SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Riley Acosta collected three extra base hits to help propel the UC Davis Aggies past the Sacramento State Hornets 10-5 in a high-scoring affair Tuesday night at John Smith Field.
With the win, the Aggies improved to 7-5 on the season and gives the advantage to the Aggies in the first of three Causeway matchups this season.
After a pair of Sacramento State home runs in the bottom of the first inning seemingly gave the Hornets momentum, that would all change when the Aggies struck back with four runs of their own in the top half of the fourth inning.
From that point, the Aggies completely outslugged the Hornets and put constant pressure on the opposing pitchers. The star of the night was catcher
Riley Acosta, who went 3-for-4 with three doubles, a walk, and three runs scored. Acosta was part of a potent bottom half of the Aggie lineup, which combined for nine hits and all eight RBI.
The Aggies as a team totaled 11 base hits to Sac State's six on the night. Along with Acosta,
Nick Leehey and
Tyler Howard chipped in with multiple hit games for the Aggies.
Tyler Howard continued to be a true sparkplug with his game-changing speed. With a pair of infield singles and aggressive baserunning, his impact on the game was evident. The Acosta and Howard duo tonight caused all types of fits for Hornet pitchers as the pair seemed to be front and center at each Aggie scoring opportunity tonight.
The Aggies also got some power from first baseman
Ethan Felix, who blasted his second home run of the year in the eighth inning. Felix drove in two runs on the night, as he continues to showcase his presence at the plate. Felix currently has a team-leading slugging percentage of .905 and an on-base percentage of .560 which has been pacing UC Davis whenever he is apart of the lineup.
Shortstop
Joey Wright was executing in all facets of the game as well, being apart of multiple momentum shifting double-play turns defensively, while being responsible offensively for a two-run double in the fourth inning which gave UC Davis their first lead of the game. Wright also had one sac bunt as he provided the Aggies with three RBI in the game.
The Aggies' pitching staff was stellar, shutting down the Hornets' offense for most of the game. Sophomore
Zach Romero picked up his second win of the season, not allowing a hit sixth inning. Freshman
Carter Speights followed with another clean inning, rolling up a pair of ground balls to make quick work of the Hornet hitters.
The Aggies also got scoreless contributions from three other pitchers, including
Kaden Hogan,
Ian Torpey, and
Rowen Barnes. Barnes made a triumphant return to the mound after missing almost all of last season due to injury. The right-hander faced the heart of the Hornets' lineup and did not allow a hit in his inning of work.
HOW IT HAPPENED
After falling behind 2-0, the Aggies first put runs on the board in the fourth inning. UC Davis' offense started clicking and put up four runs, highlighted by a two-run double off the bat of Wright.
The Hornets responded by evening the score at four apiece before the Aggies regained the lead in the sixth inning. Acosta scored the go-ahead run for UC Davis, making it 5-4.
UC Davis shut out Sacramento State in the next two innings while extending their lead to 8-4 in the eighth inning. The Hornets narrowed the margin to 8-5 in the bottom of the eighth, but UC Davis continued to add on in the ninth. The Aggies plated two more runs, thanks to an RBI double from Leehey, increasing the score to 10-5 in their favor, providing much needed insurance heading into the final half inning.
With a commanding lead,
Kaden Hogan took the mound in the bottom of the ninth and retired the side on three fly outs. UC Davis secured the 10-5 victory, giving them a 1-0 edge over the Hornets in the three-game series that will span the year against their Causeway rivals.
UP NEXT
UC Davis will stay on the road this weekend, as the Aggies travel to Santa Clara to take on the Broncos for the last non-conference series of the preseason before Big West play. The series against Santa Clara will take place from March 8-10.
