CS Northridge Sweeps Grand Canyon, Runs Winning Streak to 8

Applauded a day earlier for swinging at only good pitches, the Cal State Northridge baseball team almost didn’t need to swing at all to secure a 5-1 victory over Grand Canyon University on Saturday.

Starting pitcher Vale Lopez kept Grand Canyon’s bats silent and the Matadors repeatedly benefited from bases on balls in the nonconference victory.

Northridge swept the three-game series to improve to 20-12 and extend its winning streak to eight games, its longest under Coach Bill Kernen.

“Lopez was the game today,” Kernen said. “He never gave them a chance to get going. He’s a control pitcher and he got guys to hit the ball on the ground.”

Lopez (5-4) threw a six-hitter, striking out a season-high nine batters and walking two.

“I thought I had a good mixture of pitches,” Lopez said. “I think the key was keeping the ball low. The umpire liked it there.”

Lopez gave up a run-scoring single to Tony Farinacci in the first inning and then prevented the Antelopes (24-14) from reaching third base during the final eight innings.

Grand Canyon starting pitcher Bart Grubbs (4-3) walked 10 in seven innings, giving Northridge its chances to score. Scott Sharts, CSUN’s top home-run hitter, walked four times Saturday and nine times in the series.

The Matadors took a 3-1 lead in the second. Greg Shockey doubled home three runners--two of whom had walked--but was thrown out trying for a triple. It was the Matadors’ only extra-base hit in the past two games.

Northridge scored insurance runs on Scott Richardson’s sacrifice fly in the seventh and Craig Clayton’s RBI single in the eighth. Again, the runs were set up by walks.

“We went the other way with our hitting,” said Kernen, who had applauded his team for passing up bad pitches in an 8-2 victory Friday. “We weren’t patient at the plate and we didn’t put the ball in play when we really had a chance to score.”

Kernen, however, could not ask any more of his pitching staff, which limited the Antelopes to seven runs in three games.