LOS ANGELES (Interstat) — UCLA’s pitching depth and opportunistic offense carried the Bruins to an 8-4 victory over Loyola Marymount on Tuesday at Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, extending their nation-leading record to 44-4 while dropping the Lions to 12-38.

The Bruins struck early, plating three runs in the first inning without a hit that left the infield. A leadoff walk to West, a hit batter, two wild pitches and a sacrifice fly by Brennan produced two runs, and Gudoy’s single through the left side drove home Martin for a 3-0 lead.

UCLA added to its advantage in the second. Khansarinia reached on a throwing error by the shortstop, advanced on a sacrifice bunt, then scored on Martin’s double to left field, making it 4-0.

The third inning saw the Bruins push across three more runs, aided by two Loyola Marymount errors and three wild pitches. Gudoy, Cadiz and Cal all scored on a sequence of a hit batter, a fielder’s choice and another wild pitch, stretching the lead to 7-0.

After a scoreless fourth, UCLA extended the margin to 8-0 in the fifth when Cal tripled to left center and scored on Khansarinia’s sacrifice fly.

Loyola Marymount answered in the bottom of the fifth with its most significant offensive outburst. After two singles, Lions catcher Jordan Ortiz launched a three-run home run to left field, scoring Klosek and Whitton. The blast cut the deficit to 8-4 and brought the home crowd to life.

But UCLA’s bullpen, which had already been efficient, shut down any further threat. Relievers CJ Bott, Angel Cervantes, Mack Edwards, Jake Swenson, Cal Randall and Justin Lee combined to work the final six innings without allowing a run, surrendering only two hits and striking out seven.

Bott and Cervantes each tossed two scoreless innings, fanning two batters apiece. Edwards and Lee each struck out two in one-inning stints, while Swenson and Randall contributed scoreless frames with one strikeout each. For the Lions, Caleb Sweeney delivered 2 2/3 innings of two-hit relief without allowing an earned run, and Matt Moreno and Jacob Fried each pitched a scoreless inning.

The game marked the second meeting of the season between the two Los Angeles-area programs. UCLA had won the first matchup 6-2 on March 24 in Westwood. The Bruins improved to 2-0 against the Lions this season.

UCLA’s offense finished with eight hits, including a double by Martin and a triple by Cal. The Bruins took advantage of four Loyola Marymount errors and seven wild pitches by Lions pitchers. Loyola Marymount managed only five hits, two of them by Whitton.

The Bruins return home to face Oregon in a three-game series beginning Friday, while Loyola Marymount will host Saint Mary’s for a three-game set starting the same day.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of UCLA 8, Loyola Marymount 2, and Interstat’s ELO system gave the Bruins an 85.50 percent probability to win.