Stockton, Calif. — On a night needing a win to rid themselves of their past week's recent struggles which had left them reeling, the UC Davis Aggies came together with a collective determination to make a statement against the Pacific Tigers. The result? An 8-1 victory in which the Aggies were firing on all cylinders at Klein Family Field in Stockton.
With the Aggies needing a spark to reignite their season, they found just that in maybe their most complete midweek effort of the year and will use this momentum to carry it into their weekend series with Cal Poly.
Playing good ball as of late while not always showing the desired results in the win column, the Aggies recent four-game losing streak could be described by true heartbreak as three of those four losses were all one-run defeats. Getting back into the win column and adding yet another road victory to their resume, the Aggie baseball program in every sense has been trending in the right direction.
Behind the arm of Junior Nate Freeman, the Aggies' pitching staff put on a clinic, as Freeman would blank the Tigers over two scoreless innings while giving up no hits and striking out two. Freshman Zach Romero set the tone early, tossing three shutout innings of his own, allowing just two hits and striking out one.
But it wasn't just the arms that shone on this day; the bats were equally impressive. With six players collecting multiple hits, the Aggies displayed a relentless offensive attack that made the Tigers pay with a five-run fourth inning fueling the offense.
Junior Damian Stone led the hit barrage for the Aggies with a 2-for-5 showing, featuring a triple and an RBI. Junior Jack Gallagher also added to the fun, going 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a walk.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Aggies wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, striking first in the fourth inning with five runs, including a crucial one-run single off the bat of freshman Leighton Helfrick. From there, they never looked back, shutting out the Tigers until the ninth inning.
UC Davis would add to their lead in the seventh and ninth innings, with sophomore Mark Wolbert's single in the ninth bringing in one of two runs scored during the frame. Pacific managed to put one run on the board during the final inning, but it was too little, too late, as the Aggies cruised to victory.
GAME NOTES
» UC Davis' highest scoring inning was the fourth, when it pushed five runs across.
» Six Aggies had multiple hits in the ballgame.
» The six Aggies with multiple hits were: Alex Gouveia, Nick Leehey, and the aforementioned group of Stone, Helfrick, Gallagher, and Wolbert.
» The Aggies out-hit the Tigers at a 14-5 clip.
» UC Davis went 7-for-14 (.500) with runners in scoring position.
» UC Davis pitchers limited Pacific to just 1-for-5 (.200) with runners in scoring position.
» UC Davis pitchers faced 36 Pacific hitters in the game, allowing 12 ground balls and eight fly balls while striking out six.
» Stone led the Aggies at the plate, going 2-for-5 with a triple and an RBI.
» Pacific was led offensively by senior Jeremy Lea, who went 2-for-4 with a double.
UP NEXT
The Aggies will host Cal Poly this weekend for a three game series at Dobbins Stadium. The game times for the weekened are as follows: Friday, 2:30 P.M. PT, Saturday, 1:00 P.M. PT, Sunday, 1:00 P.M. PT. The entire series can be streamed on ESPN+ with links for each game located in the schedule tab.
