UCI rally falls short against Cal State Fullerton
All good things must come to an end, and so it was that UC Irvine baseball sophomore Keston Hiura went hitless in four at-bats Saturday to snap his nation-best on-base streak at 52 games.
One streak for visiting Cal State Fullerton, however, stayed intact for at least one more day.
The Titans have never lost a three-game series to UC Irvine at Anteater Ballpark. A well-timed hit could have changed that Saturday.
But Cal State Fullerton reliever Scott Serigstad struck out UCI’s Cole Kreuter with two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth inning. The Titans hung on to win, 6-4, and even this particular three-game Big West Conference series at one game apiece.
Fullerton (26-15, 8-3 in conference), which has won five of the last six conference titles, moved back into outright possession of first place after Cal Poly San Luis Obispo lost at Long Beach State. UC Irvine (25-15, 7-7) is tied for sixth in the nine-team conference with Hawaii.
A day after senior left-hander Elliot Surrey earned a complete-game 2-0 shutout victory, the Anteaters’ pitching was less than sterling. They used six relievers after sophomore lefty starter Cameron Bishop left in the fourth inning with the home team trailing 4-1.
Cal State Fullerton took a 6-1 advantage in the top of the fifth, on Ruben Cardenas’ second RBI double of the afternoon.
“Let’s just say it was horrible, with some exceptions,” UCI Coach Mike Gillespie said of his team’s pitching. “Some guys went in there and made clutches pitches. [Jordan] Bocko [who threw two scoreless innings in the seventh and eighth], I think, was the best example. We had scored a few by that time, and he kept us in a position to maybe get there. All in all, it was a disappointing day on the mound.”
UC Irvine had taken a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first. Cole Kreuter had a leadoff double and eventually scored on Mitchell Holland’s sacrifice fly. But the Titans were able to hit Bishop, who failed to make it past four innings for the fourth time in his last five starts and fell to 5-3. He allowed four runs (three earned) on eight hits in 3 1/3 innings, walking none and striking out five.
“We see the famous ‘P’ word, potential,” Gillespie said. “It’s in there, and the day’s going to come where he’s going to be a real guy, a good one. Well, we want it to be yesterday, so you stay with a guy like that because there’s just too much ability there. He’s raw, but it’s in there.”
But the Anteaters were able to mount a comeback against Fullerton sophomore lefty John Gavin, who entered with a team-best 2.14 earned-run average. He was cruising along, retiring 12 straight ‘Eaters, until Jonathan Muñoz and Grant Palmer started off the bottom of the fifth with back-to-back singles. They both scored on Kreuter’s two-out double to center.
The ‘Eaters scored another in the bottom of the sixth to chase Gavin. Holland had a one-out single, and stole second. With two outs, he came home on single by Muñoz.
The visitors’ lead was cut to 6-4, and Gavin’s day was done.
“I was proud of our effort, the way we kept grinding and battling and made it a game,” Gillespie said. “We got into our third time around, and we had some guys put together some good at-bats and some clutch at-bats. [Gavin] throws a world-class, unhittable changeup, and mixes in a good enough fastball and a good enough little breaking ball that he doesn’t have to throw much because the changeup’s so good. So it’s hard to have good at-bats ... I liked the fact that we battled and made some adjustments and had some good at-bats.”
Serigstad earned his second save of the season for Fullerton, though he made it interesting in the ninth. Alcantara and Muñoz (three for four) led off with back-to-back singles. Fullerton recorded a force out at third on a bunt attempt, and Serigstad earned a strikeout for the second out. But then he hit UCI catcher Alex Guenette to load the bases, putting the winning run on first.
Kreuter lined the 1-1 pitch foul down the left-field line, and the Anteaters were down to their last strike. Serigstad then earned the strikeout to end the game.
UCI, which has won a three-game series against Cal State Fullerton twice at the Titans’ field (2007 and ‘09), can still win the rubber match against Fullerton on Sunday. UCI sophomore Alonzo Garcia (4-2) will take the mound against Titans freshman Colton Easton (5-2). But, especially at this juncture, Gillespie is less concerned with history and more concerned with making up ground in the conference race.
“I’m not fond of being the guy that throws out the cliches that everybody gets criticized for,” he said. “But the fact of that matter is that, for us, the next game is the most important game. That’s what it is. We are in a huge hole, which is of our own making. So yeah, it’s critically important. It’s like urgent.”
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Big West Conference
Cal State Fullerton 6, UC Irvine 4
SCORE BY INNINGS
CSF 020 220 000 – 6 13 0
UCI 100 021 000 – 4 9 2
Gavin, Serigstad (6) and Bravo; Bishop, Sparling (4), Martin (6), Riddle (7), Bocko (7), Glazier (9), Ritchey (9) and Reitano, Guenette (6). W – Gavin, 3-2. L – Bishop, 5-3. Sv – Serigstad (2). 2B – Vargas (CSF), Cardenas (CSF) 2, Wix (CSF), Kreuter (UCI) 2. 3B – Richards (CSF), Wix (CSF).
