College Baseball Roundup : UCI Can’t Beat Pepperdine, Even With Roumimper’s Hitting

UC Irvine first baseman Gene Roumimper went on a hitting tear Saturday, but the Anteaters came up winless in a nonconference doubleheader against Pepperdine at Anteater Field. The Waves took the opener, 8-5, and hung on for a 9-9 tie in a nightcap that was called because of darkness.

Roumimper, a junior transfer from Orange Coast College, went 6 for 8 with four doubles and seven runs batted in. He ran his hitting streak to eight games and drove his average up 94 points, from .375 to .469.

Pepperdine (2-5-2) sent 11 batters to the plate in the fifth inning of the opening game and scored five runs to break it open.

UCI (4-5-1) tied the second game in the bottom of the eighth when Mark Webster reached on an infield single, went to second on a walk to Ed Clark, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on an infield out by Tom Baine.

In other nonconference action:

California 6, Cal State Fullerton 5--The eighth-ranked Golden Bears took advantage of mistakes by the 10th-ranked Titans to win the second game of the three-game series at Titan Field. Fullerton, which won the first game of the series, committed four errors and botched a crucial rundown play in the ninth inning.

With two out in the ninth, Lance Blankenship and Jerry Goff singled for Cal (10-2). When Goff stole second, the Titans (7-3) trapped Blankenship between home and third but allowed him to get back safely. Cal catcher Mike Knapp, who was 3 for 4, then beat out a check-swing roller as Blankenship scored the winning run.

Fullerton loaded the bases with two out in the ninth, but third baseman Mike Baer backhanded a shot by Tony Trevino and stepped on the base for the force to end the game. The teams meet in the rubber game of the series at 1 today.

Chapman 4-5, United States International 3-1--Mark Bradley (1-0) pitched three innings of shutout relief in the opener and Steve Dunn (3-1) pitched a seven-inning complete game in the nightcap as the Panthers swept a doubleheader from the Gulls at Hart Park in Orange.

Tony Gardea singled in Jeff Morrison with the winning run for Chapman (6-5) in the eighth inning of the opener. In the second game, Jim Areias put the Panthers ahead for good with a two-run single in the second inning.

In nonconference community college action:

Fullerton 3-11, Santa Monica 0-2--Jeff Oberdank doubled in a run in the first inning and that was enough for Jimmy Bennett, who pitched a four-hit shutout and struck out eight in the first game. In the second game, Rob DeYoung pitched a six-hitter and had eight strikeouts.

Golden West 10, Cuesta 3--The Rustlers broke the game open early and went on to give Fred Hoover his 399th career win as Golden West coach. Keith Kaub got things going for the Rustlers (2-1) with a three-run homer in the first inning. Hoover will go for win No. 400 at noon today at Palomar.

Cypress 6, El Camino 3--The Chargers remained undefeated behind the hitting of Rick Nen, who went 3 for 4 with a two-run home run in the ninth inning, at El Camino.

Saddleback 8, Palomar 2--John Seeburger and Joe Holden each hit two-run homers and drove in three runs to lead the Gauchos (3-1) to their third straight win in a game in Mission Viejo.

Rancho Santiago 11, Southwestern 1--Pitcher Mike Schwabe (1-0) went seven innings and allowed just three hits and no runs at Southwestern.

In the College of the Sequoias Tournament:

College of the Sequoias 2, Orange Coast 0--Giants pitcher Bruce Vegely struck out 14 and threw a three-hitter in the second round.

Orange Coast 9, Canada 1--The Pirates broke open the third-round game with a five-run eighth inning on seven singles.

Orange Coast 6, Santa Rosa 3--Joey James gave OCC the victory with a grand slam in the ninth inning. Three teams--Orange Coast, Sequoias and Fresno--remain in the tournament. The Pirates play Sequoias today at 10 in a losers’ bracket game. The winner would have to beat Fresno twice to win the tournament.