UCLA
1-0
Gonzaga
0-1
No. 22 UCLA Rallies for 8-7 Opening Day Win Over Gonzaga
February 16, 2024 | Baseball
LOS ANGELES โ The No. 22-ranked UCLA baseball team rallied for three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to claim an 8-7 comeback win over Gonzaga on Opening Day at Jackie Robinson Stadium. ย
The Bruins improved to 14-6 in Opening Day contests under 20th-year head coach John Savage with the result.
Junior shortstop Cody Schrier had the biggest day offensively for the Bruins, going 2-4 including the game-winning RBI single.
Freshman third baseman Roch Cholowsky added two hits of his own in his collegiate debut, while fellow frosh standout infielders Mulivai Levu (go-ahead two-run homer in the fifth) and Cameron Kim (game-tying pinch-single in the eighth) had big moments of their own in their first-ever games as Bruins.
Five different batters reached base during UCLA's decisive eighth-inning rally, which was sparked by a leadoff walk from redshirt junior outfielder AJ Salgado.
Graduate catcher Quinn Landis then put the Bruins in business, pulling a grounder inside the third-base bag and down the left-field line for an RBI double. Down to two outs in the inning, Kim entered the game as a pinch-hitter and lifted an outside pitch to right field to easily score Landis from second base.
After an intentional walk to Preseason All-American second baseman Duce Gourson, Schrier stayed with an 0-1 offering and lined it over the Gonzaga second baseman's head for the go-ahead RBI base hit.
UCLA graduate closer Rashad Ruff then closed the door in the ninth inning, allowing just a one-out walk as part of a scoreless frame to lock down his first save as a Bruin.
Gonzaga led for most of Friday's game, as leadoff man Hudson Shupe hit a solo home run on the very first pitch of the contest before the Bulldogs extended their lead to 3-0 with a two-run third.
The Bruins began to charge back in the bottom of the third, scoring in three consecutive frames to ultimately take a 5-3 lead on Levu's fifth-inning blast to left-center. However, Gonzaga responded with a three-spot in the top of the sixth to re-take the lead, setting the stage for the late-inning heroics of Kim and Schrier.
UCLA used five pitchers in the contest. Sophomore right-hander Cody Delvecchio received the decision after allowing just an unearned run during the top of the eighth.
Bruin starter Luke Jewett was solid but earned a no-decision, allowing four runs (all earned) on five hits over a career-high 5 1/3 innings. The Ladera Ranch, Calif. native struck out four against just one free pass.
Gonzaga was led by Shupe, who went 3-5 with three RBIs and finished a triple short of the cycle. Starting pitcher Liam Paddack issued five walks and hit two batters over three-plus innings, but limited the Bruins to two hits and three runs.
Several members of UCLA's No. 1-ranked freshman class made their collegiate debuts on Friday. Besides Cholowsky, Levu, and Kim, outfielder Dean West, outfielder Phoenix Call, and right-handed pitcher Landon Stump all made their first official collegiate appearance.
UCLA and Gonzaga continue the series on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. PT. Sophomore righty Finn McIlroy is scheduled to take the ball for the Bruins.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Delvecchio, Cody (1-0)
L: Daniel Sotelo (0-1)
S: Ruff, Rashad (1)
Batting:
2B: Hudson Shupe 1 ; Sam Stem 1
HR: Hudson Shupe 1
RBI: Hudson Shupe 3 ; Vincent Temesvary 1 ; Jace Phelan 1 ; Max Coupe 1
SH: Peyton Miller 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Hudson Shupe 2 ; Sam Stem 1 ; Josh Hankins 1 ; Donovan Ratfield 2 ; Max Coupe 1
SB: Hank Dunn 1
HBP: Sam Stem 1
Batting:
2B: Landis, Quintt 1
HR: Levu, Mulivai 1
RBI: Holman, Jack 1 ; Kim, Cameron 1 ; Schrier, Cody 1 ; Cholowsky, Roch 1 ; Levu, Mulivai 2 ; Landis, Quintt 1
SH: Landis, Quintt 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Reyes, Daylen 1 ; Hocking, Jarrod 1 ; Call, Phoenix 1 ; Cholowsky, Roch 1 ; Levu, Mulivai 1 ; Bythewood, Toussaint 1 ; Salgado, AJ 1 ; Landis, Quintt 1
SB: Schrier, Cody 1
HBP: Gourson, Duce 1 ; Bythewood, Toussaint 1
