No. 14 UCLA baseball (37-15, 20-8 Big Ten) fell 9-4 to the Northwestern Wildcats (25-25, 13-15 Big Ten) in a high-energy series opener Thursday afternoon at Jackie Robinson Stadium. Under the bright Los Angeles lights, the Wildcats’ bats erupted for four home runs, overpowering UCLA’s pitching staff in a game that slipped away.
UCLA struggled early as Northwestern’s Ryan Kucherak launched a two-run homer in the first inning, setting the tone. The Wildcats doubled their lead in the third with back-to-back solo shots from Kucherak and Bennett Markinson, chasing UCLA starter Ian May after just 2.1 innings. The Bruins answered in the fourth when Payton Brennan smoked an RBI double to score Roman Martin, cutting the deficit to 4-1.
The seventh inning brought drama. Northwestern’s Jack Lausch greeted reliever Ryan Rissas with a two-run homer, but UCLA fired back. Roch Cholowsky crushed a first-pitch breaking ball for what looked like a grand slam, only for officials to rule a baserunning error, crediting him with a three-run homer instead. The call kept UCLA within two, but the rally fizzled. Northwestern sealed the game in the ninth, rallying for three two-out runs to secure the five-run victory.
Cholowsky led the Bruins with a 2-for-4 evening, including his 19th homer of the season, while Dean West and Martin each added two hits. Kucherak’s 3-for-4 performance, with two homers, powered Northwestern to victory. Next, as part of its three-game series, UCLA looks to even the series in game two against Northwestern on May 16 at 7 p.m.
—
Featured Image Photographed by Jeannie Kim/Daily Bruin.
