LOS ANGELES – The No. 1-ranked UCLA baseball team suffered its first setback of the season Sunday afternoon, falling 8-7 to UC San Diego in a back-and-forth series finale at Jackie Robinson Stadium.
The game delivered five lead changes and three ties before the Tritons (1-2) seized control for good in the ninth. With one on and one out, Nick Costello launched a two-run homer to put UCSD ahead 8-6. UCLA (2-1) clawed back in the bottom half on a solo blast from Mulivai Levu, but the Bruins were unable to complete the comeback
Levu enjoyed UCLA's strongest offensive performance, reaching base four times and finishing 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs.
The matchup featured six total home runs, including the first collegiate homer for freshman Aiden Aguayo and the first as a Bruin for Texas transfer Will Gasparino. Aguayo added another hit to post a multi-hit day.
UC San Diego opened the scoring in the third on a solo shot from Michael Crossland. UCLA starter Landon Stump worked 3.1 innings, allowing just the one run before giving way to Chris Grothues, who escaped a jam to keep the deficit at one.
The Bruins broke through in the fourth when Roman Martin ripped a run-scoring double off the right-center wall to tie the game at 1-1. UCSD answered with two runs in the fifth, including Crossland's second solo homer of the day, before Aguayo responded with a two-run blast in the bottom half to even things at 3-3.
UCLA grabbed its first lead in the seventh on Levu's RBI single through the right side, but the Tritons countered again in the eighth with a three-run homer from Gabe Camacho to go up 6-4.
Gasparino's two-run shot in the bottom of the eighth briefly pulled UCLA even once more, setting the stage for the dramatic ninth-inning finish.
The Bruins will host Tulane on Tuesday night at 5 pm PT. The game will be broadcast on B1G+.
The game delivered five lead changes and three ties before the Tritons (1-2) seized control for good in the ninth. With one on and one out, Nick Costello launched a two-run homer to put UCSD ahead 8-6. UCLA (2-1) clawed back in the bottom half on a solo blast from Mulivai Levu, but the Bruins were unable to complete the comeback
Levu enjoyed UCLA's strongest offensive performance, reaching base four times and finishing 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs.
The matchup featured six total home runs, including the first collegiate homer for freshman Aiden Aguayo and the first as a Bruin for Texas transfer Will Gasparino. Aguayo added another hit to post a multi-hit day.
UC San Diego opened the scoring in the third on a solo shot from Michael Crossland. UCLA starter Landon Stump worked 3.1 innings, allowing just the one run before giving way to Chris Grothues, who escaped a jam to keep the deficit at one.
The Bruins broke through in the fourth when Roman Martin ripped a run-scoring double off the right-center wall to tie the game at 1-1. UCSD answered with two runs in the fifth, including Crossland's second solo homer of the day, before Aguayo responded with a two-run blast in the bottom half to even things at 3-3.
UCLA grabbed its first lead in the seventh on Levu's RBI single through the right side, but the Tritons countered again in the eighth with a three-run homer from Gabe Camacho to go up 6-4.
Gasparino's two-run shot in the bottom of the eighth briefly pulled UCLA even once more, setting the stage for the dramatic ninth-inning finish.
The Bruins will host Tulane on Tuesday night at 5 pm PT. The game will be broadcast on B1G+.