FRESNO, Calif. (Interstat) — A dominant stretch of pitching and a sixth-inning offensive explosion propelled the UC Davis Aggies to an 8-4 victory over the Fresno State Bulldogs in nonconference baseball action Monday night at Selland Arena.

The Aggies (18-20) broke open a scoreless pitchers’ duel with an eight-run outburst between the sixth and seventh innings, highlighted by Jaxon Murphy’s grand slam. The Bulldogs (11-25) mounted a brief comeback attempt but could not overcome the deficit.

For five innings, the game was a tense defensive battle. Fresno State starter Tyler Patrick was sharp, allowing just one hit over four scoreless innings. UC Davis starter Braydon Wooldridge was even more effective, holding the Bulldogs hitless through 4 2/3 innings before exiting with two outs in the fifth after a walk loaded the bases. Reliever Taylor Werth stranded all three runners with a strikeout to preserve the shutout.

The deadlock shattered in the top of the sixth. After Fresno State reliever Jack Thornbury loaded the bases with a single and a hit-by-pitch, UC Davis’ Damien Johnson drove in the first run with a single to left. A sacrifice fly by Alex Burnham made it 2-0. Following another hit-by-pitch to re-load the bases, Murphy stepped in against new pitcher Nolan Crystal and launched a 1-0 pitch deep over the right-field fence for a grand slam, suddenly putting the Aggies ahead 6-0.

Kai Mault added a solo home run in the top of the seventh to extend the lead to 7-0.

Fresno State finally broke through in the bottom of the sixth, capitalizing on a fielding error by Aggies shortstop Connor McNeal to plate two unearned runs against reliever Carter Speights. The Bulldogs cut deeper into the lead in the seventh when first baseman Griffen Sotomayor connected for a two-run homer off Jack Meek, his fifth of the season, making it 7-4.

UC Davis tacked on an unearned run in the ninth when Damian Howard tripled and scored on an errant throw by Bulldogs third baseman Marco Schneider.

The Aggies’ bullpen sealed the win with scoreless work from Peter Storjohann in the eighth and Mason Lerma, who struck out two in a perfect ninth inning.

The most important sequence of the game was undoubtedly the top of the sixth inning. After five frames of offensive frustration, the Aggies sent 10 men to the plate. The inning transformed from a cautious, one-run opportunity into a decisive blow entirely on Murphy’s grand slam. That one swing turned a narrow 2-0 lead into a commanding 6-0 advantage, deflating the Bulldogs and providing UC Davis pitchers with a margin that proved insurmountable.

Wooldridge earned the win for UC Davis with his hitless start, while Crystal took the loss for Fresno State. Murphy finished 2 for 5 with four RBIs, and Mault went 3 for 5 with a homer and an RBI. Sotomayor led the Bulldogs, going 2 for 5 with two RBIs.

The result defied the pregame projections from Interstat, whose ELO system had given Fresno State a 59.9% probability to win and whose simulator had predicted a 6-3 UC Davis victory.

UC Davis continues its road trip with a game at Sacramento State on Tuesday. Fresno State travels to face Long Beach State on Tuesday.