Anna Cahn had a three-run home run in the top of the seventh inning Sunday to help Cal Poly spoil Senior Day for the UC Davis softball team. The Mustangs took a 6-2 victory at La Rue Field.

Cal Poly made the most of its opportunities, scoring six runs on five hits. Rebecca Patton also turned in one of her best performances on the season, holding the Aggies to two runs on five hits in a complete game.

Alex Holmes started in the circle for UCD and threw well despite a few mistakes, finishing with four earned runs and just five hits in a complete game. Jessica Gonzalez also played will on Senior Day, pacing the Aggie offense with two hits and an RBI.

Cal Poly improved to 10-34 on the season with a 6-12 mark in Big West play, while UCD dropped to 22-25 and 7-11 in conference games.

“We should have gotten out of the second inning with only allowing one run and that changed the complexity of the game,” said head coach Karen Yoder. “Cal Poly is a much better team than their record; they are very talented.

“Alex did a good job pitching so many innings this series. I’m proud of how much she gave and I’m so proud of our seniors. It’s not all about stats but just their presence and their leadership has been extremely important this season.”

The Mustangs got on the board first, posting three runs in the top of the second on two hits and one error. Cahn had a lead-off single to start the inning, followed by a sacrifice bunt. A fielding error allowed the next batter to reach safely and the first run to score.

Whitley Gerhart made the Aggies pay with an RBI triple to right center and later scored on a wild pitch to give Cal Poly an early 3-0 advantage.

UCD took a run back in the bottom of the second after two hits. Gonzalez had a double to left center with one out before Bianca Castillo reached safely on a walk. Kylie Fan brought home the run with a clutch two-out RBI single down the left field line, making the score 3-1.

The Aggies cut the deficit to one in the bottom of the third, scoring a single run on two more hits. Megan Guzman had a lead-off single and went on to steal second. After a groundout and a walk put runners at the corners, Gonzalez provided an RBI single through the left side to make the score 3-2.

UCD couldn’t get much offense going from there, putting just one runner on base in the next three innings. Patton managed a three-pitch inning in the fifth for the Mustangs and had two strikeouts in the sixth. Kelly Harman had a two-out double in the bottom of the sixth but the Aggies couldn’t turn the extra-base hit into a run.

Holmes threw well for four consecutive innings, holding Cal Poly hitless in the third, fourth, fifth and sixth innings. The Mustangs broke free for three more runs in the top of the seventh, using a two-out rally with three hits to score the runs. Ashley Romano and Stephanie Correia had back-to-back singles, followed by a three-run home run for Cahn, her 14th of the season.

UCD had just one runner on base in the bottom of the seventh with a walk from Holmes. The other three batters went down in order, however, as Cal Poly held on for the 6-2 win.

Patton picked up her second win of the weekend, improving to 8-18 on the season after allowing two runs and scattering five hits. Holmes dropped to 16-18 on the season with the loss after four earned runs and five hits in a complete game.

UCD will close out the season this weekend, facing UC Santa Barbara in a three game series, starting with a doubleheader beginning at noon Friday.

ucd-poly14

Alex Holmes connects on a pitch earlier this season for UC Davis. She was among the graduating seniors who were honored Sunday on Senior Day at LaRue Field. Wayne Tilcock/Enterprise file photo

Comments

comments