STANFORD, Calif. – Junior Brett Barrera finished 2 for 3 with an RBI-single and a walk, but Stanford's offense managed just one run on five hits in an 8-1 loss to Saint Mary's (18-11) on Tuesday night from Sunken Diamond.
The loss dropped Stanford to 14-10 on the year.
The Cardinal used seven pitchers in a bullpen game on Tuesday, beginning with freshman Braden Montgomery. The right-hander, who dropped to 0-2 on the year with the loss, allowed a run on two hits and two wild pitches in the first inning, but did manage to strike out the side.
Brandt Pancer worked three innings in relief, allowing one run on one hit and a walk while striking out one before handing the ball over to Nathan Fleischli for the next 1 2/3 innings. The right-hander struck out a pair over his scoreless effort.
After Cody Jensen surrendered three runs over one inning, Justin Moore contributed 1 1/3 innings with three strikeouts. Nicolas Lopez recorded one out in the ninth inning, but was charged with three runs, before Max Meier got the final two defensive outs.
Saint Mary's starter Jackson Hulett dealt three scoreless innings before Connor Linchey took over and worked the next five frames. Linchey, who was credited with the victory and moved to 2-0, allowed just one run on three hits with seven strikeouts. Jack Snook was the third and final pitcher used by the Gaels on Tuesday, working a scoreless ninth inning to seal the victory.
Leading 1-0 after scoring a run in the first on a passed ball, Saint Mary's extended the advantage to 2-0 in the fourth by way of Chris Santiago's seventh home run of the year – a solo shot to right-center field. Santiago, one of four Gael hitters to finish with a pair of hits, finished the game 2 for 4 with two RBIs.
Gavin Napier plated the first of three runs for Saint Mary's in the seventh, shooting a double down the line in left field for his second hit of the night. Napier would come around to score one of his three runs on the night two plays later when Santiago laced a ground-rule double to left-center field.
Barrera's two-out single in the bottom of the eighth put the Cardinal on the board, but Saint Mary's responded with three more runs in the ninth – highlighted by an RBI-single from Christian Almanza and an RBI-double from Seth Nager.
The Cardinal will return to Pac-12 play this weekend when it welcomes Arizona State to Sunken Diamond for a three-game series. First pitch on Friday is set for 6:05 p.m.