CSF Media Release
Fullerton, Calif. – Carl Uhl’s 12th-inning RBI-groundout broke a 4-4 tie and lifted UC Riverside (7-13, 1-1) to a 6-4 Big West Conference baseball victory over Cal State Fullerton (14-9, 1-1) Saturday night in the teams’ second consecutive extra-inning affair at Goodwin Field.
Ryan Platt (1-1) hurled six innings of two-hit ball in relief of starter Matt Larkins to pick up his first win of the year. The right-hander struck out six and worked out of jams in the 9th and 11th with the Titans threatening.
Travis Kelly, the fifth Titan arm of the ninth, worked out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the 11th, but surrendered singles to Jordan Opdyke and Trevor Hairgrove with a Ben Price sac-bunt in between in the 12th to set up the Uhl groundout. Joey Gonzalez singled a batter later, driving home a key insurance run for the Highlanders, and sticking Kelly (1-1) with the loss.
Jared Clark, drove home Josh Fellhauer, who doubled on the first pitch of the game, with a hard-hit single to left in the 1st to put the Titans on top. Clark later scored on a balk by UCR starter Matt Larkins.
Riverside plated its first four runs off Titan starter Daniel Renken in the 2nd-4th innings. Aaron Wible connected on a Renken offerening to lead off the 2nd to cut the Titan lead to 2-1. In the 3rd, back-to-back RBI-singles by Daniel Peigrino and Opdyke gave UCR the 3-2 lead. In the 4th, Hairgrove doubled to lead off the frame, was sacrificed to third and scored on a grounder by Gonzalez.
Larkins kept the Titans quiet until the 5th when extra base hits by Jared Clark (double) and Joel Weeks (RBI-triple) cut the lead to 4-3. With runners at the corners an inning later, Larkins saw the Riverside lead disappear as his errant pick off throw sailed wide of the bag, scoring Khris Davis from third with the tying run.
Platt came on in relief the next inning and set seven of the first eight Titans he faced down in order. The righty did walk four on the night, with three of them advancing into scoring postion, while three of his six strikeouts ended Titan innings.
Michael Morrison (2.1), Jason Dovel (.1) Ryan Ackland (1.1) and Brian Wilson (.1) combined for 4.1 innings of four-hit, scoreless relief striking out five.
Hairgrove led all players with four hits with five Highlanders following with a pair of hits each. Fellhauer paced the Titans with three hits. Four Titans collected two hits.
The rubber match of the three-game set will begin at 1 p.m. Sunday afternoon at Goodwin Field.
NOTES: Erik Komatsu extended his hitting streak to seven games with a 11th inning single…This is the sixth time in Titan history that they have played extra innings in back-to-back games…Fullerton snaps a five-game winning streak in the loss, matching their previous season best (Mar. 4 – Mar. 9).
