Sacramento, Calif. — Damian Stone doubled his home run total on the year after hitting hitting two homers Tuesday night, but the Aggies ultimately fell to the Sacramento State Hornets 7-5.

The loss drops UC Davis to 17-27 on the season as the Hornets claimed the season series, taking two out of three games this year. Reigniting the Causeway rivalry this year for the first time since 2019, UC Davis will look to bounce back next season to claim the Causeway series, as this year, the home team came out on top each time. While losing the series on the diamond, the Aggies walkoff win earlier in the season aided UC Davis' efforts in the annual Causeway Cup.

Freshman Zach Romero (2-2) got the ball to start for the midweek matchup and took the loss. Struggling with some walks early on, Romero was effective when attacking the zone. Another key contributor the runs early on in the game for the Hornets against Romero was a costly error, as four of the runs for Sacramento State were unearned. Even with this, the Aggie bullpen did not flinch as the final three Aggies shutout the Hornets for no runs in three straight innings. Among that crop of guys was Andrew LaCour who dazzled on the mound tonight. LaCour entered the contest and had the opposition looking for help, striking out the side in just 14 pitches during his lone inning. 

Stone provided the thump tonight for UC Davis, going 2-for-5 at the plate, with two home runs and collecting two RBIs off his solo shots. Alex Gouveia added to Stone's power-hitting performance by going 2-for-4 with a triple along with one walk. Leighton Helfrick continues to grow as a player right before our eyes, as he would also provide some run support for the Aggies, going 1-for-4 with an emphatic double, a walk and an RBI.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Gouveia kicked things off in the ballgame with a roped triple into the right center gap. After getting on third base with less than two outs, the Aggies failed to bring him home. The Hornets would make the Aggies pay for this by creating an early 5-0 lead.

With the Aggies finding themselves in a hole early, it wasn't until the third inning when the Aggies would respond and first put runs on the board. Stone got UC Davis on the board with a two-out solo home run off sophomore Noah Lucchesi.

The Aggies kept the deficit at 5-1 before closing the gap further in the fourth. Sophomore Mark Wolbert came across to score the lone run of the inning for UC Davis, which tightened the Hornets lead to 5-2.

UC Davis kept the Hornets off the board before narrowing the gap to 5-3 in the fifth. The Aggies recorded a run on Stone's leadoff home run off sophomore Tyler Stewart.

The Hornets expanded their lead to 7-3 before the UC Davis offense got back in gear, cutting into that lead in the sixth. The Aggies scored once on an RBI single off the bat of freshman Joey Wright, bringing the score to 7-4 in favor of Sacramento State.

The Aggies held the Hornets off the board before getting within 7-5 in the eighth. Helfrick came across to score the lone run of the inning for UC Davis and get them on the board. Getting the leadoff hitter on to start the ninth against Sacramento State's closer Zack Zalasky, it wouldn't unfold into anything else as the Hornets held on and captured the win.

GAME NOTES
» Every Aggies starter reached base safely in the loss.
» UC Davis left 11 runners stranded on base in the loss.
» The Aggies out-hit the Hornets at a 9-7 clip.
» UC Davis pitchers faced 36 Sacramento State hitters in the game, allowing four ground balls and 10 fly balls while striking out eight.
» The Aggies drew four walks from Sacramento State pitching.
» Stone led the Aggies at the plate, going 2-for-5 with two home runs and two RBI.
» Sacramento State was led offensively by sophomore Jeffery Heard, who went 3-for-3 with a double and an RBI.
» Senior Jack Zalasky led the Hornets pitching staff, throwing one shutout inning.