Bears Win In A Walk-Off

BERKELEY – The Cal baseball team got back into the win column thanks to stellar relief pitching and two mammoth home runs, the second a solo home run in the bottom of the ninth by Kade Kretzschmar to give the Golden Bears a 5-4 on Saturday evening at Stu Gordon Stadium.
 
Cal (11-11, 3-8 Pac-12) finished the night with five runs on seven hits.  The Bears' offense got it going early, scoring three runs on three hits in the bottom of the first inning. The big hit was a titanic three-run home run by Rodney Green Jr., his sixth of the year. Green Jr. finished the day 2-for-3 with two runs scored, three RBI, and two stolen bases. Dom Souto also collected a pair of hits on the night.
 
However, it was Kretzschmar's blast in the ninth that sealed the win. After fouling off the first pitch he saw, Kretzschmar turned on a 1-1 offering from Arizona State's relief pitcher Matt Tieding (3-1) and blasted it over the right field wall into the soccer stadium. The home run is Kretzschmar's fourth of the year and 11th of his career. It is the second walk-off home run of the year for the Bears. The last coming off the bat of Caleb Lomavita against USC in the 10th inning on March 18.
 
Arizona State (18-9, 6-2) was held in check for four-plus innings but took the lead in the top of the fifth inning. A walk and back-to-back singles preceded a three-run home run by Nu'u Contrades. A base hit by Ryan Campos ended the night for Paulshawn Pasqualotto who was cruising through four innings. ASU finished the evening with four runs on eight hits. Wyatt Crenshaw, Contrades, and Ryan Campos all collected multiple hits. 
 
Pasqualotto was stellar through four innings, striking out five while scattering a hit and two walks. His final line was 4.0+ innings, five hits, four earned runs, three walks, and five strikeouts.
 
After a rocky first inning, ASU starter Khristian Curtis got into a rhythm and retired 12 of the next 13 batters he faced. Curtis went 5.1 innings, allowing four hits, three runs (two earned), with three walks, and nine strikeouts.
 
In the eighth inning, smart base running allowed the Bears to tie the game up at four. Green Jr. started the rally with a single through the right side. Peyton Schulze followed that up with a single past the diving second baseman to put runners at first and second with one out. With Carson Crawford at the plate, Green Jr. stole third and scored on the fielder's choice RBI by Crawford.
 
The Bear bullpen was tremendous. Joe Williams, Chris Stamos, Daniel Colwell, and Tucker Bougie combined to throw five scoreless innings, scattering three hits with eight strikeouts. Bougie got the win by throwing a scoreless ninth, he improves to 3-1 on the year.
 
 
UP NEXT
Cal and Arizona State will play the rubber match tomorrow afternoon. First pitch is at 2:05 p.m. Sunday's game will be televised on Pac-12 Network with Ben Ross calling the action live.
 
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