Gauchos outslug CSUN 11-9
UC SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - It was another marathon game between the No. 16 UC Santa Barbara Baseball team (12-2, 2-0 Big West) and CSUN (2-9, 0-2 Big West) as Saturday afternoon turned into evening, with the Gauchos withstanding early trouble before landing blow after blow late to knock off the Matadors, 11-8 in a nearly four-hour long contest. Jeremiah Crain drove in three crucial runs for Santa Barbara, as did Isaac Kim. Raymond Olivas earned his first career win in relief, while Nathan Aceves earned his first career save.
HOW IT HAPPENED
After an ugly, gritty game on Friday, the first inning of Saturday's game was hardly the start the Gauchos were looking for, as two errors helped the Matadors scratch across a run against Santa Barbara starter Jackson Flora. In their half of the inning, the Gaucho offense went down in order.
But things turned around in the second, as Flora set the Matadors down in order, punctuated by his second of seven strikeouts on the night in the top half. In the bottom half, Kim cracked a solo home run to left field to tie the game.
But the score would not stay tied for long. After two singles to start the third and a stolen base to put two runners in scoring position without any outs, Flora was on his way to getting out of the jam, striking out the next batter and getting the man after that to pop out to first base on a bunt attempt. But before he could get the third out to end the threat, CSUN took the lead with a double down the left field line. The Gauchos loaded the bases with two outs in their half of the inning but could not respond. Flora did respond in the top of the fourth with two strikeouts in a one-two-three frame.
Santa Barbara started the bottom half of the fourth well, with back-to-back singles from Reiss Calvin and LeTrey McCollum to put runners on the corners, and after McCollum stole second and Crain was hit by a pitch, the Gauchos again had the bases loaded. Xavier Esquer drilled a screaming grounder to third base that could have been a double play if not for the Matador third baseman bobbling it, though he did recover and make one out on the play. Still, Calvin was able to score from third.
Flora again set down the Matadors in order in the top of the fifth, but the Gaucho offense could not keep the rally going in their half of the inning. The next team to score would be CSUN, igniting what would become a frantic final three frames.
A single, hit batter and two wild pitches made it 4-2 CSUN, then a two-out single made it 5-2. Chase Hoover had replaced Flora on the mound before that hit, and he had to escape a bases-loaded jam to keep the Santa Barbara deficit at just three. He did so with a strikeout.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Gauchos responded. McCollum led off with a single, taking second on an error, then Liam Barrett walked on four pitches. Crain followed them with a double to left center, scoring McCollum. Esquer was hit by a pitch to load the bases, and two batters later, Jack Holman was hit by a pitch to force across another run. Following him, Kim smashed a double just fair down the left field line to score Crain and Esquer, giving the Gauchos their first lead of the night, 6-5. After Nate Vargas walked, Calvin did the same to push across another run and make it 7-5.
But Santa Barbara did not get the shutdown inning they were looking for on the mound in the top of the seventh. A walk and a single, then a two-out infield single gave the Matadors one run back, and a two-out triple cleared the bags to put the visitors back on top, 8-7.
But the night had more runs in it, and the Gauchos grabbed one right after the seventh inning stretch. Cole Kosciusko had come in during the top of the inning as a defensive replacement and led off the bottom half with an infield single, taking second after the Matador second baseman air-mailed his throw to first, out of play. Crain smacked a single right past the CSUN third baseman to score Kosciusko for the tying run.
Olivas, having come on to pitch in the top of the seventh, faced the minimum in the top of the eighth thanks to a strikeout and a double play to turn the ball back over to the hot Gaucho bats. A walk to Calvin and hit-by-pitch for McCollum brought Kosciusko back up, and he knocked a double down the left field line to score Calvin and put the Gauchos back in front. This time, they would stay there for good. Crain tacked on another run with a single into right center, plating McCollum, and Esquer drove home Kosciusko with a sacrifice fly.
Santa Barbara needed to fall back on their three-run cushion a little bit in the ninth, up 11-8. The first two Matadors reached on a hit by pitch and a single to put runners on the corners and bring Aceves out of the bullpen. He allowed a hit to the first batter he faced, which scored CSUN's ninth run of the game, but Aceves made sure it was their last, striking out the next hitter and getting a double play to end things.
BY THE NUMBERS
After coming in as a defensive replacement, Kosciusko was a perfect 2-for-2 in his two trips to the plate late on Saturday, hitting a single and a double with an RBI.
Kosciusko was one of four Gauchos with multiple hits on Saturday; Crain led the squad with three, going 3-for-4 with three RBIs. Kim also recorded three RBIs, going 2-for-4 at the plate.
After throwing five shutout innings to earn his first career win at USC on Tuesday, Aceves threw one shutout inning to earn his first career save in Saturday's game. The freshman is still yet to allow a run through 8 2/3 innings this season.
UP NEXT
The Gauchos and Matadors will play the final game of their three-game series on Sunday, March 9 at 1:05 p.m. from Caesar Uyesaka Stadium. Season and single-game tickets are on sale now at ucsbgauchos.com, and kids in sixth grade or below get in free to all Gaucho home games this season with the Yardi Youth Pass. Visit ucsbgauchos.com to learn more. For fans following from afar, the game will be live on ESPN+ with live stats available through ucsbgauchos.com.
(Article courtesy of UCSB Athletics)
