Cal Poly defeated Pepperdine 7-3 in a non-conference baseball game on April 14, coming back from an early three-run deficit at home in San Luis Obispo.
The win is significant for Cal Poly as it marks their sixth consecutive victory over Pepperdine and their eleventh come-from-behind win this season. The Mustangs improved to a record of 19-16, while the Waves dropped to 11-25.
Dylan Kordic hit a three-run home run in the fourth inning, turning a 3-1 deficit into a Mustang lead. Ryan Tayman added his eleventh home run of the season with a two-run shot in the fifth inning. Tayman also drove in another run with an RBI single in the seventh. Alejandro Garza contributed with three hits, continuing his strong performance at bat; he has now achieved multiple hits in six of his last seven games and raised his batting average to .369 over his last sixteen games.
Pitcher Sean McGrath earned the win for Cal Poly, striking out six batters over four and one-third innings while allowing only one unearned run. Relievers Josh Morano and Troy Cooper combined to keep Pepperdine scoreless over the final three innings.
Pepperdine took an early lead with runs from Julian Nunez and Kai Laxa but could not hold off Cal Poly’s offense. Gabe Maya was charged with the loss after surrendering Kordic’s home run.
Cal Poly previously beat Pepperdine on March 3 by a score of 12-2. The teams will meet again next Tuesday in Malibu for their final matchup this season. Next up for Cal Poly is a Big West Conference series against UC San Diego this weekend, where they trail UC San Diego by one game.
