SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Playing in sub-50-degree temperatures every game this week hasn't cooled off the arms of the Santa Clara University baseball team's pitching staff.
 
Three Broncos combined Friday to strike out 13 batters, as Santa Clara won its third game in a row with a series-opening, 5-2 victory over UC Davis at Stephen Schott Stadium.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Max Bayles – who struck out a West Coast Conference-leading 105 batters last season – got back to his whiffing ways Friday, setting down eight Aggies via the strikeout in just 3 2/3 innings pitched. He now has 13 Ks in 7 2/3 innings this season. All those strikeouts ran Bayles' pitch count up early, however, and after walking two and giving up a two-out, two-run, game-tying RBI double to Jaxon Murphy in the top of the fourth, he was relieved by RJ Meyn.
   
• Meyn (1-0) picked up right where Bayles left off, tying a career high with five strikeouts in a career-long-matching 4 1/3 innings of shutout relief. He earned the win thanks in part to Mateo Garcia's sacrifice fly in the sixth, which put Santa Clara (4-2) up for good at 3-2. Max Ross and Johnny Luetzow both drove home insurance runs in the seventh to give the Broncos a three-run cushion at 5-2. Hunter Hargett earned his first save as a Bronco with a scoreless ninth. He walked the first two batters he faced, but settled in and retired the next three in a row.
   
• UC Davis pitchers created some of their own heat on the mound, too, Friday. Aggies starter Noel Valdez went five innings and struck out six, only allowing two runs in a no-decision. Tyler Wood struck out two in two innings, and Grayson Bonanno (0-1) logged a strikeout in his lone inning of work, despite taking the loss.
   
• Bayles and Valdez were locked in a scoreless pitchers' duel until the bottom of the third when the first three Broncos batters reached base. Ben Cleary singled home Thomas Ferroggiaro, who had started the rally with a leadoff walk. Max Ross logged his first of two RBIs with a sacrifice fly to put Santa Clara up, 2-0.
   
• Cleary (3 for 3) and Luetzow (2 for 4) had multiple hits to lead SCU's offense. Cleary also stole a base and scored a run while reaching base four times on the night with a walk to boot. Murphy, Ryan Lee, Evan Gentil and Korey Williams accounted for all of the Aggies' four hits on the night, with Murphy's game-tying double in the fourth being the only one to go for extra bases.

NOTABLE NUMBERS

• 4: Broncos pitchers have struck out double-digit batters in four consecutive games. It's the first time they've done so since also doing it in four consecutive from April 20-27, 2024.
• 24: Thomas Ferroggiaro extended his reached base streak to 24 games Friday, dating back to last season. He also stretched his active hitting streak to 10 games, also carrying over from 2025.

COMING UP

• The Broncos' and Aggies' series continues with game two at 1 p.m. Saturday. The final is scheduled for noon on Sunday. Fans can purchase tickets and find all live coverage links on SantaClaraBroncos.com.