WESTWOOD, Calif. – The Pepperdine baseball team was unable to rally and dropped a midweek contest 11-2 to #13 UCLA at Jackie Robinson Stadium on Tuesday night.
The Waves (1-3) fell behind in the first inning to the Bruins (4-0) and couldn't piece together a rally to fight back. Pepperdine made solid contact with the ball, but UCLA pitching was the deciding factor.
BIG WAVES
- Sophomore utility player Cole Sheehan (Phoenix, Ariz./Mountain Pointe HS) tied his career-high in hits with three including a double, going 3-for-4 on the night. Sheehan also had an RBI.
- Senior infielder Ryan Johnson (Tempe, Ariz./Seton Catholic HS) went 2-for-4 including a double and a solo home run.
- Freshman infielder Jack Basseer (Pleasanton, Calif./Foothill HS) also went 2-for-4.
- Freshman RHP Nick Bonn (Laguna Beach, Calif./Laguna Beach HS) threw 2.0 innings and collected his first two strikeouts as a Pepperdine pitcher.
GAME RECAP
In the bottom of the first inning, the Bruins scored on a single through the right side. UCLA took advantage of a Pepperdine error and scored another run on a double to take a 2-0 lead. The opposition hit back-to-back RBI singles and crossed the plate on a passed ball to increase the advantage to 5-0. The Bruins hit a two-run home run over left center to make it 8-0.
The Waves led off the top of the second with a double to right center by
Lincoln Orellana (Apple Valley, Calif./Sheldon HS/Hawai'i/American River College). Basseer followed with a single of his own to advance Orellana to third. With runners on the corners and two outs, Sheehan roped a double off the left center wall to score the Waves first run, 8-1.
After three scoreless innings, Johnson took the first pitch he saw in the top of the sixth inning over the center field wall for a solo shot and made it 8-2. UCLA answered with a run in the bottom of the sixth inning off a double to center.
In the bottom of the seventh inning, the Bruins tacked another run onto the lead,10-2, on an infield single. UCLA continued the momentum in the bottom of the eighth inning after taking advantage of an error and a single to left and made it 11-2.
After a lead off single, in the top of the final inning, the Waves were unable to get things going and UCLA held onto the victory.
UP NEXT
The Waves will head back to Malibu and host #20 Alabama for a three-game series at Eddy D. Field Stadium beginning on Friday, Feb. 24. First pitch is set for 1:30 p.m. and the game will be streamed live on the WCC Network.