Box Score:  Cal State San Bernardino 4, No. 24 Sonoma State 3

ROHNERT PARK, Calif-  Cal State San Bernardino starter Aaron Brooks tossed eight solid innings on Friday afternoon to lead the Coyotes to a 4-3 win over No. 24 Sonoma State in the first game of a four-game set at Seawolf Diamond in Rohnert Park.  The Seawolves see their grip on third place in the CCAA loosen a bit as they fall to 28-14, 19-13 CCAA.  The Coyotes move to within a half game of Sonoma at 21-18, 18-13 CCAA.

Behind the powerful arms of Brooks and Sonoma's Thomas Lee, the teams were locked in to a pitcher's duel from the beginning.  Lee was dominant in the early going, holding the Coyotes off the scoreboard for the first four innings.

Brooks was just as good, but the Seawolves finally got to the Coyotes in the fourth.  Following an error, Alex Todd singled and Kyle Jones sacrificed the runners up to second and third.  The next batter, Garrett Gooselaw, smashed a ground ball that bounced off the first baseman, resulting in another error and, subsequently, the first two runs of the game. 

Sonoma State would add another run later in the inning when Kyle Cerrudo doubled to right center to score Gooselaw. 

Cal State San Bernardino got one run back in the fifth when Eric Dow doubled in a run on a drive to deep left center. 

Still, the Seawolves led 3-1 and as good as Lee looked, it seemed like three runs might be enough.  However, with two outs in the fifth, Lee began to falter.  Following two quicks outs, Lee walked two batters and hit two others to push a run home, closing the lead to 3-2.

After their three-run outburst, the Seawolves could do next to nothing against Brooks, the Coyotes' ace.  He ended up with eight strikeouts and no walks in an eight-inning performance. 

The game swung in the Coyotes' favor in the seventh when, after an error and a single, CSUSB once again came through with two outs.  This time the hero was Brandon Day, who tripled down the left field line, scoring a pair and giving the Coyotes a lead they would not relinquish.

Josh Pond came in and closed the door in the ninth for his 15th save of the season.

Cameron Cook was the only Sonoma player with more than one hit as he finished 2-for-3.  Brian Bordagaray was tagged with the loss, though he didn't give up an earned run over the course of his three-inning relief stint.

Darren Dworak and David Silvas each had two hits for Cal State San Bernardino. 

The Seawolves and Coyotes will get together on Saturday for a doubleheader at 11:00 am.