Oregon vs. UCLA
OMAHA (Interstat) — UCLA walked off with a 3-2 victory over Oregon in 11 innings Sunday at Sapp Fieldhouse, winning the series finale in a pitchers’ duel that stretched from afternoon into the early evening.
The Bruins, who improved to 51-6, took the lead for the first time in the bottom of the 11th when pinch-hitter Call was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, forcing in the winning run. Martin had led off the inning with a single, and after Brennan singled, a sacrifice bunt moved both runners into scoring position. Dugger and Espinoza struck out, but Call was plunked by Oregon reliever Devin Bell to bring home Martin.
UCLA had tied the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth. Brennan walked and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt. After Dugger struck out, Espinoza singled to right field, scoring Brennan. The Bruins then loaded the bases in the 11th after two singles and another sacrifice before the game-ending hit-by-pitch.
Oregon, now 40-16, took its only lead in the sixth inning. With the score 1-0 in favor of UCLA after the Bruins had scored in the fourth on a triple by Gasparino, the Ducks answered with back-to-back solo home runs. BurkeLee Mabeus homered to right field, and Naulivou Lauaki Jr. followed with a homer to left center, putting Oregon ahead 2-1.
The Ducks threatened to add insurance in the sixth, walking Molony and moving him to second on a sacrifice bunt, but UCLA reliever Ian May struck out Miranda and got a groundout to end the inning.
UCLA starter Angel Cervantes was the top performer for the Bruins. The right-hander allowed four hits and no earned runs over five innings, striking out five. He escaped a jam in the fifth when Oregon loaded the bases with two outs but Jaksa grounded out to second.
Easton Hawk earned the win for UCLA, pitching three perfect innings in relief. He struck out five and allowed only one hit. Landon Stump also threw two hitless innings earlier in the game.
Oregon starter Miles Gosztola turned in a strong outing, allowing one earned run while striking out four over five innings. He did not allow a hit in that span, though a walk and a hit batter set up Gasparino’s run-scoring triple in the fourth. Collin Clarke and Tanner Bradley each pitched two scoreless innings for the Ducks, and Bell took the loss.
Both teams finished with eight hits. Oregon’s offense was quiet outside of the two solo homers, with Mabeus and Lauaki each going 2 for 4 and 2 for 5, respectively. UCLA’s Brennan reached base three times with a walk and two singles, scoring twice.
The game marked the fourth meeting between the two Big Ten foes in the past three weekends. UCLA had won two of the previous three matchups, including a 9-6 victory over Oregon on May 10.
Interstat’s ELO system had projected UCLA with a 55.90 percent probability to win.