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#3 UCLA Defeats Cal, 7-1, to Even the Weekend Series
April 17, 2015 | Baseball
LOS ANGELES – The No. 3 UCLA Bruins rebounded from yesterday's loss to defeat the Cal Golden Bears, 7-1, on Friday afternoon at Jackie Robinson Stadium. The Bruins pushed across five of their seven runs in the first two innings to help even the series at one apiece.
Senior Grant Watson (6-3) was terrific, allowing one run on three hits, while striking out four batters, over 6.1 innings to get the win. Cal's Ryan Mason (4-2) was chased early, allowing five runs on eight hits in three innings to receive the loss.
The Bruins reached double-digit hits for the 17th time this season, recording 11 hits on the evening. Darrell Miller Jr. (2-for-4, 2 RBI) and Luke Persico (3-for-4, R, 2 RBI) each drove in a pair of runs to lead the offensive attack. Also pitching in double-digit hits were Trent Chatterton (2-for-3, R, RBI) and Brett Stephens (2-for-4, 3B, 2 R).
UCLA (27-8, 13-4) had the bats working from the outset, getting four runs in the opening frame. In total, the Bruins brought nine batters to the plate, totaling five hits and a walk. With one out, Stephens, Persico and Ty Moore teamed up to hit three consecutive singles to put the initial run on the board for UCLA. Kort Peterson then drove in the second run on an RBI-groundout and Miller Jr. delivered a two-RBI-single one batter later to give the Bruins a four-run edge after one inning.
The Bruins backed up the four-run first with another run in the second inning. Stephens launched a one-out triple, his second of the year, over the left fielder's out-stretched glove and was brought home one batter later by Persico. The UCLA first baseman roped a single to left field to give the Bruins a five-run advantage over the Golden Bears.
Cal (23-12, 10-7) finally scratched with a run in the top of the seventh inning. Watson, who had retired 11 men in a row, conceded a double to Mitchell Kranson and a single to Lucas Erceg with one out. Tucker Forbes then replaced Watson and got a fielder's choice, but a run came in on the play. However, that marked the only run of the night for the Golden Bear offense.UCLA answered right back with a run in the bottom of the seventh to re-claim the five-run advantage over Cal. With two outs, Persico drove in his second run of the game with a single up the middle that plated Chatterton from second.
The Bruins then added the final tally in the eighth inning to reach the final count, 7-1. After Bono walked and stole second, Chatterton delivered another two-out RBI for UCLA with a single to left field.
The usual trio of Tucker Forbes, Grant Dyer and David Berg came out of the bullpen to shut down the Golden Bears in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings. The group combined to allow no runs on no hits in 2.2 innings.
The deciding game of the series will be played tomorrow, April 18, at 7:30pm PT, at Jackie Robinson Stadium. The game will be broadcast live on the Pac-12 Networks. Fans can also access live audio at uclabruins.com.
Notes: UCLA is now 15-1 when they score in the first inning and 20-2 when they score first in the game. Additionally, the Bruins are now 21-0 when leading after six, 22-0 when leading after seven and 24-0 when leading after eight. David Berg has now pitched 20 innings in Pac-12 Conference play, allowing no runs and striking out 23 batters, earning a 2-0 record with six saves.
