Feb. 27, 2000
Box Score
BERKELEY, CA - The California baseball team (5-10) lost to No. 2 ranked Stanford (11-4), 8-2, Sunday in the third game of a three-game non-conference series at Evans Diamond. Cal was swept by the Cardinal, losing 6-2 Friday, 4-1 Saturday and then 8-2 in the series final. Stanford pitchers limited the Bears to 10 hits for the entire three-game series. Cal has now lost seven of its last eight games.
Stanford was led by the pitching of freshman left-hander Tim Cunningham (1-0), who earned his first collegiate victory by pitching 6.0 innings with four hits, two runs, two walks and three strikeouts. Jeff Bruksch game in in the seventh inning to earn his third save of the season (3.0 innings, one hit, no runs, one walk, five strikeouts).
Top hitters for the Cardinal were John Gall, Damien Alvarado, Billy Jacobson and Andy Topham with two hits a piece. Gall also had a team-high three RBI.
Cal actually had its first lead of the series by scoring a run in the bottom of the first on an RBI double by junior catcher Mike Tonis off of Cunningham. Stanford responded by scoring a run in the top of the second on an RBI single off of Bear starter Jon Shirley (0-3, 5.3 innings, nine hits, seven runs, one walk, six strikeouts). The Cardinal scored twice more in the third inning when a catchable ball hit by Gall fell in front of a diving Cal left fielder Brent Cook, scoring Topham and Craig Thompson. The Bears responded by scoring a run in the bottom of the third on a balk by Cunningham to make the score 3-2, but that was all Cal's scoring for the day.
Stanford put the game away when right fielder Joe Borchard hit a lead-off homer in the fourth inning. The Cardinal then scored four times in the sixth inning on RBI singles by pinch hitter Ryan Garko and Topham, an RBI walk by Eric Bruntlett and an RBI via a hit by pitch by Gall.
Cal coach David Esquer was facing his former coach Mark Marquess. Esquer had played shortstop at Stanford from 1984-87 and was an assistant under Marquess from 1991-96.
The Bears will next play Tuesday, Feb. 29 at 7 p.m. at Fresno State, before starting Pac-10 play with a three-game series against Washington State, beginning Friday, Mar. 3 at 2 p.m. at Evans Diamond.
Home Runs:
Stanford: Borchard, solo home run in the fourth.
Cal: None.
