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Saturday Recaps: Caravelle Resort Tournament | Florida/Florida Gulf Coast
 

No. 14 UCLA 6, No. 22 North Carolina 5

• 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.