UCLA
12-3
UCLA at Long Beach State
2-13
No. 2 UCLA Blanks Long Beach State, 2-0
March 12, 2019 | Baseball
LONG BEACH, Calif. – Sophomore right fielder Garrett Mitchell led off Tuesday's non-conference tune-up at Long Beach State with a home run over the right field fence, and that homer held up as the UCLA pitching staff threw a combined shutout in a 2-0 win at Blair Field.
Mitchell, batting leadoff for the second consecutive game, barreled up a 3-1 fastball from LBSU (2-13) starter Sagun Gainey in the top of the first and deposited it into the bullpen beyond the right field fence for his first career home run.
That turned out be all the offense that No. 2-ranked UCLA (12-3) would need, as seven Bruin pitchers combined to hold the Dirtbags off the board for the entirety of the game.
Junior right-hander Ryan Garcia opened the staff day with two strong innings in his first start of the 2019 season. He went three-up, three-down in the first inning, and then worked around a leadoff walk in the second to end his day unscathed.
Freshman catcher Noah Cardenas gave an assist to Garcia in the second – with runners on first and second and one out, he made a heads-up backpick to first base to nail a runner who was straying too far from the bag. Garcia followed up by inducing a tapper to the mound to end the inning.
The Dirtbags would go on to mount a couple more threats as the night developed, but each time UCLA's pitchers were up to the task.
In the fifth, LBSU loaded the bases with two outs on two singles and a walk. However, sophomore right-hander Michael Townsend got the Dirtbags' No. 3 hitter – Calvin Estrada – to swing through an elevated 3-2 fastball to end the inning.
LBSU got runners on the corners with two outs in the seventh following a UCLA error, but Estrada once again fell victim to the Bruins as senior right-hander Nate Hadley blew him away on a 2-2 heater.
Freshman right-hander Sean Mullen, making his first appearance since Opening Day, earned the win for UCLA by tossing 2 1/3 innings of shutout ball. He had the longest outing of any Bruin pitcher on Tuesday.
Sophomore righty Holden Powell nailed down the victory with a scoreless ninth, recording a save for the third consecutive game and fifth time overall this season.
With the shutout, UCLA lowered its team ERA from 1.91 to 1.81. The Bruins had the third-best ERA in the country entering the game.
Mitchell recorded the RBI on both of UCLA's Tuesday runs, as he drove in junior left fielder Jack Stronach in the fifth with a base hit off the glove of drawn-in LBSU second baseman Victor Carlino. Stronach had reached on a walk and moved to third on a pair of wild pitches.
UCLA returns to Jackie Robinson Stadium this weekend to host defending national champion Oregon State, which is ranked as high as No. 1 in the country. The series has scheduled start times of 6:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 12:00 p.m. on Sunday. The final two games of the series will be televised by the Pac-12 Networks while UCLA will honor Chase Utley before Friday night's showdown.
For tickets to the Oregon State series, call 310-UCLA-WIN or click here.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Mullen, Sean (1-0)
L: Gainey, Sagun (0-1)
S: Powell, Holden (5)
Batting:
3B: Kreidler, Ryan 1
HR: Mitchell, Garrett 1
RBI: Mitchell, Garrett 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Mitchell, Garrett 1 ; Stronach, Jack 1
SB: Mitchell, Garrett 1
CS: Toglia, Michael 1
Batting:
2B: DeSa, Riki 1
SH: Rivera, Santino 1
Base Running:
CS: Campeau, Dominic 1
HBP: Huffman, Laine 1
PO: Vander Wal, Jake 1
