoff single and one-out double got Atherton in trouble in the fifth, with the tying run in scoring position. He got Grant Decatrel chasing a 2-2 pitch, and back at the top of the order, induced a groundout off Smelko's bat to Chaffee.

Knowles began the home fifth by ripping a 1-2 pitch into the gap in right center for his second triple of 2022. A one-out walk to Cesar Lopez made CSUDH go to the bullpen. Though Carlos Bracamontes struck Nuñez out, Jacob Lopez came through with an RBI single to make it 3-0.

Eric Romo took over for Atherton and after catching Ogrin looking, allowed a five-pitch walk to Loska, only to dial up a fifth double play for CPP on the day, 6-4-3 to Lugo at short. He returned for the seventh and got groundouts to Knowles and Lugo on his first two offerings. Romo jumped ahead of Mecate 0-2 but surrendered a single, and then froze Emilio Barrera on three pitches for his sixth save.

Atherton (2-2) gave up five hits without a walk over 5.0 shutout innings, matching his season high of five strikeouts. He breezed through 1-2-3 frames in both the third and fourth, and retired seven Toros in a row during that stretch.

Knowles was 3-for-4 with a triple and two runs. Cesar Lopez went 2-for-2 with a walk and a run. Jacob Lopez was 2-for-2 with a walk and an RBI. Lugo drove in a pair.

Nate Ortiz (4-7) allowed three runs on seven hits and two walks in 4.1 frames. The junior right-hander had four strikeouts. He used a 4-6-3 twin killing to evade two singles in the third, and was perfect in the fourth.

Bronco Bits: Cal Poly Pomona is 351-217 (.618) overall and 252-160 (.612) in CCAA play under 12th-year head coach Randy Betten ... Ryon Knowles led off for the second and third games in a row, and sixth and seventh times in 2022 ... Four more walks on the day increased the Broncos' CCAA-leading total to 267 ... CPP has swept six doubleheaders this year, including five of six at home ... The Broncos are 22-6 at home in 2022, with 11 straight wins there overall and 15 in a row in league play ... They have eclipsed the 20-win mark at home for the first time since going 21-5 there in 2016 ... CPP holds a 126-89 lead in the all-time series that dates back to 1980, with 10 straight wins ... The Broncos have not defeated any foe more in their history, and have only played one opponent more than CSUDH (215), that being Cal State LA (229) ... The Broncos are 34-9 against the Toros under Betten (17-4 at home) ... The Broncos moved down a spot to No. 6 in Wednesday's second official NCAA West Region poll, which is used to select the six participants of the 2022 NCAA West Regional later this month ... Game One: Knowles' leadoff hit-by-pitch extended his reached-base streak to 19 games, with Cesar Lopez's single moments later advancing his run to 28 ... Nick Lugo's fourth-inning single extended his reached-base and hit streaks to 16 and 13 games, respectively ... Knowles' 13th double of the year in the fifth moved his hit streak to a team-best 19 ... Knowles has six home runs in 2022, the single-season high for his CPP career, and 12 as a Bronco ... It was Knowles' seventh straight game with an RBI, with 18 during the stretch ... Knowles' second grand slam at CPP was the third by a Bronco this season after Casey Slattery's two at Sonoma State in late March ... Game Two: Drew Atherton had made 11 starts among 20 appearances prior to this season, and now has drawn six straight starts in 2022 after four relief stints ... For the fifth straight series, Betten posted the same batting lineup for the third game in a row ... Knowles' single to lead off the game moved his reached-base and hit streaks to 20 ... Cesar Lopez's first-inning single extended his team-best reached-base streak to 29 ... Lugo's first-inning single extended his reached-base and hit streaks to 17 and 14, respectively ... Slattery's sixth-inning double was his sixth ... CPP has six shutouts in 2022.