COLLEGE ROUNDUP : UCI Gets Reversal, UCLA the Fortune

UCLA, apparently aroused by a fiery tirade from Coach Gary Adams directed at the home plate umpire, jumped on UC Irvine for three runs in the sixth inning and four more in the seventh on its way to a 9-6 victory in a nonconference baseball game Sunday at Irvine.

Entering the sixth innning, the Bruins (1-1) had only four hits--two for home runs--off Irvine right-hander Joe Sewell and trailed, 3-2. The first batter up in the sixth, first baseman Chris Pritchett, hit a fly ball that left fielder Matt Filson had in his glove before appearing to drop it.

Pritchett was standing on second with an apparent double, but Irvine Coach Mike Gerakos won an argument with home plate umpire Lou Wilhite, who initially had called Pritchett out, then safe.

Wilhite’s reversal of his reversal brought Adams from the dugout, and lip-reading wasn’t necessary to understand the coach.

After the game, Adams was asked if the incident had inspired his team.

“I can only speak for myself,” he said. “It fired me up. It got my adrenaline going.”

After a base on balls and another out, Ryan McGuire, pinch-hitting for designated hitter Derek Tamburro, doubled in the tying run, knocking Sewell out of the game. The Bruins scored two more runs in the inning and four more in the seventh, on a two-run triple by left fielder Joel Wolfe and a two-run home run by third baseman Kevin Webb, to make it 9-3.

Webb, a junior from Esperanza High School, also hit a bases-empty home run in the second. Pritchett added a bases-empty homer in the fourth.

Irvine (1-3), which defeated the Bruins, 4-1, Saturday in Los Angeles, scored three runs in the ninth and trailed by three with the bases loaded and one out.

But left-handed reliever Zac Reeder struck out the final two Anteaters, including Chris Facione on a called third strike.

Irvine first baseman Bryant Winslow, a transfer from Wichita State, hit a 400-foot-plus home run to dead center in the second inning.

In other nonconference baseball games:

Stanford 12, Cal State Fullerton 4--Dave McCarty and Jeffery Hammonds, the Cardinal players who hit solo home runs in a 2-0 victory over the Titans Saturday, again hit solo homers Sunday as Stanford completed a three-game series sweep in front of 536 at Amerige Park in Fullerton.

The Cardinal (6-0), ranked No. 1 in the Collegiate Baseball magazine preseason poll, had 14 hits and scored three runs in each of three innings in building a 12-0 lead by the sixth inning.

Fullerton (1-3) scored a run in the sixth and three in the eighth. Jim Betzsold, a freshman from Mater Dei, drove in the Titans’ first run with a pinch-hit sacrifice. In the eighth, Betzsold drove in another run with his first collegiate hit, a double.

U.S. International 6, Chapman 4--U.S. International scored twice in the sixth inning to break a 3-3 tie at Hart Park.

Mike Murphy and Ed Crabtree each hit home runs for USIU. Mike Kelly and James Merriweather each went two for four with one RBI for the Panthers (2-1).

In Big West Conference women’s basketball:

Pacific 66, UC Irvine 48--Yvonne Catala and Kathy Lizarraga each had 16 points for the visiting Anteaters (4-17, 2-10 in conference). Natasha Norris had 23 points for Pacific (12-9, 7-5).

In Pacific 10 Conference wrestling:

Cal State Fullerton 19, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo 12--Heavyweight David Jones, Marty Kouyoumtjian (150-pound division) and Lyndon Campbell (134) remained undefeated in Pac-10 competition with victories. The Titans are 10-5, 2-3 in conference.

In men’s tennis:

California 6, UC Irvine 3--Three Irvine singles players served for his match but each lost and the Golden Bears, ranked seventh in the nation, swept the six singles matches at home.

Mike Roberts, who was defeated by Carl Chang (6-3, 3-6, 7-5); Jeff Miyamoto, who lost to Pete Fitzpatrick (3-6, 7-5, 6-1), and Brett Stern, who lost to Tommy Phanco (6-7, 7-5, 6-1), each had a chance to win his match by holding serve for No. 25 Irvine (2-1), which had three freshmen playing singles.

“I was pleased with the way we played,” Anteater Coach Greg Patton said. “It’s like running a race and four of the six races were photo finishes.”

Irvine won the three doubles matches: Brett Hansen-Dent and Roberts defeated Chang-Anders Rolfsen, 1-6, 6-2, 6-4; Neel Grover and Charles Wheeler defeated Eddie Marcum and David Mabbutt, 6-2, 6-4, and Carsten Hoffmann and Miyamoto beat Jamil Atchil and Steve Lappin, 2-6, 6-2, 6-3.