Wednesday, April 15, 1998
Bruins slide from great to poor, losing badly to San Diego
State
RECAP: UCLA hits, pitching no match for Aztecs’ efficiency
By Kristina Wilcox
Daily Bruin Staff
The UCLA baseball team that took the field on Tuesday was quite
different from the one that backed up Tony Righetti’s stellar
outing on Monday night.
For one, the result was a blowout in favor of the opposing team.
San Diego State demolished the high-riding Bruins, 21-4.
After shutting out Hawaii-Hilo 16-0 at Jackie Robinson Stadium,
UCLA (18-24) traveled to Tony Gwynn Stadium Tuesday afternoon to
face the Aztecs (22-16).
SDSU promptly showed the Bruins why they have a winning record
and UCLA does not.
The Bruins blew an early 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first
inning. Bruin starting pitcher Gabe Crecion did not last long. He
was only in the game to face four batters, all of whom walked.
Quite a different start from Righetti’s one-walk performance on
Monday.
The last three of Crecion’s runners scored when reliever Al
Thielemann took the mound. The fifth batter of the inning hit a
bases-clearing double.
SDSU scored three more runs in the second and fourth innings. In
the sixth inning, four Aztecs came across the plate, two in the
seventh, and five in the eighth. No Bruin pitcher could dam the
flood.
Meanwhile, San Diego opted for a "pitching by committee" routine
to silence the Bruin bats. Seven Aztecs hurlers appeared in the
game, as opposed to four Bruins.
Only one UCLA hitter got two hits, and that was shortstop Jack
Santora. Santora showed some pop when he hit a solo home run in the
third inning. He now has two on the year and four in his career.
The previous two homers came in 1997.
Two other homers flew off Bruin bats on Tuesday evening. Center
fielder Eric Valent drove in two runs on his first-inning bomb, and
first baseman Cassidy Olson had a solo shot in the sixth.
* * *
Regular third baseman Garrett Atkins (.381 batting average, 33
RBI) did not play, keeping his consecutive-game hitting streak
alive at 26.
After fielding a consistent defense for the past few games, UCLA
made five errors at San Diego on Tuesday. Atkins’ replacement at
third, Aldo Pinto, committed a two-out error that led to two
unearned runs.
JAMIE SCANLON JACOBS/Daily Bruin
Shortshop Jack Santora snags a grounder during a game earlier
this season.