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No. 14 UCLA 6, No. 22 North Carolina 5
It wasn’t quite the crisp pitcher’s duel that many expected going into the game with a pair of promising sophomores squaring off, but Saturday’s game between No. 22 North Carolina and host No. 14 UCLA still turned into a thriller nonetheless.
UCLA tied the game in the bottom of the seventh inning 5-5 before winning in dramatic walkoff fashion in the bottom of the ninth. Eric Filia was the hero delivering the winning base hit, but Luke Persico played just as big of a role, drawing a two-out walk (his third of the game) just ahead of Filia and then promptly stole second base to put himself in scoring position. Persico scored three of the Bruins’ six runs in the game.
Filia’s game-winning hit was only UCLA’s fourth in the game, largely because the flame-throwing J.B. Bukauskas started the game for the Tar Heels. Although he only lasted 4 2/3innings and gave up four runs (two earned) and three walks, he only allowed one hit and struck out nine thanks to a fastball that was clocked as high as 97, a wicked upper-80s slider and a changeup that was clocked as high as 90 mph.
Cole Aker, who was brought in to face Persico in relief of UNC’s closer Hansen Butler (who struck out four in 2 2/3 scoreless innings), allowed both the free pass to Persico and the base hit to Filia.
Griffin Canning got the start for UCLA and he too uncharacteristically struggled with command. He managed to work his way through five innings giving up five runs (three were earned) on eight hits and a walk while striking out five.
Four UCLA pitchers combined to provide four scoreless innings of relief, including closer Tucker Forbes who worked the final two frame to pick up the win.
LakePoint Spring Swing
Nebraska-Omaha, Eastern Michigan and NJIT all took turns playing each other on Saturday. UNO went 2-0 with a win over each team while EMU won their contest against NJIT, 8-0. Matt Czechanski was once again on hand for all of the action and provided the following reports, and video, on some of the games’ standout players, including UNO senior third baseman Clayton Taylor and EMU freshman righthander Davis Feldman.
As noted in yesterday's edition of this blog, Taylor stands in with a very strong 6-foot-4, 220-pound frame at the plate. He showed an impressive ability to pick up spin and lay off when it's thrown low and out of the zone. His bat speed and strength allow him to use his pull-oriented approach to drive the ball through the right side with ease. His swing features a level plane with natural lift, as well as present feel for the barrel, which leads to a high number line drives. At the plate, he led the team with five hits in the Mavericks' pair of games on Saturday.
The 6-foot, 180-pound Feldman toed the rubber for the Eagles' first game of the day. He worked from a three-quarters arm slot with good raw arm speed and a loose arm action. He showed good hip rotation and repeated his mechanics well through the duration of his start. He slightly cuts off his extension in his delivery but manages to land on-line. He threw a pair of fastballs; his four-seam showed good life and hit 90 mph in the first inning, while then sitting in the upper-80s thereafter, and his two-seam fastball worked in the 84-86 mph range with impressive arm-side run. He showed feel and confidence for his 80 mph changeup that showed good fade and depth. His fourth pitch was an 11-to-5 shaped curveball that hit 76 mph that he used sparingly, but showed some tightness and feel for the pitch.
To read more notes from the action at the Spring Swing please visit the LakePoint scout blog.
National Notes
• As noted in the weekend preview on Thursday Rice was expected to have their hands full with Arizona this weekend. However, it’s not the offense that is causing the Owls trouble (the middle-of-the-order power threat of Bobby Dalbec and J.J. Matijevic has only mustered one hit combined in their first two games) but the Wildcat arms. On Friday J.C. Cloney went seven strong innings, allowing just four hits and one run while striking out nine, and Cameron Ming followed that up with 6 1/3 strong innings of his own on Saturday. Dalbec came in to pick up the win in relief of Ming, tossing 2 2/3 scoreless innings of relief, which spoiled a strong start by Rice’s Jon Duplantier. As a result Arizona is off to a modestly surprising 2-0 start.
• All sophomore Alex Lange has done since stepping foot on campus at Louisiana State is win. After a remarkable freshman year that saw the strongly built righthander go 12-0, Lange was up to his old tricks Saturday for the Tigers as he spun 6 2/3 innings of one-hit ball while punching out nine Cincinnati Bearcats. He showed big velocity on his fastball working in the 92-94 mph range but his low- to mid-80s breaking ball and high level changeup proved to be just as effective.
• Most coaches would be happy to have Louisville’s Brendan McKay on their team as either a hitter or as a pitcher, but lucky for Coach Dan McDonnell that he gets him for both. Saturday marked McKay’s first start on the bump in 2016 and it went as Louisville fans have come to expect: five shutout innings, eight strikeouts and just three hits allowed. His fastball peaked at 94 mph and worked comfortably in the 89-91 mph range while showing an advanced feel for both his curveball and changeup. On top of that, the lefthanded hitting McKay also hit a three-run home run giving the fans a little taste of everything he’s capable of doing.
