Drake Hits for Cycle as Mustangs Rout CSUN

No baseball team has been as disappointing in California Collegiate Athletic Assn. play this season as Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and no Mustang player has struggled more than Matt Drake.

So it was fitting that Drake should be the one to lead the team out of the doldrums.

Drake, who came into the game batting .178, hit for the cycle and drove in six runs to spark a 17-hit attack as the Mustangs rolled to a 17-10 victory over Cal State Northridge at San Luis Obispo Stadium on Saturday.

“Man for man, pound for pound, we’re as good as anyone in the CCAA,” said Drake, one of five starters who returned from last year’s NCAA Division II champion. “I don’t think anyone would argue that. But we just haven’t played to our ability this season.

“Maybe we thought things were going to be too easy for us.”

San Luis Obispo improved to 21-27 and 12-14 in conference play. CSUN dropped to 31-18, 18-8.

CSUN started the day tied with UC Riverside for the conference lead but slipped a half-game back. The Highlanders beat Cal State Los Angeles, 11-8, in a game that had been suspended Friday because of a problem with the lights, then lost Saturday’s regularly scheduled game, 5-4, falling to 36-16 and 20-9.

The loss was doubly bad for Northridge as center fielder Greg Shockey left the game in the eighth inning because of an injured right shoulder. Shockey, who was five for eight in the first two games of the three-game series, which ends today, slid headfirst into the outfield wall after diving in vain for a line drive off the bat of former Saugus High standout Jared Snyder.

Northridge starter Scott Sharts, who gave up nine runs and eight hits in 3 2/3 innings, did not pitch poorly in the first two innings but found himself trailing, 5-2, after two Northridge errors led to four unearned runs in the second.

With one out and a runner on first, Phil James hit an apparent double-play ball to shortstop Mike Solar, who booted it to put runners at first and second.

Gerald Rucker followed with a run-scoring single to tie the score, 2-2, and after Sharts struck out Pat Kirby, Doug Noce blooped a single to right field that scored James and moved Rucker to third.

Right fielder Eric Johnson then dropped Sean Harper’s pop fly, allowing Rucker to score, and Drake followed with a single that drove in Noce.

San Luis Obispo chased Sharts in the fourth, scoring four times on five hits, including a run-scoring double by Drake and a two-run homer by Bill Daly.

Denny Vigo was three for four with two home runs (his 17th and 18th) and five RBIs for Northridge.