UCLA
12-3, 2-1
Oregon
9-5, 1-2
Bruins Rout Oregon, 16-0, to Clinch Series
March 12, 2023 | Baseball
EUGENE, Ore. โ No. 12 UCLA dominated on both sides of the ball en route to a 16-0 win over Oregon in Sunday's rubber match at PK Park.
Offensively, the Bruins (12-3, 2-1 Pac-12) built a 9-0 lead by the second inning and ultimately posted four separate crooked numbers.
On the mound, UCLA limited Oregon (9-5, 1-2) to just three hits. It marked the Bruins' third shutout of the 2023 campaign.
Sophomore second baseman Duce Gourson paced the Bruin bats, going 2-4 with a team-high four RBIs. He also drew a pair of walks, and was one of three Bruins to score three runs.
Junior third baseman Kyle Karros (3-6, three RBIs) and sophomore DH Jack Holman (2-5, three RBIs) also had big days with the bats.
UCLA recorded multi-run rallies in each of its first two offensive innings to build a big lead early.
Junior right fielder JonJon Vaughns had the key hit of the first inning, dropping a fly ball inside the left-field foul line with the bags full for a bases-clearing double. Karros opened the scoring earlier in the inning with an RBI groundout to plate sophomore shortstop Cody Schrier, who doubled on the very first pitch of the game.
The Bruins batted around as part of a five-run second, rapping out four singles and taking advantage of three free baserunners to build a 9-0 lead. Karros, Holman, senior catcher Darius Perry, and Vaughns all had RBI base hits during the rally.
The game moved into rout territory with another five-spot in the fifth. Gourson was the standout of that rally, driving a 3-1 pitch the opposite way for a grand slam. It marked his third home run of the weekend, and second straight four-RBI game.
UCLA closed the scoring with another two runs in the ninth, with Karros and Holman delivering RBI singles.
The 16 runs turned out to be more than sufficient for UCLA's pitching staff, with senior right-hander Kelly Austin leading a combined three-hit shutout.
Austin set or matched career highs in both innings (6.2) and strikeouts (eight), allowing just three hits while walking a pair. One of the hits against him was a fly ball that got lost in the sun for a bad-luck double.
Oregon really only threatened against him in the fourth, getting the first two batters of the inning on via a double and a walk. However, Austin got a little help from his battery-mate as Perry back-picked Rikuu Nishida wandering off second base, and then threw out Sabin Ceballos trying to steal second for the final out of the inning.
Redshirt sophomore Chris Aldrich was the first man out of the bullpen, and retired all four batters he faced. Freshman right-hander Finn McIlroy got the ninth-inning, and recovered from a leadoff walk to roll up a double play ball and face the minimum in the frame.
UCLA returns to action on Tuesday night, returning to Jackie Robinson Stadium to host San Diego at 6:00 p.m. PT.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Austin, Kelly (2-1)
L: Pace, Jackson (1-1)
Batting:
2B: Schrier, Cody 1 ; Vaughns, JonJon 1
HR: Gourson, Duce 1
RBI: Schrier, Cody 1 ; Karros, Kyle 3 ; Gourson, Duce 4 ; Holman, Jack 3 ; Perry, Darius 1 ; Vaughns, JonJon 3
Base Running:
RUNS: Schrier, Cody 3 ; Salgado, AJ 2 ; Karros, Kyle 1 ; Gourson, Duce 3 ; Holman, Jack 2 ; Perry, Darius 1 ; Yates, Carson 1 ; Hocking, Jarrod 3
HBP: Schrier, Cody 1 ; Perry, Darius 1 ; Hocking, Jarrod 1
Batting:
2B: Nishida, Rikuu 1 ; Walsh, Jacob 1
Base Running:
SB: Nishida, Rikuu 1
CS: Nishida, Rikuu 1 ; Ceballos, Sabin 1
