Cal Poly Baseball dropped its second consecutive game on Tuesday, falling to Pepperdine 6-3 in a midweek contest. A third-inning grand slam for the Waves (14-26) was the difference in the game, as the Mustangs (21-18) were never able to dig themselves out of an early hole.
Cal Poly was coming off a series win against UC San Diego that featured a wild 16-15 loss in the finale. Looking for a win to ease the feelings of that heartbreaker, Cal Poly suffered their first loss to Pepperdine since 2023.
Freshman Sean McGrath started the game for Cal Poly, with both of his last appearances coming against the Waves. After struggling against McGrath last week, the Waves benefited from seeing the same arm again and forced the right-hander out of the game after three innings. Six hits and four earned runs were charged to McGrath’s line.
Lefty Chris Downs came on in relief and saw similar results. Despite striking out five in two 1/3 innings, Downs allowed two runs on four hits. Troy Cooper and Arlo Pendleton combined for two 2/3 scoreless innings to finish the game off. Pendleton worked an efficient nine-pitch inning, inducing three straight groundouts.
The Mustangs’ offense tallied 11 hits, but left eight on base, unable to break through in a big way. The bottom of the lineup was the most productive in the loss, as Gavin Spiridonoff and Jake Downing each had two hits. The pair also accounted for every RBI for Cal Poly, including an RBI triple from Spiridonoff.
The Waves went with a bullpen game, featuring six different pitchers. The Mustangs were unable to establish any rhythm as only three hitters saw the same pitcher multiple times.
Tied for first place in the Big West, Cal Poly will now return home for a pivotal series against fifth-place CSUN. CSUN’s offense is among the best in the conference, leading the pack in runs and home runs, a good test for Cal Poly’s pitching staff. A three-game series between the two will kick off on Friday, April 24, at 6:05 p.m.