Cal State Fullerton rallied for three runs in the ninth inning and beat UC Santa Barbara, 9-7, in a Big West baseball game Saturday at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium.
The Gauchos were ahead 7-6 before Paul Contreras hit a lead-off homer against Cole Tryba to tie the score. The Titans loaded the bases and Esteban Olazaba singled for two more runs.
Fullerton reliever Andrew Wright closed out the game in the bottom of the ninth.
UCSB falls to 27-13 on the year and 13-7 in the Big West; Fullerton is 20-21, 12-8.
The Titans scored two runs in the first inning off starter Nate Aceves, capitalizing on a UCSB error.
The Gauchos’ offense came to life in the bottom of the second, scoring four runs.
Corey Nunez was hit by a pitch, Cole Kosciusko singled and Mitch Namie’s RBI groundout got the Gauchos on the board. Xavier Esquer’s single tied the game, then a wild pitch and an error got him to third base. Another error allowed Nate Vargas to reach safely and Esquer to score. With the inning extended, Rowan Kelly’s single up the middle extended Santa Barbara’s lead to 4-2.
The Gauchos left the bases loaded without scoring in the third.
A walk and two singles got Fullerton a run back in the fourth, and a walk, hit batter and two singles helped the Titans level the score again in the fifth. A RBI fielder’s choice put the Titans ahead 5-4 before the inning ended, and a sixth-inning home run put Fullerton ahead by two again.
Esquer led off the UCSB sixth with a single, then later scored on Kelly’s RBI fielder’s choice to start the Gauchos’ next climb. In the seventh inning, William Vasseur got on board with a single and reached third on Esquer’s third hit of the game. Esquer showed off some great base-running instincts on the play too, reaching second. That effort set up Barrett’s two-RBI single through the right side, which gave Santa Barbara a 7-6 lead.
The Gauchos set the Titans down in order in the top of the eighth, but their ride came screeching to a halt in the ninth.
The Gauchos and Titans will play the rubber game of the series on Sunday at 1:05 p.m. Dos Pueblos alum Kellan Montgomery gets the start for the Gauchos.