STANFORD, Calif. – California (12-10, 4-4 ACC) got off to a great start for the second consecutive game, jumping out to an early 6-0 lead through three-and-a-half innings, en route to cruising to a 13-4 victory over No. 14 Stanford (15-5, 5-3 ACC) on Saturday afternoon to clinch a series win over the Cardinal.
Left-hander Christian Lim was tagged for nine runs (eight earned) on 10 hits over 4 1/3 innings as Stanford made three errors behind the Cardinal pitching staff. Lim was saddled with the loss and fell to 2-3 on the season.
Pitching opposite Lim, right-hander Gavin Eddy earned the victory and improved to 2-1 after allowing three runs on six hits and two walks with eight strikeouts over 6 2/3 innings.
Senior Charlie Saum was the lone Cardinal with multiple hits, finishing 2-for-4 with a run scored. Saum came across for Stanford’s first run of the game in the fourth inning.
Freshman Rintaro Sasaki homered for the fourth time this season, launching a solo shot in the fifth. Trevor Haskins and Jimmy Nati would also add solo home runs for Stanford in the seventh and eighth innings, respectively, but the damage was too little and too late.
California scored four in the second, two in the fourth, three in the fifth, two in the sixth and two in the seventh to run away with the victory. Jacob French and Ryan Tayman each finished one leg short of the cycle, with French going 4-for-4 with a double, two triples, four runs scored and two RBIs.
Stanford will look to salvage the series on Sunday at 1:05 p.m. when it sends right-hander Joey Volchko to the mound to face left-hander David Shaw for Cal.
GAME NOTES:
• The series loss is the first for Stanford this season
• The Cardinal has allowed 13 runs in back-to-back games to Cal
• Temo Becerra (1-for-3) has hit safely in five straight games
• Tatum Marsh (0-for-2, HBP) has reached in 16 straight games
• Jimmy Nati (1-for-4, HR) has hit safely in six straight games and all but two on the season … has homered in three of his last four games
• Rintaro Sasaki (1-for-4, HR) has hit safely in five straight games … has homered in three of his last four games, totaling four homers over the span