University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
UCLA
San Diego
Bruins Brave the Cold to Beat San Diego, 4-3
June 21, 1999 | Baseball
February 11, 1999
#18 UCLA (5-5) used consecutive runs in the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth innings to overtake the visiting San Diego Toreros (2-2) 4-3, on a frigid afternoon at Jackie Robinson Stadium. Redshirt freshman dh Adam Berry singled in sophomore 1b Garrett Atkins for the go-ahead run in the bottom of the eighth, breaking a 3-3 tie. Sophomore left-hander Bobby Roe pitched a scoreless ninth inning to earn his second save of the season. Atkins collected four of the Bruins eight hits by going 4-for-4, singling in all of his plate appearances. Sophomore southpaw Ryan Carter claimed a career-high 11 strikeout victims in six innings of work before handing the pitching duties over to sophomore rhp Paul Diaz, who picked up the victory in his first appearance of the season. Ryan Hamilton picked up the loss for the Toreros.
UCLA fell behind 2-0 in the fourth inning on a solo homerun by Torero 3b Greg Sain, who was also 4-for-4 on the afternoon. In the fifth, however, the Bruins got on the board thanks to a single by sophomore cf Matt Pearl, an error by Hamilton, who was playing shortstop at the time, and a sacrifice fly by senior ss Jack Santora that scored Pearl. After an RBI single by Sain that would make it 3-1 in favor of San Diego, senior catcher Jason Green reached on a fielders choice, scoring sophomore 2b Chase Utley, who lead-off the inning with a double to the gap between right and centerfield. Behind 3-2 with two down in the seventh, junior rf Brian Baron came through once again this season, singling in Pearl from third base to tie the game. Baron, a transfer from Northwestern in his first season as a Bruin, is quickly establishing himself as a top-notch clutch hitter. With runners in scoring position, Baron is batting .625 in eight opportunities at the plate. Playing some games while it was snowing back in his days at Evanston, Ill., Baron was probably the only Bruin who wasnt fazed by the 40-degree temperatures and "arctic" winds.
Next up for UCLA is a trip to Houston as a participant in the Big Ball Sports Tournament hosted by Rice University. Sophomore Jon Brandt (2-0, 2.95) is scheduled to pitch against the McNeese St. Cowboys (1-1) on Friday, February 12th at 11am PST. Highly touted freshman Josh Karp (1-1, 8.00) is expected to receive the February 13th (11am PST) assignment against the number two team in the nation, the Rice Owls (6-1). Rices only defeat this season was to McNeese St. in a 12-4 decision. In the tournament finale, Ryan Carter (0-1, 4.26) is expected to get the nod against the Northwestern St. Demons on Valentines Day at 10am PST. The Bruins have never met any of these institutions on the baseball diamond. All three schools have yet to name starting pitchers. Next up for the Toreros is a three-game set versus Sacramento, Feb. 12-14 in San Diego. UCLA and San Diego conclude their two-game season series on May 11 at 3pm in San Diego.
