Arizona baseball win streak at 7 after beating Cal in Pac-12 opener

Pac-12 play is starting off for Arizona like the nonconference slate ended: with high-fives on the field in celebration of another win.

Kiko Romero had two solo home runs and drove in six, while TJ Nichols tied his career high in strikeouts as the Wildcats beat Cal 13-2 on Friday night in the Pac-12 opener at Hi Corbett Field.

It was the seventh consecutive victory for the Wildcats (10-3) and third straight against the Golden Bears, against whom they opened the league schedule a year ago in Berkeley. Arizona was walked off in the first game of that series before winning the next two as part of a 9-3 start to Pac-12 play in 2022.

Arizona trailed 2-0 early but got single runs in the second, third and fourth to take the lead for good. Romero hit his first homer to left in the second, then went out to right in the fourth to put the UA up 3-2.

Chase Davis singled in a run and Garen Caulfield doubled in two during a 3-run fifth, then the Wildcats added three more in the seventh including a 2-run triple from Romero, who added a 2-run single in the eighth and finished 4 for 4 with five runs scored and six RBI.

The UA also got a 2-run homer in the eighth from Caulfield, his second in as many games, as seven of the Wildcats’ 13 hits were for extra bases.

Nichols improved to 3-0 with 6.2 innings of work, the junior right-hander allowing two runs and five hits with nine strikeouts and two walks. He left a 6-2 game with runners on the corners in the seventh for righty Dawson Netz, who got out of the jam thanks to some help from Davis in left:

Eric Orloff then finished it off with two scoreless frames, striking out three.

Arizona and Cal play again at 1 p.m. MST Saturday, with lefty Bradon Zastrow (2-0, 3.38) expected to start for the Wildcats.