• McKay’s teammate and one of the top outfield prospect eligible for this year’s draft, Corey Ray, has jumped out to a nice start for Louisville as well picking up multi-hit games in each of his first two contests and going deep in his first at-bat on Saturday. An explosive athlete with big-time speed, Ray also made an impact on the bases, as he swiped three bags, as well as defensively, throwing a runner out at home.
• In addition to Corey Ray’s big day at the plate big individual offensive performances seemed to be the recurring theme in Saturday’s action across the country.
- Jeren Kendall continued his hot start with a 3-for-5 performance in No. 4 Vanderbilt’s 13-6 win over San Diego after going 4-for-5 yesterday. First baseman Kyle Smith also enjoyed a big day at the plate going 3-for-3 with a two-run bomb, while a pair of freshmen – Alonzo Jones and Ethan Paul – collected the key base hits in the Commodores’ seven-run sixth inning.
- After going 3-for-5 with a double, two runs, three RBI and two walks in Florida State’s huge 19-1 win over Rhode Island on Friday, third baseman John Sansone followed that up with a 2-for-4 performance that included a home run and four RBI in FSU’s 8-1 win on Saturday.
- Missouri State third baseman Jake Burger hit a pair of home runs in the first game off a doubleheader on Saturday against Central Arkansas. He now has three bombs on the year while going 5-for-11 collectively in three games with seven runs scored and six driven in.
- Hunter Melton went 5-for-5 with two home runs of his own, four runs scored and six RBI in No. 3 Texas A&M’s 15-4 win over Hofstra on Saturday. Michael Barash and Ronnie Gideon also hit home runs for the Aggies as eight of the team’s 16 hits went for extra bases.
- Mississippi State’s 2-3-4 hitters (Jack Kruger, Brent Rooker and Gavin Collins) went a combined 8-for-12 with four doubles, eight runs scored and eight driven in as part of their 17-4 win over South Dakota State. Unfortunately for the No. 17 Bulldogs they also lost their second game against Florida Atlantic and open the year with a 1-2 record.
• Stanford was rained out Friday night so College Baseball had to wait one more day to see the debut of freshman ace Tristan Beck. Well, Beck was worth the wait and then some. The young righthander showed pitchability beyond his years allowing no runs over 6 1/3 innings. Beck featured a fastball ranging from 90-93 mph and his nasty curveball was 76-78 mph. Fullerton may not be an offensive juggernaut but Beck allowed just three of the 22 batters he faced to reach base. Let the Tristan Beck era begin.
Stanford ended up sweeping Saturday's doubleheader against the Titans to open the year 2-0.
• Oregon won the first two games at San Diego State versus an Aztec program that has been to three straight Regionals. Cole Irvin was outstanding in game one as noted in our Friday recap. Fellow lefty Matt Krook had a choppier outing, allowing four runs (only two were earned) in his four complete innings. Krook's high-octane fastball was 91-95 mph and he even flashed a handful of plus curveballs. Pitch count management will be the initial challenge for Krook as he needed 85 pitches to complete his four innings. For those of you with Oregon in your "Eight for Omaha," the Ducks are currently averaging nine runs per game.
• Despite suffering a disappointing Opening Day loss to UTA, Oklahoma State may have found a major piece for their weekend rotation. Righthander Thomas Hatch dominated Stephen F. Austin on Saturday, going seven innings and allowing just two runs. Hatch sat 91-94 mph and touched 95 but two other numbers really stand out: he recorded 13 ground ball outs and needed just 79 pitches to complete the seven innings.
Donnie Walton has been in the middle of everything for the Cowboys and he is hitting .500 (6-for-12) through three games. Sophomore Jon Littell, who is a former Perfect Game All-American, looks poised for a breakout year. Littell did not start on Opening Day but he recorded four hits, three runs scored and three RBI in Saturday's doubleheader sweep.
• Alec Hansen, one of the early season candidates to be in the mix for the first overall pick in this year’s draft thanks to his big stature and equally big fastball, had a pretty rough beginning to the 2016 season. After getting two quick outs to open his start against Northeastern the wheels quickly came off as he lasted just one inning giving up three runs on four walks and a base hit. Northeastern won game one of the doubleheader 5-3, although the Sooners did bounce back with a much-needed 10-4 win in the second game.
• Congrats to Augie Garrido who recorded his 800th victory as Head Coach of the Longhorns with a 11-2 victory over UNLV on Saturday.