It took 11 innings, but nevertheless it was a great victory to open the final series of the 2014 season with an extra inning win as Cal State Stanislaus defeated Cal State Monterey Bay, 5-4, Friday afternoon.
Tanner Negrette's sacrifice fly to left scored Matt Chaidez to finally boost the Warriors to start the four-game split series against Cal State Monterey Bay, which ended the Otters' four-game winning streak. The series shifts to Seaside for a pair of games today before returning here to Warrior Baseball Field for the series, and season, finale for both teams on Sunday.
Marcus Mastrobuoni, the CCAA's batting leader, went 2-for-5 and drove in two runs and Eriksen Dickens also went 2-for-4 with a double and plated two scores to lead Stanislaus (13-32, 7-29 CCAA) offensively. He's now batting .385 for the season.
Chaidez set the table for the heroic 11th inning as he led off with a grounder to short. CSUMB shortstop Richie Johnson rushed the throw wide to allow Chaidez to advance to second. During Negrette's at-bat, Chaidez was apparently picked off as catcher Michael Lonsdale threw behind the runner. However, Johnson did not attempt to throw to third, allowing Chaidez to steal the base.
Negrette drove a 0-1 pitch from Brett Hammond to left to score Chaidez to end the game.
Cal State Stanislaus took a 4-3 lead after Monterey Bay went ahead 3-2 in the seventh. In the home half of the seventh, Mastrobuoni's two-run single to right-center scored Negrette and Skippy Ferreria, who had reached on an error to extend his on-base streak to 20 games.
However, the Otters scored in the ninth off Ryan McDaniel on a bases loaded walk to tie the game and sent in into extra innings.
Starter Nick Voumard had another solid outing with four hits on six innings and gave up just one earned run. He struck out five but also walked five and hit a batter. Voumard and the Warriors' pitching staff allowed a total of 10 walks and 10 hits, but managed to get-out of a few jams. Cal State Monterey Bay stranded 16 baserunners, including at least one in every inning except for the 11th.
David Snapp, who came in in the ninth to get the third out for McDaniel pitched the only 1-2-3 inning in the 11th to pick up the win to improve to 2-0.
Devin Finn went 3-for-4 and Matt Urakami was 2-for-4 to lead Cal State Monterey Bay (20-27, 15-22 CCAA).