UCLA 11, Cal State Fullerton 7 (10 innings) - Postgame Quotes
June 12, 2010 | Baseball
June 12, 2010
Cal State Fullerton head coach Dave Serrano
(Opening statement): "It was a pretty tough loss for the Titans tonight. When you are down to your last out to get to Omaha and they drop a two on you in a hurry, that's a tough deal, but to respond the next inning and put one on the board, showed the toughness of this team. Just like I got done telling this team, I would have been excited to have come back and won this game, but a little ashamed to come up here and sit before you if we would have won that game because I don't think we deserved to win the game from the mound. I'm the head coach, but I'm also the pitching coach, so I have no problems saying that. We didn't pitch good enough. In the championship game, you can't give out any free passes and expect to win. We'll respond from this. It is just a loss. We'll show up tomorrow, I promise you that. "
(On what happened when UCLA took the lead in the top of the 9th): "I give them a ton of credit. When (Blair) Dunlap came up in the one situation and it went 3-1, I knew he was going to try and do something special. I tried to cross count him with a changeup and we walked him. And then when (Tyler) Rahmatulla came up, I decided not to cross count him and he made us pay for it. They got count leverage and I thought we did a good job. I thought our offense played good baseball. Trevor Bauer is a tough guy to face. Early on, he had us baffled. But we kept grinding. At one point, the score seemed more lopsided than it was. Credit to them, but if we would have done a better job of throwing strikes, things would have turned out differently."
(On the decision not to put in Nick Ramirez to pitch the ninth inning): "Good question. Hope I have a good answer. He was sore today. His arm was a little tired. His arm was a little tired last night, too. Nick came to me last night and said give me the ball in the ninth. He didn't do that tonight. So I knew that it was bothering him. There's plenty enough pitching that should have got some outs. There's plenty of guys that have some experience in this program so there's no excuses. It doesn't have to come down to just Nick Ramirez. We should be more quality throughout our pitching staff to be able to get that stopped."
(On Joey Siddons' condition): "I'm not sure. I have to meet with the athletic trainer after this. He said it felt like it popped out. In that situation, we have been replacing him defensively, anyway. They popped it back in. He will probably be a little sore, but I'm sure he'll be back in there tomorrow."
(On biggest concern for tomorrow): "I don't have any concerns for tomorrow, I really don't. The Titans are going to show up tomorrow. Like I said coming into this Regional, for both our teams, us and UCLA, there's nothing to be ashamed of for the loser that leaves this place. It is unfortunate that we are both playing each other. It is unfortunate that we both aren't playing in Omaha. We can't control that. No matter what happens tomorrow, I'm anticipating my team will play the best that we have all weekend long."
Cal State Fullerton shortstop Christian Colon
(On getting caught in a rundown in the 9th inning): "Coach (Greg) Burgeron said `on contact, if you want to go, go ahead' but then he changed it. It is just one of those things. I saw a high hop and I was going to go for it. But it just landed right in front of the defense so I had to just stay in it and let Richie (Pedroza) get to third and see what we could do with that."
(On being pitched around at the end of the game): "I'd be lying if I told you that I didn't want to get a hit there. But they know what they are doing, I guess. I was ready to hit. I was making sure that I got a good pitch to hit, and I didn't."
Cal State Fullerton third baseman Richie Pedroza
(On if he has ever had a bigger offensive game than he did tonight): "It wasn't one of the biggest games I've had this year. I was just out there trying to get the best chance to help my team win. I got some pitches to get some good passes on and that's what I did.
(On what happened in his at bat with a runner at third and one out): "I was looking for a ball up and I got on top of the ball. He threw me a changeup. I was trying to hit the ball in the outfield, but I got on top of it and hit it into a bad spot."
UCLA head coach John Savage
(Opening statement): "There was a championship atmosphere and a lot of perseverance from our club. It seemed like the game was over a couple times on both sides. It was a great college baseball game. It happened to be in the Super Regional with two very good teams. We were very fortunate to come out on top. You have to give both teams a ton of credit for battling until the final pitch. It wasn't over until it was over. I'm very proud of our team. We have shown good depth all season long. Guys coming off the bench that haven't played very much. We live to see another day and tomorrow is going to be another championship-caliber atmosphere, obviously, and I'm sure both teams will be ready to play."
(On his team's struggles with bases loaded): "Well we've been leaving runners on in scoring position for the last two nights and it has been frustrating. We had bases loaded and nobody out in the seventh last night and we don't get anybody across. But you have to give them a lot of credit. They pitched out of some problems and made good pitches. That's who they are. It is a combination of us not being in situations when we needed to and a credit to their pitching. The last couple innings tonight we are down to our last outs in an elimination game and we got hitters' counts and hit some balls out of the ballpark. We were fortunate to put up a one, two and four in the last three innings that knocked down the door a little bit after a ton of frustration the last two days."
(On what it says about his team coming through tonight with the bat, instead of the pitching): "It is all about the team. This isn't the UCLA Bruins' pitching team, it is the UCLA Bruins. We have been picked up a lot from our offense and our defense all season long. Each team has a strength and we feel our pitching is our strength. I thought Trevor Bauer threw the ball pretty well until he gave some runs in the seventh inning against an offensive lineup. But it is a credit to our offense and to our guys for staying with it and getting a few runs together."
UCLA freshman Trevor Brown
(On coming off the bench to pinch-hit in the 10th and provide the game-winning RBI): "At the beginning of the game, Coach (Rick) Vanderhook told me to go warm up and that I might get an opportunity to pinch-hit and to be ready to go. So I went down to the bullpen and got ready and got my mind set. Originally, I thought I was going to go up against a left-hander, but when the right-hander came in, Coach Vanderhook walked me through his pitches. He told me the pitcher had a good fastball and to go up there and be ready for it. He did and it surprised me a little bit. I was fortunate enough to get a good pitch and to get a good swing on it."
(On coming up with the big hit): "Well it is tough because you are in the dugout supporting your team. But it was a great environment throughout the whole game. To get an opportunity to go in and help your team is always awesome. It is always good."
UCLA sophomore Tyler Rahmatulla
(On his two-run blast in the top of the ninth): "In the previous at-bat, I wasn't seeing the ball well. I talked to Coach (Rick) Vanderhook and to Coach (Steve) Pearse and they just told me to relax and do what I do. I just tried to take deep breaths and relax as much as I could. I got into a hitter's count and got a pitch that I could swing at. I got a pretty good swing on it."
(On the pressure of hitting in the ninth): "I felt I was putting good swings on the balls my first two at-bats. But I didn't get the results I wanted. But I stayed with my plan and with my approach and it went the way I wanted it to. Earlier in the game, I was trying to build momentum. You just have to have a good mind-set."
