Box Score

Chico, CA -- In the series finale against West Region power Chico State, the Academy of Art University baseball team broke out of their scoring drought with an early lead but saw the game slip away in the middle innings. The Urban Knights were up by a run in the second inning, but the Wildcats batted around in back-to-back innings to break the game open en route to a 9-1 loss.

"We're right there. We just have to play catch a little bit better," said head coach Brian Guinn. "Baseball's a funny game. Overall the kids played well. We pitched well against a good team, we're hitting over .300 as a team, and we have played well. But if we make mistakes against good teams they're going to capitalize, and that's what Chico did this whole series."

The Urban Knights started off the scoring in the second inning, as Chucky Cavestany led off by doubling down the left field line. After two quick outs, it looked like the Knights would strand another runner in scoring position, but freshman Daniel Gutierrez singled to left to drive in Cavestany and give the Knights their first run since Friday and a 1-0 lead.

Meanwhile, freshman Alex Kuisel got through the first two innings unscathed, giving up a pair of hits but inducing five groundouts out of the first six outs. Chico State evened up the score in the third, however, as Kuisel gave up a leadoff single to Cody Slader. He stole second, and went to third on a groundout, before a single from Blake Walker drove in the Wildcats' first run of the game.

The game stayed tied until the Chico State fifth, when they used five hits and two errors off of four Urban Knights pitchers to put four runs on the board. The sixth was a repeat, as the Wildcats added three more runs on a hit, an error, two hit batsmen, and two walks to make it an 8-1 game.

The Knights would threaten down the stretch, getting two on with no out in the eighth, but after loading the bases with two outs, Cavestany, who had two doubles earlier in the game, lined out to second base to leave them loaded. Chico added one more in the eighth against Maclane Brady, but the damage had already been done.

Kuisel (0-2) went 4.1 innings and gave up three runs but only one earned. Overall, the Knights pitchers had nine runs on the scoreboard but only three were earned. Cavestany had two doubles to raise his average to .458 on the season, while Joseph Marchini extended his hitting streak to eight games with a pair of hits. Luke Barker (1-0) pitched six innings for Chico State, scattering five hits and allowing just the one run to earn the win. At the plate, Peter Miller was 3-for-4 while Ryne Clark was 1-for-4 and drove in three.

Academy of Art will head south to take on Azusa Pacific in a pair of doubleheaders against the Cougars.