UCLA
3-0
UC Riverside
0-3
No. 8 UCLA Completes UCR Sweep With 8-0 Shutout
February 16, 2020 | Baseball
LOS ANGELES โ The No. 8 UCLA baseball team completed a season-opening sweep of UC Riverside on Sunday afternoon with an 8-0 shutout win at Jackie Robinson Stadium.
With the win, the Bruins (3-0) secured a sweep in their first series for the third consecutive season and sixth time overall in the John Savage era (since 2005).
A day after throwing a combined three-hitter, UCLA pitchers allowed just two hits on Sunday. For the series, the Bruins allowed just three runs and 12 hits. UCLA outscored the visitors 21-3 on the weekend.
UCLA started the game with a jolt in the first inning, as starting pitcher Jesse Bergin went 1-2-3 in the top half of the frame before freshman second baseman Michael Curialle and sophomore shortstop Matt McLain launched back-to-back solo homers in the bottom half to make it 2-0 early. It was the second roundtripper of the season for both.
The Bruins added a run in the third โ Jake Moberg reached on a HBP, stole second, then came around on a wild pitch and balk โ before breaking the game open in the third with a four-spot.
Adrian Garcia started that inning for the Highlanders (0-3) in relief of starter Andre Granillo, and the Bruins greeted him with doubles from McLain and redshirt freshman first baseman JT Schwartz to plate the first run.
After a walk to freshman DH Josh Hahn, junior right fielder Pat Caulfield and senior left fielder Kyle Cuellar collected singles to bring in a run, load the bases, and make it five consecutive batters to reach base to open the inning. Moberg followed with a sac fly before senior catcher Will McInerny capped the rally with an RBI base hit through the left side.
"I thought offensively we did a good job all weekend, we come out and hit two solo home runs today then put up four in the third - we had a really good approach and we can build of that," said UCLA head coach John Savage. "It was a good team weekend, I thought we played well in all phases. Really good defense, didn't make any errors all weekend, handled the ball. For the most part we threw strikes. Collectively it was a solid weekend."
While the Bruins were building a big lead, Bergin was stymieing any chance for UCR to re-enter the game. The Studio City, Calif. native went nine-up, nine-down his first time through the order and only had to labor during one frame โ throwing 28 pitches and allowing two baserunners in the fourth.
He bounced back in the fifth, picking up four strikeouts after one of his victims reached on a wild pitch. That four-K inning brought his total for the day up to nine, matching a career-high. His final line included just two hits, no runs, and one walk allowed over five-plus innings.
Five separate Bruin relievers combined to hold the Highlanders without a hit the rest of the way.
Junior Michael Townsend, senior Kyle Mora, and junior Holden Powell each tossed scoreless frames, while freshmen Jake Saum and Charles Harrison teamed up to hold UCR off the board in the sixth.
On the weekend, UCLA's bullpen combined to throw 11 scoreless innings with just three hits against.
McLain (2-4, two RBIs) and Curialle (2-5) were the offensive standouts of the day for UCLA, while Schwartz was 1-3 with his first career stolen base.
The Bruins continue a season-opening nine-game homestand on Tuesday by hosting WCC-member Loyola Marymount for a Tuesday night game starting at 6:00 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Bergin, Jesse (1-0)
L: Granillo, Andre (0-1)
Base Running:
HBP: Calvert, Garrett 1
Batting:
2B: McLain, Matt 1 ; Schwartz, JT 1
HR: Curialle, Michael 1 ; McLain, Matt 1
RBI: Curialle, Michael 1 ; McLain, Matt 2 ; Schwartz, JT 1 ; Caulfield, Pat 1 ; Moberg, Jake 1 ; McInerny, Will 1
SF: McLain, Matt 1 ; Moberg, Jake 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Curialle, Michael 1 ; McLain, Matt 2 ; Schwartz, JT 1 ; Hahn, Josh 1 ; Caulfield, Pat 1 ; Moberg, Jake 1 ; McInerny, Will 1
SB: Curialle, Michael 1 ; Schwartz, JT 1 ; Moberg, Jake 1
HBP: Moberg, Jake 1
