UCLA
47-8, 24-5
Oregon
27-29, 10-19
No. 1 UCLA Edges Oregon 6-5 to Clinch Final Series of 2019
May 24, 2019 | Baseball
EUGENE, Ore. – No. 1 UCLA posted a six-spot in the third inning and then held on for a series-clinching 6-5 win over Oregon on Friday night at PK Park, meaning the Bruins have won every series in a regular season for the first time in program history.
It was also the second time in school history that UCLA (47-8, 24-5 Pac-12) won every road series in a season, joining the 2010 club. Oregon dropped to 27-29, 10-19 and was officially eliminated from NCAA Tournament contention. The Bruins clinched the 2019 Pac-12 Championship with a 4-2 victory over the Ducks in Thursday night's series opener.
The Bruins batted around and put six hits on the board as part of the decisive six-run rally in the third inning. After a leadoff pop-out, UCLA strung together four consecutive singles to bring in a run and leave the bases loaded. UCLA added a second run on a Jack Stronach sac fly to left, then re-loaded the bases after Jeremy Ydens drew a five-pitch walk.
The next batter, freshman catcher Noah Cardenas, followed with the most consequential at-bat of the game, driving a liner into the left-center gap to clear the bases with three-run double that made it 5-0. Cardenas scored himself moments later on a Garrett Mitchell RBI base hit to cap the six-spot.
The Bruins bent but didn't break over the remainder of the game, as Oregon responded with a pair of two-run rallies to make it 6-4 after four. Oregon then threatened again in the eighth, getting the tying run into scoring position and the go-ahead run on base, but sophomore closer Holden Powell kept the Ducks at bay with back-to-back three-pitch strikeouts to end the inning.
Powell would go on to strike out the side in the ninth to finish off the win, meaning he struck out the final five batters he faced in succession. The save was his 16th of the year, giving him sole possession of No. 2 on UCLA's single season and career (22) saves lists.
A pair of Bruins posted multi-hit nights on Friday. Mitchell had a pair of base hits and drove in the eventual game-winning run. Chase Strumpf had a double and scored a run as part of a 2-5 day.
UCLA starter Jack Ralston recorded double-digit strikeouts for the second time in his career – both coming in May – after striking out 10 Ducks. He retired the first six batters he faced, including five strikeouts, but allowed four runs over the third and fourth innings to break up his team-best 27-inning scoreless streak.
Still, Ralston received the win to improve his record to 11-0 on the year, putting him in a tie with Vanderbilt's Drake Fellows for the top individual record in the country.
Redshirt senior Nate Hadley did a great job as the first man out of the bullpen for the Bruins, getting through the seventh inning in just 11 pitches. He struck out the first two batters he faced, getting swinging strike threes from Kyle Froemke and Sam Novitske.
UCLA plays its final game of the regular season on Saturday, wrapping up the series against the Ducks at 4:00 p.m. The Pac-12 Network will televise the series finale.
Here are highlight's from tonight's 6-5 win at PK Park. #GoBruins | #UCLAvsORE pic.twitter.com/rV1Xpo6Fp3
— UCLA Baseball (@UCLABaseball) May 25, 2019
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Ralston, Jack (11-0)
L: Walker, Brett (2-2)
S: Powell, Holden (16)
Batting:
2B: Strumpf, Chase 1 ; Cardenas, Noah 1
RBI: Mitchell, Garrett 1 ; Toglia, Michael 1 ; Stronach, Jack 1 ; Cardenas, Noah 3
SF: Stronach, Jack 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Kreidler, Ryan 1 ; Strumpf, Chase 1 ; Toglia, Michael 1 ; Pries, Jake 1 ; Ydens, Jeremy 1 ; Cardenas, Noah 1
CS: Stronach, Jack 1
HBP: Cardenas, Noah 1
PO: Mitchell, Garrett 1
Batting:
2B: Goldfarb, Jakob 1
RBI: Smith, Tanner 1 ; Goldfarb, Jakob 2 ; Campbell, Cameron 1 ; Froemke, Kyle 1
SH: DeLuca, Jonny 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Steer, Spencer 1 ; DeLuca, Jonny 1 ; Williams, Evan 1 ; Goldfarb, Jakob 1 ; Campbell, Cameron 1
