In the top of the ninth, with two outs and the bases loaded, Indiana had a chance to take the lead against UCLA at Jackie Robinson Stadium. The Hoosiers’ phenom Korbyn Dickerson confidently stepped into the batter’s box, but his ground ball to second was fielded cleanly by Phoenix Call who quickly threw to Roch Cholowsky for the game-ending force out, winning it for the Bruins on Saturday afternoon.
Coming off a tough loss to Indiana (13-10, 5-3) on Friday night, UCLA (17-5, 6-2) bounced back with a 7-4 win thanks to an all-around offensive display and a stellar performance from starting pitcher Michael Barnett (6-0). Barnett pitched seven innings and racked up a career-high 10 strikeouts while allowing no walks nor earned runs.
Entering this match, both teams struggled to find their offensive rhythm as neither team scored any runs in the first two innings. Nevertheless, in the bottom of the third with runners on first and third, UCLA’s first baseman Mulivai Levu stepped up to the plate and delivered an RBI single that opened up the scoring.
Shortly after, in the fifth inning, the Bruins’ had multiple errors on defense that led to two unearned runs for the Hoosiers, granting them a 2-1 lead. However, UCLA fought back in the bottom of the sixth as right fielder AJ Salgado nailed a two-run no-doubter to center, building momentum that carried into the next two innings.
The Bruins added another run in the bottom of the seventh from outfielder Payton Brennan’s RBI single to right. On top of that, UCLA scored three more runs in the eighth inning, with back-to-back-to-back RBI’s from Dean West, Cholowsky and Levu.At this point, the Bruins held a decisive 7-2 lead as a result of their strong batting and Barnett, who heavily limited the Hoosiers’ offense.
Things got shaky for UCLA in the top of the ninth, as closer Justin Lee allowed three hits, a walk, a hit by pitch and two earned runs, giving the Hoosiers an opportunity to take a late lead. Despite that, with the game on the line, Lee locked back in and sealed the win for UCLA with a force out at second.
The Bruins are now tied for first in the Big Ten and have evened the three-game series against Indiana at 1-1. UCLA will look to win the series on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Jackie Robinson Stadium.
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Featured Image Photographed by Aidan Sun/Daily Bruin.
