UCLA
24-6
UC Irvine at UCLA
21-6
No. 1 UCLA Breezes Past No. 16 UC Irvine, 9-3
April 09, 2019 | Baseball
LOS ANGELES โ No. 1 UCLA scored in each of its first three offensive innings to defeat No. 16 UC Irvine 9-3 on Tuesday night in non-conference action at Jackie Robinson Stadium.
The Bruins, who have won six of their last seven, improved to 24-6 with the win. This is the second-best 30-game start of the John Savage era, trailing only the 2010 squad that went 26-4. The Anteaters, who sit atop the Big West standings, dropped to 21-6 overall.
UCLA freshman righty Jesse Bergin picked up the win with five innings of two-run ball, moving to 4-0 on the year. He got stronger as the game went on, and ended his outing by striking out the last four batters he faced. He ended the night with seven strikeouts, the fourth time he's had that many punchouts in eight starts.
Garrett Mitchell and Michael Toglia had three hits apiece to pace to Bruin offense. Toglia had a leadoff hit to spark multi-run rallies in the second, third, and seventh innings.
Junior second baseman Chase Strumpf added two hits in four at-bats while Ryan Kreidler drove in a pair of runs out of the two-hole. ย
Gusty conditions early in the game created a ripe opportunity for offense, as both teams put runs on the board early on.
Brandon Lewis and Adriana Damla chipped in back-to-back doubles to help UCI put up a two-spot in the first inning.
UCLA responded in the bottom half by manufacturing a run โ Garrett Mitchell single to left, moved to second on a Ryan Kreidler sac bunt, then scored on a Chase Strumpf single โ then went up for good with back-to-back three-run innings.
The Bruins took advantage of wildness from UCI starter Jordan Bocko as part of the go-ahead rally in the second inning. After Michael Toglia singled to lead off the frame, a three-pitch sequence brought in a run for UCLA as Bocko went hit-by-pitch, hit-by-pitch, wild pitch to score Toglia. Mitchell brought in another run with a sac fly before Jack Stronach capped the inning with a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch.
UCLA pulled away with another three-spot in the third. Toglia once again set the table with a leadoff single, then the Bruins strung together three straight hits followed by a sac fly to complete the rally. Freshman catcher Noah Cardenas had the first RBI of the frame, bouncing a double over the left field fence to bring in Toglia. Mitchell followed with an RBI knock the opposite way before Kreidler cashed in Cardenas with another sac fly. ย
The Bruins added a pair of insurance runs in the seventh inning on a Mikey Perez RBI pinch-single and a Ryan Kreidler sac fly.
"I thought we played a pretty complete game," said UCLA head coach John Savage. "Weather-wise, it was tough for everyone tonight, it was unusual with the wind. Both teams played good defense. We put some good at-bats together, Bergin settled down after the first inning and then our bullpen did a good job. We beat a good team tonight."
After the early innings, Bergin and the UCLA bullpen really handcuffed the Anteater offense. UCI went five innings without getting a runner into scoring position after Lewis's third-inning double, and a trio of Bruin relievers โ Sean Mullen, Nate Hadley and, Kyle Mora โ teamed up to retire nine straight after a leadoff walk in the sixth.
Mullen, a freshman righty making his third appearance overall and first since Mar. 12 at Long Beach State, bounced back after that leadoff walk to retire his next three batters in order including a pair of strikeouts.
Hadley and Mora would go on to turn in quick 1-2-3 innings of their own before turning it over to Felix Rubi in the ninth. ย
UCLA continues an eight-game homestand this weekend by hosting No. 8 East Carolina (25-7) for a three-game set. The Bruins and Pirates will play a Friday night game at 6:00 p.m. followed by a Saturday doubleheader starting at 2:00 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Bergin, Jesse (4-0)
L: Bocko, Jordan (3-1)
Batting:
2B: Lewis, Brandon 2 ; Damla, Adrian 1 ; Zickefoose, Konnor 1
RBI: Damla, Adrian 2 ; Castro, Jacob 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Palmer, Jake 1 ; Lewis, Brandon 1 ; Antone, Andre 1
PO: Koss, Christian 1
Batting:
2B: Mitchell, Garrett 1 ; Toglia, Michael 1 ; Cardenas, Noah 1
RBI: Mitchell, Garrett 2 ; Kreidler, Ryan 2 ; Strumpf, Chase 1 ; Stronach, Jack 1 ; Perez, Mikey 1 ; Cardenas, Noah 1
SH: Kreidler, Ryan 1
SF: Mitchell, Garrett 1 ; Kreidler, Ryan 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Mitchell, Garrett 1 ; Toglia, Michael 3 ; McLain, Matt 1 ; Kendall, Kevin 2 ; Cardenas, Noah 2
SB: Mitchell, Garrett 1
HBP: Stronach, Jack 1 ; Kendall, Kevin 1 ; Cardenas, Noah 1
