The big series win didn’t come this year.
A season after upsetting nationally-ranked Cal State Fullerton 2-1, the Mustangs dropped two of three games to the defending Big West champion Titans this weekend.
The Mustangs started the series with a 6-1 loss against Cal State Fullerton on Friday. In the loss, the Titans got started early, racing out to a 2-0 lead through the first three innings against Cal Poly starting pitcher Joey Wagman.
Cal State Fullerton then scored four more runs in the sixth inning to run out to a 6-0 lead.
The Mustangs responded with their only run of the game in the eighth inning, as David Armendariz hit an RBI single to left field to bring home Tim Wise. That’s as close as the Mustangs would get, as Cal Poly dropped the series opener.
In the loss, Jimmy Allen led the Mustangs, going 3 for 4. Both Chris Hoo and Wise went 2 for 4 for Cal Poly.
Saturday, the Mustangs used power at the plate to edge Cal State Fullerton for an 8-6 victory. The Titans, however, rushed out to a 2-0 lead after they roughed up Cal Poly’s Kyle Anderson for a RBI single and a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning.
Cal Poly answered in a big way. Denver Chavez doubled down the left field line and Mike Miller singled through the left side to put runners at the corners for Mitch Haniger with two outs. Haniger then stepped up and belted a three-run home run to left center to give the Mustangs a 3-2 lead.
That wasn’t it. Allen walked on four straight pitches in the next at-bat, and Armendariz followed with a single to put runners at the corners again, this time for Nick Torres. And he, just like Haniger, sent a pitch over the left field wall for a three-run home run to complete a six-run inning and take a 6-2 lead.
Cal State Fullerton bounced back with four runs of its own in the next inning, coming off a two-RBI double from Michael Lorenzen and a two-RBI triple from Ivory Thomas to tie the game at 6-6.
But in the bottom of the eighth inning, the Mustangs found success at the plate once again. With two outs, Hoo doubled to left field to move the potential game winning run into scoring position. Alex Michaels then pinch hit for Chavez and sent a 0-2 pitch over the right field fence to give the Mustangs their third home run of the game.
Cal State Fullerton couldn’t answer in the next two innings, as the Mustangs evened the series.
Four Mustangs finished the game with multiple hits. Both Miller and Haniger went 3 for 5, while Armendariz and Tommy Pluschkell went 2 for 5.
On the mound, Anderson started and threw five innings, giving up six runs on eight hits with three strikeouts. Reed Reilly got the win, pitching four shutout innings in relief.
The Mustangs had a chance at the series win on Sunday, but after Cal Poly scored two runs in the ninth inning to tie the game at 4-4, Cal State Fullerton walked off with a 5-4 win in 10 innings.
The Titans held the momentum for most of the ballgame, as they started off the game with Carlos Lopez hitting an RBI single off Cal Poly’s Kyle Brueggemann to take a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning.
In the fourth inning, Haniger hit an RBI-single down the left field line to tie the game at 1-1, but Cal State Fullerton scored another run off Bruggemann to pull ahead 2-1.
Chavez then singled through the right side to bring home Armendariz and tie the game again, at 2-2.
After Cal State Fullerton took a 3-2 lead in the sixth, Cal Poly found life in the ninth. With two outs, Hoo hit an RBI single through the right side to tie the game. Miller followed with a RBI single up the middle to put the Mustangs ahead by one run.
But Cal State Fullerton tied the game in the ninth inning, and the Titans walked off in the 10th inning after a double from Lopez to left center brought home the game-winning run.
Brian De Los Santos contributed to this article.