April 21, 2007
UC Davis 2, Cal Poly 0 (Game 1)
UC davis 4, Cal Poly 3 (Game 2)
DAVIS, Calif. -- UC Davis used a combination of dominant pitching from Jessica Hancock and timely hitting from Sarah O'Neill and Mandi Salcido to sweep a doubleheader from visiting Cal Poly Saturday afternoon at La Rue Field. The Aggies won the first game, 2-0, behind a six-hit shutout from Hancock. In addition, O'Neill went 2-for-3 and drove in both runs in the game. In the second game, the Aggies came back from a 3-0 deficit to edge the Mustangs, 4-3. Salcido homered and drove in three runs in that game. The wins improved UC Davis to 28-17-1 on the year. Cal Poly (32-12) entered the day with 20 wins in its last 24 games. The doubleheader sweep was only the second the Mustangs have suffered this season.
The Mustangs had a handful of scoring threats throughout the first game. The first came in the first inning with a runner at second and no outs. Hancock used a pair of strikeouts sandwiched around an infiled single to get out of the inning. In the second, Cal Poly put runners on first and third with one out, and Hancock struck out Kelly Comstuck and retired Lisa Modglin on a groundout.
UC Davis broke through in the bottom of the second with a pair of doubles. Deanna Menapace led off with a double. Jenny Corbett pinch-ran for Menapace and advanced to third on a sacrifice by Nikki Sheldon. O'Neill followed with a run-scoring double to left center to make it 1-0.
In the top of the fourth, it appeared the Mustangs would break through after loading the bases with one out. That's when Comstock grounded back to Hancock on the first pitch, starting a double play to end the inning. That was also the beginning of a strong finish for Hancock, who ended up retiring 10 of the last 12 batters she faced.
In the bottom of the fourth, Menapace led off with a walk and advanced to second on another sacrifice by Sheldon. O'Neill singled up the middle to drive in Menapace to give the Aggies a 2-0 lead.
The only other threat mounted by the Mustangs was in the fifth when Melissa Pura doubled with two outs. Hancock promptly struck out Krysten Cary to retire the side.
Hancock improved to 13-9. She struck out eight batters and walked two.
In game two, which was played in a steady drizzle, the Mustangs broke a scoreless tie with three runs in the third. The big hit came from Sarah Iwata, whose two-run double with one out gave the Mustangs a 2-0 lead. Jackie Gehrke-Jones later added a sacrifice fly to make it 3-0.
In the UC Davis half of the fourth, Ashley Johnson walked with one out. Salcido followed with a towering two-run homer down the left field line to pull the Aggies within 3-2. It was the seventh home run of the season for the senior.
The Aggies loaded the bases with one out in the fifth before Salcido was hit by a pitch to drive in Menapace with the tying run. With the bases still loaded, O'Neill scored when Julie Stauder reached on a fielding error. That gave the Aggies a 4-3 lead heading into the sixth inning.
Lauren Pieretti picked up the win for UC Davis and upped her record to 2-1. She pitched 3.1 innings and allowed two hits. Hancock, who posted her second save of the year, came on in the sixth inning and retired all four batters she faced, including the last two on strikeouts.
"She just really shut (Cal Poly) down," said UC Davis head coach Karen Matteson-Yoder of Hancock's performance. "She believed in what was called and just attacked, and I'm so proud of her performance today. She really stepped up for us."
Cal Poly outhit UC Davis, 6-5. in the first game before the Aggies had eight hits in the second game while holding the Mustangs to just five.
Menapace and O'Neill each had three hits in the doubleheader. Michelle Espiritu and Trish Paine added two apiece. Sheldon finished the afternoon with three sacrifice bunts.
Cal Poly entered the series with an 8-1 record in the Big West Conference as well as the BWC's top team batting average (.313). The Aggies held the Mustangs to a .204 average (11-for-54) on the day. In addition, Cal Poly's Lisa Modglin entered the weekend leading the nation in batting average and slugging percentage but was held hitless in seven at bats with one walk.
With the wins, UC Davis improves to 7-4 against its future Big West competition.
The two teams conclude their three-game series Sunday at noon.
