Thirteen Proves Unlucky as No. 11 Chico State Takes 5-4 Opener

Box Score

CHICO -- Blake Walker lined a single up the middle in the bottom of the 13th inning to give host and 11th-ranked Chico State its first and final lead of the night in a come-from-behind 5-4 win over a game Cal State Dominguez Hills squad, snapping the Toros' win streak at three and giving the Wildcats their 11th-consecutive win over CSUDH, dating back to the 2011 season.

Bubby Rossman pitched 3.2 innings in relief while fanning five in taking the hard-luck loss.

Coming off a three-games-to-one series win over Cal State Stanislaus that followed a series sweep at CS Monterey Bay, the Toros took an early 3-1 lead over the nationally-ranked Wildcats and tri-ace Nick Baker after Danny Haley scored from third as Rossman was caught in a pickle in the first inning, with Adrian Guzman doubling home a pair of runs one inning later.

Chico notched single runs in the fourth and fifth to tie the game, before CSUDH regained the lead in the sixth on a Hayden Maurice opposite field triple that plated Rossman with the go-ahead run.

That's where the score remained until the eighth when the Wildcats belted a triple of their own with one out, scoring on a sacrifice fly one batter later.

Relievers Rossman and Luke Barker kept the opposing hitters off the scoreboard for the next four innings, with the Wildcats running themselves out of a potential game-winning rally in the 11th before the game-winner two innings later.

Barker was stellar in picking up the win, tossing 5.0 perfect innings with nine Ks to improve to 3-0.

The Wildcats outhit the Toros 17-7 with Haley and Maurice knocking two apiece, while the Toros committed five errors on the night.

The two teams will go at it tomorrow for a 12 noon double-header, with KPAY calling all the play by play and Chico State providing live stats coverage.

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