STANFORD, Calif. – Junior Quinn Mathews tossed seven shutout innings, allowing just three hits and two walks with six strikeouts, as No. 6 Stanford (7-3) defeated CSUN (6-3) 6-2 on Saturday afternoon to even a three-game series from Sunken Diamond.
Mathews retired the last 10 consecutive batters he faced, including striking out two of the final three, to improve to 2-1 with the victory. The left-hander has now contributed 13 consecutive scoreless innings spanning his last two starts.
Offensively, Stanford was paced by sophomore third baseman Drew Bowser. Bowser finished a triple shy of the cycle, going 3 for 5 with a run scored and two RBIs. Bowser is hitting .727 (8 for 11) with two runs scored, two doubles, two home runs and three RBIs over his last three games. The native of Los Angeles has homered in consecutive games for the third time in his career (last: April 17-18, 2021 at Arizona State).
Sophomore Carter Graham also posted three hits in the win – finishing 3 for 5 with a run scored and one RBI while hitting second in the lineup. Graham has hit safely in his last five games, batting .409 (9 for 22) with eight runs scored, three home runs and seven RBIs.
Stanford got on the board first with a run in the bottom of the first inning as Bowser laced an RBI-double into left field. The double scored Brock Jones, who reached on an infield single with two outs.
Bowser's second homer of the year in the fourth inning extended the Cardinal lead to 2-0 before Stanford tacked on four in the sixth. Graham came to the plate with the bases loaded in that frame, lofting a single into centerfield where the throw to third sailed past the bag and into the visiting dugout for two more bases and three total runs on the play. A wild pitch capped the scoring just a few pitches later.
After seven strong innings of work, Mathews turned the ball over to the bullpen in the eighth. CSUN managed to scratch single runs across in the final two frames against the Cardinal bullpen, but sophomore Tommy O'Rourke recording the final out of the ninth to seal the victory.
Matador starter Blake Sodersten was charged with the loss after allowing six runs (four earned) on eight hits and four walks while striking out four over 5 1/3 innings. The decision dropped the right-hander to 2-1 on the year.
Stanford will look to secure the series on Sunday in game three as the two teams clash at 12:05 p.m.