UC Irvine showcases its power, eliminating Arizona State in NCAA baseball tournament
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Under threat of elimination, UC Irvine‘s bats emerged once again.
Bringing the power for a second straight game, the Anteaters connected for five home runs Sunday, eliminating Arizona State 11-6 in the Los Angeles Regional of the NCAA baseball tournament.
Needing to win four straight games to advance to the super regionals after losing to Arizona State on Friday, UC Irvine is halfway to its goal.
Alonso Reyes — who had just one home run in 2025 entering Sunday’s game — ripped a two-run home run off of Sun Devils starter Derek Schaefer in the fourth inning. Later in the inning, after Arizona State coach Willie Bloomquist went with Lucas Kelly out of the bullpen, Chase Call cleared the batter’s eye in dead center field for a two-run home run to give the Anteaters a 6-1 lead.
Jacob McCombs and Blake Penso put UC Irvine in position to win, but the Anteaters come up short at critical times in a 4-2 loss to Arizona State in the NCAA regionals.
“That’s kind of been the calling card from our offense really all year,” UC Irvine coach Ben Orloff said. “There’s a little more swing and miss and strikeouts in there than we would like, but we got a lot of guys that can change again with one swing.”
UC Irvine took a 7-2 lead in the sixth when Call launched a changeup over the heart of the plate from Sun Devils closer Cole Carlon beyond the left-field wall.
Call’s two home runs weren’t the only examples of the Anteaters’ power at the plate.
UC Irvine star center fielder Jacob McCombs connected for a no-doubt home run (423 feet, 106.5 mph) for the second straight day in the third inning, lifting the ball over The Jack and Rhodine Gifford Hitting Facility in right field. McCombs, an All-Big-West First Team honoree, leaned back in the batter’s box after his home run, taking time to admire his go-ahead blast.
1. UC Irvine infielder Colin Yeaman fields a hit during Sunday’s game against Arizona State. 2. UC Irvine pitcher David Utagawa delivers on Sunday. 3. UC Irvine players celebrate after defeating Arizona State. (Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)
Even when the Sun Devils threatened — scoring three in the sixth to make it a two-run game — James Castagnola replenished the lead with a two-run home run in the seventh. UC Irvine forced Carlon — who entered the game with a 2.73 earned-run average — from the game. He conceded a season-high five runs (four earned) across 1⅓ innings.
Plenty is still up for grabs for the Anteaters, but it will now require more of the same offense — and taking down UCLA twice (once Sunday night and on Monday) to extend their season. Luckily for Orloff, he preserved most of his pitching staff thanks to redshirt sophomore left-hander Ryder Brooks’ start.
The brother of former UCLA pitcher Jake Brooks made himself at home at Jackie Robinson Stadium, tossing 5⅓ innings of five-run ball, giving up six hits, walking four and striking out three with low-slot delivery. It was Brooks’ longest start since a complete-game shutout of Hawaii on April 19.
“I think all year long, it’s just one pitch at a time, trying to get a zero when our offense puts up runs,” Brooks said, adding he didn’t “save the team” with his start. “Give it to the defense and the team, we were able to come away with a win. That’s big.”
UC Irvine baseball coach Ben Orloff has made the Anteaters one of the top programs in the country, something coaching great Mike Gillespie knew he was capable of achieving.
But Orloff disagreed.
“I’m really proud of this guy with that start,” Orloff said. “And we needed a long start to have a chance. We’re trying to manage this thing, not just to win the game in front of us, but we’re trying to win a regional. So that start that he gave us was huge.”
Orloff dipped into his bullpen for just two relief pitchers. Ricky Ojeda, the Big West Pitcher of the Year, tossed 1 ⅓ innings on 34 pitches. Over the last three days, Ojeda has thrown 74 pitches — and would be on just a few hours rest if he pitches Sunday night against UCLA. The Anteaters split their midweek season series against the Bruins earlier this year.
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