WALNUT, Calif. – After a two-run first inning on Friday evening at Mazmanian Field, the Montana State University Billings baseball team failed to score again in a season-opening 6-2 defeat at the hands of hosts Cal State University Los Angeles.
 
A six-run sixth inning was enough to lift the Golden Eagles (1-0) to their first win of the year, as the Yellowjackets (0-1) threatened but could not put together a late rally. "We left a lot of runners on base, and we have to be better situationally," said MSUB head coach Derek Waddoups. "We played eight innings of great baseball, and we just need to be better in the middle innings to put us in a better spot."

Senior Dylan Barkley finished one off his career high with nine strikeouts, while setting the Yellowjackets up for success with five superb innings. The left-hander allowed just two hits in his five shutout frames, and struck out multiple batters in four of his five innings pitched. "He really competed," Waddoups commented on Barkley's performance. "It was fun to watch him make adjustments, and he never gave in. He made good pitches, kept his composure, and showed some real grit and resilience."
 
Blake Rainey was outstanding in his MSUB debut, pitching to contact to allow just two hits in 2 1/3 shutout innings to finish the game. "Rainey mixed speeds and really competed," said Waddoups. "He did a good job stopping the big inning, and he went out and filled up the strike zone. He attacked hitters and got ground ball after ground ball."
 
Ethan Babcock-Barrie went 2-for-5 in the game while driving in a pair of runs, as he was the lone Yellowjacket with multiple hits in the season opener. MSUB drew 10 walks – a feat it achieved just twice all of last season – but struck out 13 times while leaving 12 runners on base in the game.
 
Hayden Luff went 3-for-4 for the hosts, while A.J. Salgado and Drew Emmons each had a pair of hits. The latter drove in two runs, and six different Eagles scored the team's six runs.
 
Hayden Foltz' 2022 season started with a bang, as he doubled into the gap in right-center in his first plate appearance of the year. After back-to-back walks, Babcock-Barrie delivered a two-run double that put the 'Jackets ahead 2-0 in the top of the first inning. James Anderson drew a two-out walk to load the bases, but CSULA starter Christian Longoria navigated out of the jam by getting true freshman Cooper Dulich to fly out in his first collegiate at bat.
 
The early lead was enough to propel Barkley through the first start of his final collegiate season, which began with back-to-back strikeouts. Barkley worked around a stolen base and an error in the second inning – which put a runner on third base with one out – using two more strikeouts to keep the Eagles off the scoreboard.
 
Bodee Wright singled in the first at-bat of his collegiate career, before wheeling around to third base with a steal and an error. Eagles' reliever Mikell Chavez struck out the next three hitters however, as MSUB missed a prime chance to add to its early lead in the second inning.
 
Three walks in the third again loaded the bases for MSUB, but the big hit was absent as Christian Casados ended the frame with a strikeout. The Eagles' best chance to score off Barkley came in the fourth inning, when they loaded the bases with just one out. The senior left-hander dug deep again, ending the frame with a strikeout and a fly out to keep the score at 2-0.
 
Luff led off the big sixth inning with a double, and six runs later the Yellowjackets found themselves facing a deficit that the never overcame. Salgado had the hosts' first RBI of the night with a base hit to left, before a two-run single by Emmons gave CSULA a 3-2 lead. A balk, a wild pitch, and an RBI-single from Luff closed out the inning and gave CSULA all the offense it needed to collect its first win of the year. Trevor Cassell was saddled with the loss, allowing all six of the Eagles' runs with three being earned.
 
MSUB put runners in scoring position in both the seventh and eighth innings, but couldn't get any closer in the final innings. Casados earned his first win of the year, striking out six hitters in his four shutout innings of work. In total, five CSULA relievers combined to author eight scoreless innings to finish Friday's game.
 
THE BUZZ: Barkley was selected as the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game…Barkley passed Tanner Johnson for fifth place on the MSUB all-time strikeout list, upping his career total to 136 after Friday's performance…Friday was the first-ever meeting between the teams.
 
NEXT UP: The squads have a rematch on Saturday afternoon with a 1 p.m. Pacific/2 p.m. Mountain time doubleheader at Mazmanian Field. Live video will be available online here and live statistics will be available online here.