LUBBOCK, Texas – A late rally to tie the second game of the day nearly produced a win for the Cal baseball team but No. 11 Texas Tech had the big hit it needed in extra innings to finish off a pair of wins as the Bears fell 5-1 and 3-2 in 11 innings at Rip Griffin Park.
 
Cal (2-4) and Texas Tech (7-1) return to action on Sunday for the finale of their four-game series. First pitch is scheduled for 10 a.m. (PT). The game can be streamed live through the Texas Tech website and fans can get live updates by following Cal Baseball on Twitter (@Cal_Baseball).
 
Game 1: Texas Tech 5, Cal 1
 
A second straight strong start from a Golden Bears starter couldn't yield a mark in the win column as the Red Raiders scored a run in the fifth and four more in the sixth to take control in the first game of the day.
 
Horn cut through a powerful Red Raiders lineup for four innings Saturday, needing just 50 pitches to keep Texas Tech scoreless. And, when the freshman from Napa, Calif. did finally surrender a run, it wasn't the most emphatic tally that put the hosts in front. A single and walk got Texas Tech going and, after a balk call moved the runners up 90 feet, the go-ahead run came across on a ground out by Cody Farhat.
 
The Red Raiders chased Horn in the sixth and tacked on four more runs, led by a three-run home run to left field by Ryan Long. Cal countered in the top of the seventh when an RBI double to left-center by Tanner Dodson plated Jonah Davis, but that was all the scoring the Bears would muster as pitchers Steven Gingery and Ty Harpenau combined to scatter four hits for the Red Raiders.
 
Four different Bears tallied a hit in the effort. Horn allowed three runs on four hits, walked one and struck out three in his road debut. Senior right-hander Ian Lutz made his Cal debut and pitched well in relief, allowing just one hit and striking out one in 2 1/3 innings of work.
 
Game 2: Texas Tech 3, Cal 2 (11 innings)
 
After scoring a run to tie the game in the ninth, the Bears couldn't push across another run as an RBI single by Michael Berglund made the difference in the 11^th inning for Texas Tech.
 
Trailing 2-1 with one last chance to even the score, Cal clawed its way back into the game. Tyrus Greene got the inning started by getting hit by a pitch and moved to second on a wild pitch with one out. A balk call on Red Raiders right-hander John McMillon moved Greene to third and another balk brought Cal's catcher in to score, tying the game.
 
Cal closer Erik Martinez kept the score intact for the next two innings but, in the 11^th, Texas Tech finally pushed a run across. A single by Ryan Long, sacrifice bunt and intentional walk put runners on first and second and Berglund shot a 1-0 pitch through the right side to bring pinch-runner Grant Little in to score.
 
Texas Tech got the scoring started with a run in the bottom of the first but the Bears escaped further damage by limiting a bases-loaded, one-out jam to just a sacrifice fly by Josh Jung. Cal starter Aaron Shortridge worked out of trouble with a fly out to get the Bears back into the dugout.
 
The Red Raiders threatened again in the second but again Cal pitched its way out of trouble. This time, left-hander Zayne Patino entered with runners on the corners and two outs and got the fly out the Bears needed, keeping the game within just a run.
 
In the fourth, Cal evened the score thanks to one big swing from Andrew Vaughn. The freshman from Santa Rosa, Calif. lined a 1-1 offering over the left field fence for a solo home run, bringing the Bears back to neutral at 1-1. That's where the score stayed until the bottom of the fifth when Texas Tech cleanup hitter Zach Rheams launched a home run of his own to make it 2-1 Red Raiders.
 
That one pitch to Rheams was the lone blemish in a standout effort from Patino. The junior worked 3 1/3 innings, allowing three hits with two walks, three strikeouts and just the one run. Fellow southpaw Arman Sabouri came in next and also did yeoman's work out of the bullpen, pitching 2 2/3 scoreless innings.
 
"The results were not what we wanted but actually we did a lot of things that are going to help us win down the line. The way Horn pitched, Patino pitched, Sabouri pitched, that's going to help us," Cal head coach David Esquer said. "I thought we played pretty good defense throughout the day and played some different lineups. We just didn't get that big hit, which we've been searching for a little bit. They're tough. They've got some good arms and we're getting some good experience that we need with our young position players. It's brand new to them."