TURLOCK, Calif. -The 4th-ranked UC San Diego baseball team rallied with two outs in the ninth inning with back-to-back homeruns by
Brandon Gregorich and
Evan Kehoe to win the first game of Saturday's doubleheader by a 5-3 score. UCSD used that momentum in the second game to pound out 14 hits, en route to a 10-2 win over the Warriors. "These guys continue to find ways to win ballgames... and those were some gutsy wins today," said head coach
Dan O'Brien.
With the wins, UCSD improves to 33-5, 23-4 California Collegiate Athletic Association, while Cal State Stanislaus drops to 17-19, 13-14 CCAA.
Dan O'Brien is now up to 491 career victories.
In the first game, the Tritons stranded 14 runners on base, including leaving the bases loaded three times. It looked like it was going to sting the Tritons, as UCSD trailed 3-2 heading into the ninth inning.
In the top of the ninth, the first two Tritons went quietly, leaving it up to Gregorich. Gregorich homered to tie the game and the next hitter, Kehoe, also homered to left field, giving UCSD the lead. UCSD would go on to bat-around in the inning and added an unearned run to lead 5-3 heading into the bottom half of the ninth.
Simmons, who finished off the Warriors in the eighth inning with UCSD trailing, earned the win to improve to 3-0 on the year, striking out the side in the ninth.
Aaron Bauman, Gregorich, Kehoe and
Kellen Lee all had two hits apiece and Lee homered, along with Gregorich and Kehoe.
Matt Rossman was the starting pitcher with a no-decision. Rossman went 6.0 innings, allowed five hits, two earned runs, walked one and struck out seven.
Elias Tuma,
Richard Kilbury and
Eric Abraham also pitched in relief.
In game two of the doubleheader, UCSD scored twice on RBI's from Bauman and Kehoe. Tied at 2-2 through three frames, Lee homered, his second of the day, giving UCSD the 3-2 lead.
The Tritons broke open the game in the fifth inning, using a two-out rally. The first two Tritons were retired, but four consecutive Tritons hits, capped by a two-run Blake Tagmyer homerun pushed UCSD ahead 7-2.
Chris Fung had a pinch-hit two RBI single in the final frame as UCSD won 10-2.
Gregorich finished the second game with three hits, including two doubles, while Vance Albitz, Bauman and Kehoe all had multi-hit games.
Guido Knudson earned the win to improve to 6-2 on the year. Knudson went the complete-game seven innings, allowed two runs, walked none and struck out eight.
UC San Diego and Cal State Stanislaus will wrap up the four-game series on Sunday with a first pitch slated for 10:00 a.m. in Turlock. The time was changed due to inclement weather predicted to hit the area in the afternoon.
