Sea Lions Snap Broncos’ Win Streak in Midweek Matchup
POMONA, Calif. – The Cal Poly Pomona baseball team fell to Point Loma on Tuesday night, losing by a score of 4-17. With the loss, the Broncos fall to 19-14 (.576) on the season and are now 1-4 against nationally-ranked opponents on the year.
The Sea Lion bats came out of the gate hot, scoring four runs in the top of the first inning, then adding on two more in the second and third to take a 6-0 lead. The Broncos got three back in the bottom of the third, coming from a two-run single from right fielder AJ Nimeh and an RBI single from first baseman Marco Malerba.
However, the PLNU offense refused to let up, immediately responding with four more in the very next frame. The Broncos' final run of the game came in the bottom of the seventh inning, when Tyler Chaffee, who batted .429 over the weekend in Turlock, drove in Johnny Pappas for the team's fourth run of the game. The No. 5 ranked Sea Lions were virtually unstoppable at the plate, scoring in all but two innings of the contest and recording 10 extra-base hits.
Pappas, Nimeh, Jack Sanders, and Beau Betten each collected two hits in the game, while Nick Lugo had the team's lone extra-base hit with a double to right field in the bottom of the second. Lugo currently ranks 35th in the nation in toughest to strikeout, having just seven strikeouts in 103 at-bats this season. He has also struck out just once in his past 12 games.
Given the one-day turnaround from the Stanislaus Series and the upcoming series against first-place Cal State San Marcos, the Broncos were forced to treat Tuesday as a bullpen game – throwing seven different pitchers. Starting pitcher Dylan Esquival took the loss, falling to 2-1 on the season.
Up Next
The Broncos will host Cal State San Marcos in a four-game series this weekend, starting with a 6:00 PM game on Friday night. CPP currently ranks third in the CCAA with a 15-9 record, while Cal State San Marcos ranks first with an 18-9 conference record.
Bronco Bits
- The Broncos are now 14-8 (.636) all-time against Point Loma dating back to the 1994 season. They are also 5-5 against the Sea Lions in their past 10 games. CPP's longest win streak against PLNU is 9 straight games, lasting from 2000 to 2015.
- Randy Betten is now 403-256 (.612) all-time as head coach of the Broncos.
- CPP's 6-game winning streak was their most since February 11, 2023, when they started the season winning 7 in a row.
- Cal Poly Pomona ranks No. 25 in the nation in fielding percentage at .973 while ranking second in the conference.
Latest All Athletics News
- Jack Sanders Earns Second CCAA Player of the Week HonorsJack Sanders of Cal Poly Pomona has been selected the CCAA Baseball Player of the Week after an offensive week.
- Senior Day Sweep, Broncos Win 6th StraightThe Broncos won their sixth straight game on Sunday, completing the series sweep over Cal State Dominguez Hills with a 12-0 shutout and improving their overall record to 28-17 on the season. The Broncos have outscored their opponents 57-9 during their six-game winning streak.
- Broncos Climb CCAA Standings While Claiming SeriesThe Cal Poly Pomona baseball team won both games of Saturday's doubleheader against Cal State Dominguez Hills at Scolinos Field, improving their overall record to 27-17 on the season. Their three wins against the Toros thus far ensures a series victory headed into Sunday's series finale. They now sit just half a game behind Cal State San Marcos for first place.
- Broncos Clinch CCAA Tournament Berth With Convincing Win Over TorosFor the ninth consecutive season, the Broncos will be headed to the CCAA Tournament. With the 12-1 win over Cal State Dominguez Hills, the Broncos improve to 25-17 on the season and 21-12 in CCAA play while ranking third in the conference standings. They are just 0.5 games behind second-place Cal State Monterey Bay and 1.5 games behind first-place Cal State San Marcos.
- Broncos Rank Top 15 Nationally in Three More Events After 64th Annual Mt. SAC RelaysThe Cal Poly Pomona women's track and field team competed at the 64th Annual Mt. SAC Relays this past weekend, meeting five NCAA provisional qualifying marks and breaking five personal records. Three of the Broncos' five provisional marks in the meet now rank Top 15 in the nation.
- Ryan Fields Captures 15th Career CCAA Track Athlete of the Week AwardFor the fourth time in the past six weeks, Cal Poly Pomona's Ryan Fields has been named the CCAA Men's Track Athlete of the Week for the week of April 15-21. Fields becomes the 40th CCAA Athlete of the Week for CPP during 2023-24, making the Broncos the first school to ever reach 40 in an academic year. Fields now has 15 CCAA Athlete of the Week awards in his career, nearly doubling the previous conference record of eight. His sister, Ayana, is also now second in conference history with nine in her career.
