BERKELEY, Calif. – Two runs in the seventh inning and another in the eighth pulled the Cal baseball team even with rival Stanford but the No. 10-ranked Cardinal pushed across the only run in extras as the Bears fell 6-5 in 10 innings at Evans Diamond.
 
A combination of timely hitting late in the game and quality bullpen work helped Cal (21-25, 12-13 Pac-12) make things interesting on Saturday evening. After Stanford carried a 5-2 lead into the late innings, a clutch two-out, two-run single by Jeffrey Mitchell, Jr. got the Bears a little closer and cut the deficit to one after seven innings.
 
Denis Karas brought the Bears all the way back in the next inning, lining a 1-0 offering from Stanford closer Colton Hock over the wall in right-center field for a game-tying solo home run. That's where the score stood into extra innings as Stanford (32-13, 14-8) loaded the bases in the ninth but Erik Martinez got a fly out to leave three Cardinal aboard.
 
Stanford took advantage of another opportunity in the 10^th to pull ahead. Matt Winaker worked a two-out walk, stole second and scored on a single to left by Nico Hoerner. That was all the Cardinal got but it was enough for Hock to shut the door as Stanford's single-season record holder in saves retired Cal in order in the bottom of the 10^th to end the game.
 
Despite falling behind early, Cal earned a chance to rally late thanks to standout work by a trio of relievers. Jack Cosca, Aaron Shortridge and Andrew Buckley worked 3 1/3 hitless innings of relief, allowing just four Cardinal base runners along the way. That group entered in relief of starter Jared Horn, who pitched five innings and allowed five runs on the day.
 
Offensively, Cal and Stanford each tallied nine hits with Andrew Vaughn, Karas and Korey Lee all recording two hits apiece. Karas was the day's standout at the plate with a double, home run and two RBI.
 
"The most powerful word in my language right now is yet and it's not if, it's when," Cal head coach David Esquer said. "Real competitive game. I thought our bullpen did a nice job of stringing some one innings together. The first two innings that we tried to string out of there, we didn't have any success with anyone. Buckley went out there for his second inning and Martinez went out for his second inning. Coming off of finals, I thought our guys did a good job of not letting them win by three runs when they got down against a good pitcher (Kris Bubic) who had a pitch that was really giving us problems."
 
Cal and Stanford return to Evans Diamond on Sunday for a Mother's Day edition of their cross-Bay rivalry. First pitch is scheduled for 12:05 p.m. The Bears and Cardinal wrap up their series on Monday evening with a 6:05 p.m. showdown. Cal wraps up its 2017 home schedule next week when TCU visits for a three-game series beginning on Thursday.