SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Host Sacramento State dug out of an early hole with single runs in five of the first six innings on Tuesday night, but visiting California scored twice in the top of the ninth to erase a one-run deficit and escape with a 6-5 come-from-behind win over the Hornets at John Smith Field.
The Hornets fell to 15-13 overall, suffering their third consecutive defeat after winning five of their previous six. The Golden Bears improved to 16-12 overall, winning their fourth straight in the series with Sacramento State.
Ryan Christiansen and Jakob Poturnak finished with three hits apiece, while Michael Perazzo was 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles and an RBI. Five different Sacramento State players drove in runs on the night, including Cameron Sewell, who finished with a pair of hits and drove in the go-ahead run in the sixth that staked the Hornets to the one-run lead.
Cal needed just two pitches to take a 4-1 lead in the first three innings, slugging a pair of two-run home runs in the first and third frames for the early advantage.
After a Poturnak RBI single in the bottom of the first, the Hornets halved the Golden Bears' lead with an RBI ground ball by Jameson Mullin — his first career RBI — and made it a one-run game in the fourth as JP Smith did the same to make it 4-3.
Perazzo's second double of the night tied the game in the fifth, scoring Myles Walton who reached on an infield single to make it 4-4.
Christiansen then got the rally started in the home half of the sixth with a double to right and moved to third on a fly ball to bring up Sewell, who went the other way and singled through the left side with the Golden Bears employing the shift and playing him to pull, making it 5-4.
It stayed that way until the ninth when California rallied against the Sacramento State bullpen. Following a fly ball for the first out, Jarren Advincula singled and went all the way to third when the ball was misplayed in the outfield, putting the tying run 90 feet away. A single by Alex Birge drove him home to tie it then, after a walk put two on, Jacob French singled up the middle to score Birge with the eventual winning run.
Sacramento State got the tying run into scoring position in the ninth after a single by Poturnak and a one-out walk to Luis Pimentel-Guerrero, but the Golden Bears wriggled off the hook with a fly ball and a strikeout to end the game.
Sewell's two-hit performance on the night helped the sophomore extend his team-high hitting streak to 10 consecutive games, while a pair of walks by Pimentel-Guerrero allowed him to reach base safely for the 11th straight contest — the third-longest such streak this year.
Meanwhile, Poturnak's three-hit game was his seventh of the season and his team-high 12th multi-hit game of the year.
Tuesday night's contest was a brief respite from the road for the Hornets, who make a return trip to Texas this weekend for a three-game series at Western Athletic Conference rival Abilene Christian from April 4-6.
