UCLA
Oregon
#2 UCLA Loses Regular Season Finale, 4-3, in 11 Innings to Oregon
May 24, 2015 | Baseball
EUGENE, ORE. – No. 2 UCLA lost in 11 innings for the second consecutive game, falling, 4-3, to the Oregon Ducks on Sunday afternoon at PK Park. The Bruins lose the weekend series, 1-2, dropping their first series all season.
UCLA finishes the regular season with the second-highest win total in school history, finishing just one win back of the 2010 team that finished with 43 regular season victories.
Garrett Cleavinger (6-2) pitched 0.1 innings in relief to earn the win for Oregon. Jake Bird (1-1) allowed one run on two hits in 0.2 innings of relief to garner the loss.
UCLA totaled just five hits, led by Kevin Kramer (3-for-5, HR, 2 R, RBI) who was the only Bruin to finish with a multi-hit performance. Luke Persico (1-for-4, 2 RBI) pitched in a pair of RBI to lead the team in that category.
Oregon (37-23, 16-14) pushed across the game's first run in the bottom of the second inning to take the initial lead on the Bruins. Singles from Phil Craig-St. Louis and Scott Heineman were followed with a sacrifice-bunt to put runners on second and third with one out. Daniel Patzlaff then grounded into a fielder's choice to put the Ducks up, 1-0.
UCLA (42-14, 22-8) evened the score at one in the top of the fourth with a solo homerun off of the bat of Kevin Kramer. The Bruin shortstop took the first pitch he saw and launched it high in the air and over the short fence in right field, his sixth homerun of the season.
The Ducks immediately responded with a solo homerun of their own to re-gain the lead, 2-1. Heineman, who also homered on Friday, went deep in the bottom of the fourth to give Oregon the one-run edge once again.
In the top of the sixth the Bruins put together a strong inning to take their first lead of the game. Walks to Brett Stephens and Trent Chatterton, followed by a Kramer single, loaded the bases with no outs for UCLA. Then, following a Ty Moore fielder's choice which got Stephens cut down at the plate, Persico laced a single to left center to plate a pair. The two-run single gave UCLA the lead, 3-2.
The Ducks would bounce back again with a run of their own in the bottom of the sixth to knot the game at three apiece. With two outs and runners on first and second, Heineman delivered again for Oregon with an RBI-double down the left field line for his second RBI of the afternoon.
Four scoreless innings ensued following the Heineman double before UCLA threated to take the lead in the top of the 11th. Chatterton was hit with a pitch to begin the inning. Then, after two outs were recorded, Persico worked an 11-pitch walk and Chris Keck was hit with a pitch to load the bases. However, pinch-hitter, Sean Bouchard, hit into a fielder's choice to end the Bruin opportunity.
In the bottom half, Oregon seized its opportunity and closed out the afternoon. With one out, Brandon Cuddy singled through the right side to give the Ducks a runner. Spencer Smith then pinch-ran and moved up to second on a failed pick-off attempt. After a Kyle Kasser fly-out, Tim Susnara then singled to center field to bring in the game-winning run, giving Oregon the 4-3 victory.
UCLA will now await its draw in the NCAA Tournament where the Bruins will make their 20th all-time appearance and eighth in the last 10 seasons. The 16 regional sites will be announced today at 5:30pm PT and the full bracket will be announced tomorrow, May 25, at 9:00am PT on ESPNU.
Notes: The Bruins set a new-school record this regular season with 22 conference victories, earning the program's 11th conference title. UCLA went 13-1 in weekend series this season. UCLA is now 5-3 in extra-inning games. This is only the second time all season that UCLA has lost two in-a-row, with the last coming on March 7 and March 8.
