UC San Diego defeated Cal Poly 12-2 on May 23, forcing a winner-takes-all final in The Big West Baseball Championship at Cicerone Field at Anteater Ballpark.
The result sets up a sixth meeting this season between the two teams, with the championship to be decided on Sunday. The Mustangs suffered their first loss of the double-elimination tournament, while UC San Diego’s rallies of three or more runs proved decisive.
Cal Poly entered the tournament with a strong offensive record, posting a .307 team batting average during the regular season and .325 in conference play. However, their offense has been limited during the tournament, hitting only .232 with four extra-base hits across three games. In Saturday’s matchup, Cal Poly managed seven hits and scored single runs in the first and seventh innings. Alejandro Garza singled twice for Cal Poly and now sits four hits shy of tying the school’s career record held by Jimmy Allen.
UC San Diego built its lead with four-run innings in both the second and seventh frames and added three more runs in the eighth before play was called due to a 10-run rule. Five Tritons recorded two hits each, while pitcher Austin Bowker allowed just two runs over nearly seven innings for UCSD. Mustang pitcher Josh Volmerding took his first loss of the season after allowing four runs over four innings.
Cal Poly seeks its ninth conference championship on Sunday. The program previously won California Collegiate Athletic Association titles from 1989 to 1994 and has claimed three Big West crowns, including regular season titles in 2014 and 2026, as well as last year’s conference tournament victory.
Looking ahead to Sunday’s final broadcast on ESPN+, freshman right-hander Corden Pettey is set to start for Cal Poly against UCSD’s Trevor Rector.