Monday, March 16, 1998
Potent offenses go wild, Cats still manage win vs. struggling
UCLA
High-scoring series reminiscent of last year’s stellar Bruin
squad
By Kristina Wilcox
Daily Bruin Staff
The Six-Pac baseball series between UCLA and No. 5 Arizona this
weekend in Tucson featured slugfests that were typical of UCLA
baseball last season, but were not regular features of their games
in 1998.
The Bruins (10-16, 5-9 in Six-Pac) won the first battle, 16-4,
but lost the final two to the Wildcats (25-5, 7-5).
Bruin centerfielder Eric Valent swung a mighty bat in UCLA’s
lone victory. Valent (3 for 6) drove in a career-high six runs as
the squad ended the Wildcats’ 22-game, home winning-streak.
UCLA reliever Bobby Roe (3-1) benefited from the offensive
outburst. Although he did not put forth an exemplary performance (1
2/3 innings, five runs), he was on the mound when it mattered.
Arizona rocked Bruin starting pitcher Chad Cislak on Saturday,
scoring 13 runs (12 earned) off him in his homecoming appearance.
The freshman Cislak (2-5), a Tucson native, did not have the kind
of outing he wanted to have in front of his family and friends.
Cislak’s nemesis in the game was Arizona’s Jason Hendricks (4
for 5), who drove in a career-high eight runs. He hit a two-run
single in the first, a three-run homer in the third and a three-run
double in the fifth.
UCLA pitching did not do much better in Sunday’s finale, but
neither did the Arizona staff. The teams combined for 22 runs in
the game, moving the weekend’s run total to 86 (54 for Arizona, 32
for UCLA).
The Wildcats took an early 6-0 lead off Bruin starter Jon
Brandt, who was the closer in Friday’s game. He left the game after
6 innings with a 10-6 deficit that was soon erased by right-fielder
Eric Byrnes’ second three-run homer of the game. Left fielder Brett
Nista also hit two homers, but the efforts by the top two hitters
in the Bruin lineup were not enough to pull out a victory.
Arizona’s Jason Shroyer leadoff homer in the bottom of the
eighth inning broke a 10-10 tie and propelled the Wildcats to the
12-10 win.