By Scott Bair
Daily Bruin Contributor
Baseball is a game that can be won or lost by individuals. But
in the case of Tuesday afternoon’s matchup against the Loyola
Marymount Lions, the Bruins (13-5) won the game as a team. Eight of
nine Bruin lineup spots contributed hits in the 8-4 victory at
George Page Stadium.
The two teams spent the beginning of the contest chipping away
at each other, with four lead changes in the first four
innings.
The Lions (11-10) flexed their offensive muscle first, scoring
the game’s first run. Center fielder David Maffei fought off
a 3-2 offering from Bruin starter Bobby Roe for a base-hit up the
middle. LMU turned the hit, along with a defensive miscue by Eric
Reece on a pick-off move by Roe, into the first run of the day. Roe
had trouble finding the plate during the game, his first start
since Feb. 18. The deep counts got Roe into trouble in third. The
first four Lion batters reached base, two of them receiving free
passes. LMU scored two runs in the inning, sandwiching them around
a lone Bruin score in the top of the second.
Due to the on-going rain, the Bruin squad came out rusty in the
first three innings having not practiced in awhile. “We
haven’t been able to get on a field of practice in 10
days,” UCLA Head Coach Gary Adams said.
The back-and-forth, run-manufacturing style of game broke wide
open with one swing of a Bruin bat. Junior catcher Casey Grzecka
provided the spark that the offense needed when he launched a fly
ball into the swirling wind above Page Stadium that landed well
beyond the left field wall, knotting the game at three.
“I was looking fastball and he threw it in my favorite
spot. I put my hands to the side and good things happened. I felt a
momentum change after that,” Grzecka said.
The Bruin bats followed Grzecka’s long bomb with
back-to-back two-out doubles by second baseman Josh Canales and
centerfielder Matt Pearl, establishing the Bruin lead for good.
Both offenses went into hibernation for the next two innings until
the Bruins awoke with four consecutive two-out singles, driving
home two runs in the sixth.
Pearl got involved in the offensive parade again in the eighth,
with a sacrifice fly that drove home Grzecka, who reached third on
a textbook bunt by Canales. In a reoccurring theme over the early
part of the season, the Bruin offense was allowed to creep back
into the game because of another stellar performance from the
bullpen. Five Bruin relievers combined to hold LMU to a solitary
run over the game’s final six innings.
Strong play from the pitching staff, as well as production from
all nine members of the Bruin lineup has allowed the team to
produce runs and apply constant pressure on an opponent, a strategy
that has resulted in a 13-5 record.
“Our offense is doing really well. We’re no longer
relying on the three-run homers to bail us out,” said
designated hitter Brian Baron.