OAKLAND, CALIF. - On Saturday and Sunday, February 4th and 5th, the Sonoma State baseball team kicked off their 2023 campaign with wins over PacWest member Academy of Art at Laney College over the weekend. Battling the elements, only two games of the original three game series were able to be played but SSU would come from behind in game one and ride solid pitching in game two to start the season 2-0. 

Game three of the series has yet to be rescheduled, please check the SSU baseball schedule page HERE for further updates and a possible makeup date. 

GAME #1 SSU 7-6 ART U (10 Inn.):

5TH INNING:

In a grueling two day affair, the Seawolves would claw their way back from a 5-1 deficit that started Saturday evening. After the game was halted due to rain, the contest would resume the following day and SSU would get a huge boost from first year player Chris Ortiz who belted a 3-run shot to left center, propelling his team right back in the game. 

After using three pitchers to get through the first four innings of the game Saturday night, sophomore right hander Chase Banks would resume the game with the ball and have a stellar outing to keep the Seawolves in the game. The first year player from Redwood HS would go four and a third allowing just one run on 49 pitches before handing it over to senior Michael Benz. 

8TH INNING:

In the top of the 8th, second year first baseman Christopher Wright would tie things up with an opposite field shot, good for his first of the year. Wright was a solid bat for the Seawolves last season as he finished with a pair of home runs in 36 games played. The Urban Knights would answer though and take back the lead in the bottom half of the inning with a sac fly, taking a one run lead into the 9th with a chance to close out game one of the series. 

9TH INNING:

Down to their final at bat, junior infielder Daniel Monti would draw a clutch 7-pitch walk to start the 2-out rally. Monti would steal second and put himself in scoring position with one of Sonoma State's best hitters at the plate in Braeden Holliday. Once again working the at bat to a full count, Holliday would muscle a grounder through the left side and Monti would get the green light with two outs and try for home. A near bang-bang play would go in favor of the Seawolves as Holliday picked up the RBI, scoring Monti, and tying the game up once again at seven a piece.  

In the bottom half of the 9th, Michael Benz would work around two base runners and a pair of errors, to strike out the ART U batter looking and fist pump his way into the dugout. A brief rain delay would halt play but about 20 minutes later SSU would come up to the plate to bat in the top of the 10th. 

10TH INNING:

After two quick outs to start the inning out of the rain delay, infielder Shane Callison would single up the middle and represent the go ahead run for the Seawolves. Just three pitches later, sophomore left Jared Esparza would rip a double down the left field line. Callison would bust around the bases and get sent home from first for a play at the plate. An acrobatic head first slide would put him just under the tag and give SSU the 7-6 lead. 

In the bottom half of the inning, once again Benz found himself in a bit of trouble after a leadoff single and then a balk to put the Academy of Art runner on second. After a mound visit from head coach John Goelz, Benz would settle himself and record three straight fly ball outs to end the inning and claim game one of the series, 7-6. 

BY THE NUMBERS:

Sonoma State kicked off the 2023 season in dramatic fashion with an extra inning thriller taking two days to complete. Second year pitcher Michael Benz picked up the win with his 2.2 innings of work late in the game. The Seawolves also rallied offensively and finished the game with 11 hits. Holliday, Wright and Callison all recorded two hits in the contest and Chris Ortiz helped get things started with a huge 3-run homer back in the 5th. 8 different Seawolves would record a hit in the contest as they started the season with a comeback road victory. 
 

Sonoma State	Team	Academy of Art
7	Runs	6
11	Hits	12
3	Errors	0
2	HR's	0
9	LOB	14

GAME #2 SSU 6-4 ART U (5 Inn.):

2ND & 3RD INNING:

With a rush to start game two before any more rainfall, Sonoma State would turn around and strike first with runs in the 2nd and 3rd innings, taking a quick 3-0 lead. Second year catcher Lucas Townsend would single to right field for the game's first RBI in the second, then Jared Esparza would continue his success at the plate with a sac fly to score Brandon Herter in the third. First baseman Christopher Wright would tack on one more in the inning with a two-out single to score Sean Pauly, giving the Seawolves a 3-0 lead. 

Second year pitcher Tanner Fonoti would get the start in game two and have a solid outing, going four strong innings allowing just one run and a single hit. The second year transfer from Napa Valley JC would strike out three batters before allowing a run in the fourth and departing for veteran Jake Dent. 

5TH & 6TH INNING: 

In the 5th and 6th inning, three different Seawolves would record an RBI to tack on another three runs and take a decisive 6-1 lead. Doubles from Braeden Holliday and Daniel Cabral would score a pair of runs and then first year player Kenny Decelle would come in to pinch hit and single to right field, scoring Cabral after his double, to add a 6th run in the game. 

Jake Dent would run into a bit of trouble in the 6th and 7th, giving up two homers to Academy of Art and making it just a two-run game. Sophomore right hander Caleb Davis would get the call from head coach John Goelz with two outs in the 7th and retire the next batter on a fly to right to end the game and pick up his first save as a Seawolf.

Dent finished with 2.2 innings of work, striking out a game high four batters. Fonoti would also get credit for his first win of the season with his four innings of work on an efficient 54 pitches. Lucas Townsend and Daniel Cabral led the way with two hits a piece for SSU. 

BY THE NUMBERS:
 

Sonoma State	Team	Academy of Art
6	Runs	4
9	Hits	4
0	Errors	0
0	HR's	2
6	LOB	3

LOOKING AHEAD:

The Seawolves start their 2023 campaign with a couple of solid wins against Academy of Art including a 5-run comeback victory in game one. They are now 2-0 overall and will take on Holy Names on Tuesday, February 7th in their home opener. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 PM and live stats and stream links can all be found at sonomaseawolves.com on the baseball schedule page. As always you can stream the game LIVE on the CCAA Network. 

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