Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 HAYWARD, Calif. — The Pioneer baseball team clinched a series victory over visiting Cal State San Bernardino with a pair of victories on Saturday. Cal State East Bay (16-6, 9-6 CCAA) cruised to a 10-1 win in the first game behind yet another dominant pitching performance from junior Sean Becker. They were able to hang on and beat the Coyotes (9-10, 3-8 CCAA) by a score of 6-4 in the second game to take a 3-0 series lead. The Pioneers are 14-2 at home this season.

“Becker set the tempo for the day,” said head coach Bob Ralston after the doubleheader. “He was in control, it was his third great start in a row. Our hitters battled and had really good at-bats. Overall, it was a great day for East Bay baseball.”

Game 1 – East Bay 10, San Bernardino 1

For the third consecutive week, Becker absolutely mowed through the opposing lineup. The only run the Coyotes managed to score came in the first inning. The leadoff man reached on a dropped infield pop-up, stole second, moved to third on a ground out, and scored on a sacrifice fly. The Pioneers found themselves trailing 1-0 after the first, despite not allowing a hit or a walk.

East Bay took the lead with a pair of runs in the second. David Castillo walked with two outs, Kenny Uyetake sliced a double to left field, and Zac Chuvala plated both runners with a base hit up the middle.

As a turned out, that would be enough for Becker. The right-hander allowed just three hits in his second complete game of the season. He walked one and struck out six, needing just 92 pitches to get through nine innings and throwing 72 of them for strikes (78 percent).

Becker (4-1) has won three straight starts and hasn't allowed an earned run in his last 26 innings of work. Moreover, his walk in the sixth inning snapped a remarkable streak of 20 consecutive innings without issuing a free pass.

The Pioneers started to pull away in the middle innings, and it was the bottom-third of the East Bay lineup doing most of the damage. In the bottom of the fourth, Castillo ripped an RBI double into the left-center gap, and after a wild pitch, Uyetake knocked him in with a single through the right side.

The Pioneers tacked on two more runs in the fifth, as Kyle Zozaya and Bryson Nakamura traded doubles, and Chuvala picked up his team-best third RBI with a ground out.

The following inning, Eren Miravalles was hit by a pitch and Jordan Wilder lined a single to center to start things off. They ended up scoring four runs in the innings thanks to two Coyote errors. Zozaya and Nakamura drove in a run apiece with ground outs, and Castillo plated one with an infield single.

Zozaya, who leads the lead in batting average and RBI, finished 2-for-5 with an RBI and a pair of runs. Nakamura was 2-for-4 with a walk, scoring all three times he got on base. Uyetake also had two hits and drove in a pair of runs. It was deuces across the board for Castillo, who finished with two hits, two runs, two walks, and two RBI in the game. The senior was on base four times to lead the Pioneers.

Game 2 – East Bay 6, San Bernardino 4

The Pioneers gave the ball to sophomore Michael Pope for the second game of the doubleheader, which was scheduled for seven innings. There was a lot of offense early, but the East Bay right-hander did a nice job limiting the damage. Pope put two on with one out in the second inning with a single and a hit-by-pitch. David Silvas then plated the game's first run with a base hit, and Michael Costello made it 2-0 with a sac fly.

The Pioneers answered right back in the bottom of the frame with three runs of their own. Zozaya singled and Uyetake reached on an infield error to put two on, and junior catcher Chris Porter brought them both home with a line drive double into the left-center gap. Two batters later, Andrew Rodriguez knocked in Porter with a single up the middle.

The Coyotes evened up the score in the top of the third thanks to a lead-off double. With one out, Steven Chagolla bunted for a hit, putting runners on first and third. The next batter chopped out to second base, driving in the run. Pope bore down after that, however, and held San Bernardino scoreless for the next three innings.

East Bay grabbed the lead for good in the bottom half of the third. Zozaya walked and Nakamura shot a single into center to put two on with one out. After a balk, Uyetake made it 5-3 Pioneers with a line drive single over the second baseman's head. Nakamura drove in the sixth East Bay run two innings later on an infield hit.

Pope (5-0) exited after six innings, ultimately earning his fifth win in six starts this season. The right-hander allowed three runs on five hits. He struck out five and walked just one before handing it off to senior closer Charlie Sharrer for the seventh inning.

The final frame was an eventful one. The leadoff man got a base hit for the Coyotes, then Sharrer issued back-to-back walks to load the bases with no outs. That brought up Tyler Beckley as the tying run. Sharrer got him to ground into a force out, plating a run in the process. That made it 6-4 with runners on first and third, but Sharrer nailed the down shut, getting a pop-up and strikeout to end the dramatic seventh inning and earn his fourth save of the season.

Nakamura was 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI. The senior had four hits and scored four times in the doubleheader. Zozaya was on base twice with a hit and walk and scored both times. Uyetake and Porter each drove in a pair of runs for the Pioneers.

East Bay will go for the sweep on Sunday in the series finale against San Bernardino. Junior Nick Hudson is expected to start for the Pioneers, with first pitch scheduled for 11 a.m.