SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (May 19, 2023) — Matt Ager twirled another gem on the mound and Nick Oakley drove in four runs for the UC Santa Barbara Baseball team (34-16, 17-8 Big West) as the Gauchos defeated Cal Poly (19-32, 9-16 Big West) in the first game of a three-game series Friday evening, 7-0. With Cal State Fullerton falling to Long Beach State, the Gauchos are now tied with the Titans in The Big West standings, both half a game behind UC San Diego in first place.

HOW IT HAPPENED
A workhorse all season long, Ager was stellar as usual on Friday, pitching seven scoreless innings, striking out eight Mustangs and keeping Cal Poly off the board. He had to work around some traffic on the night, starting in the first inning. A two-out double, the only extra-base hit Ager allowed all night, followed by a single put runners on the corners, but Ager stranded them there. He had to work out of even more trouble in the sixth, facing a bases-loaded, one-out jam. He won an eight-pitch battle with a strikeout to get the second out, then got some help from Broc Mortensen for out number three, with the Gaucho right fielder twisting and turning to track a fly ball, making the grab at the wall.

Ager departed with a 2-0 lead, thanks to a pair of solo home runs. Ivan Brethowr hit the first of them, leading off the fourth inning with a rocket line drive to left center. Oakley doubled the Santa Barbara lead the very next inning, getting the better of his friend and former Santa Barbara High School teammate, Mustang pitcher Bryce Warrecker, with a long ball to right center.

After reliever Hudson Barrett kept the Mustangs off the board in the top of the eighth inning, the Gaucho offense erupted in the bottom half of the inning. Zander Darby led off with a single, then moved over to third on Jared Sundstrom's double. Brethowr missed his second home run of the game by mere inches, instead having to settle for an RBI double, making it 3-0 Santa Barbara. LeTrey McCollum made it 4-0 with a two-out single up the middle, then Corey Nunez walked to load the bases. Oakley then un-loaded the bases with a three-RBI double down the right field line.

Sam Whiting came in to pitch the ninth, striking out the first two batters he faced, then ending the game with a fly out to centerfield.

ON THE STAT SHEET
• Matt Ager set a new career high on Friday night, throwing 123 pitches in his seven innings of work. He struck out eight Mustangs, allowing five hits and walking two.
• Four Gaucho batters recorded multi-hit games on Friday, led by Ivan Brethowr (3-for-4). Jared Sundstrom, LeTrey McCollum, and Nick Oakley each went 2-for-4
• Nick Oakley's four RBI led the Gauchos on Friday night; Ivan Brethowr drove in two runs of his own, with LeTrey McCollum adding one as well

UP NEXT
The Gauchos and Mustangs return to Caesar Uyesaka Stadium tomorrow, Saturday, May 20 for the second game of this three game Blue-Green Rivalry series. First pitch is set for 4:05 p.m. As a reminder, children ages 12 and under will receive free admission to Saturday and Sunday's games. For fans who cannot make it to the ballpark, the game will be live on ESPN+ with live stats and an audio broadcast available on ucsbgauchos.com.