SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. -- The Cal State Monterey Bay Baseball team is off to their best start in program history with a 12–4 overall record through 16 games, including a program–best 8–0 start in CCAA play after besting the Cal State San Bernardino Coyotes twice on Saturday in the final two games of the series. CSUMB won in games of 7–2 and 8–7 in the eighth inning of the seven inning game.

GAME 1 | CAL STATE MONTEREY BAY 7, CAL STATE SAN BERNARDINO 2
CSUMB never scored more than two runs in an inning, but it managed to score in six innings out of nine, plating two in the fourth inning on a two–run homerun by Ty Morris (Royal Oaks, Calif. / North Monterey County HS), for two of his three RBIs in the game. The Coyotes made a play at a comeback, but two runs in the sixth would be all CSUMB starting pitcher Cody Gappa (Corning, Calif. / Red Bluff HS) would allow, giving him his second win of the season (2–0) after throwing six innings and striking out seven batters.

With the score at 4–2 in favor of the Otters after the sixth inning, CSUMB recorded a run in the final three innings to build a 7–2 lead. The consistent late–inning offense was backed by three shutout innings from reliever Kory Groves (Citrus Heights, Calif. / Oakmont HS) who fanned five batters in his fourth appearance of the season.

Along with Morris' three–RBI game, four other Otters recorded an RBI, while Justin Flores (Fresno, Calif. / Clovis West HS) was .500 at the plate with a 3–for–6 game. Kevin Davidson (Yucaipa HS) went 2–for–2 while drawing three walks; he also came in to score twice. For the Coyotes, Aaron Owen had two hits, while Grant Buchanan contributed an RBI in the loss.

GAME 2 F/8 | CAL STATE MONTEREY BAY 8, CAL STATE SAN BERNARDINO 7
With a series sweep on the line, the Otters were faced with a 4–0 deficit after three innings of play. However, offensive persistence paid off as the Otters came out with the extra inning win by a score of 8–7 in the eighth inning.

CSUMB cut the Coyote lead in half with a two–run fourth inning, and got a step closer after a run in the fifth to make it 3–4 in favor of the hosts. CSUSB answered with a run in the bottom half of the fifth to jump ahead by two runs at 5–3.

The Otters had their big inning in the sixth, thanks to RBI doubles by Curtis Gomez (Watsonville, Calif. / St. Francis HS) and Brian Bostjancic (Forest Knolls, Calif. / Sir Francis Drake HS), in addition to an RBI single and a run brought in by a wild pitch, the Otters lit up the board with a four spot to take a 7–5 lead late in the game. However, CSUMB's reliever allowed the Coyotes to tie it in the bottom half of the inning.

After a scoreless seventh inning, the Otters were forced to play extra inning baseball. The Otters struck in the top of the eighth inning on a fielder's choice play, scoring Chris Blanton (Burlingame HS) to stake an 8–7 lead. The Otter bullpen held strong in the home half of the eighth, sending CSUMB off with its second consecutive series sweep to open the conference season. Bostjancic and Gomez each contributed three hits in the win, while six Otters had one RBI each. Jacob Cox (Madera, Calif. / Liberty HS) was credited with his second win (2–0) after throwing three shutout innings in relief.

Cal State Monterey Bay returns home next Friday, March 6th for a big 4–game series against Cal Poly Pomona. First pitch is set for 2 p.m.