SANTA CLARA— Defensive mistakes plagued the California baseball team in its 10-4 series-finale loss to Santa Clara on Monday at Stephen Schott Stadium.

The loss evened the series giving both teams a 2-2 record to start the 2026 season.

The Golden Bears jumped ahead for the first time this weekend as second baseman Jacob French crushed a lead-off home run over the right field wall on a 3-1 count to end his two-game hitless skid. It was the first home run of the year for the junior and it gave Cal a 1-0 lead. French would end the night 1-for-2 with three walks and two RBI.

SCU quickly equalized in the bottom half scoring an unearned run and extended the lead to 6-1 lead scoring five runs in the third due to a number of fielding mistakes. 

Four Cal arms made their collegiate debuts in the ball game including righty Trent Roach who tossed two full innings and allowed zero earned runs on two hits and no walks. Freshmen Duncan Russell, Tanner Grove, and Take Kreis followed him out of the pen.

Kreis had a solid outing in his first NCAA action going 2.2 innings and allowing one run on three hits and no walks while striking out a pair.

Cal got back in the score column in the top eighth when the Bears capitalized on a Bronco error followed by a sac-fly from Kevin Jeon to cut the lead to 7-3, but SCU scored three runs in the bottom half to go ahead 10-3.

The Bears refused to quit, loading the bases with zero outs and scored a run on an RBI walk from French, but that would be the final run of the series as game four ended 10-4 in the home team's favor.

Cal will now look ahead to its first true road series of the season as the Bears head down to UC Irvine for a three-game set beginning this Friday at Anteater Ballpark. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. on ESPN+.