By Jared Hermann
Staff Writer
On a clear and windy day in Malibu, Pepperdine baseball took on No. 2 Cal State Fullerton Wednesday at Eddy D. Field Stadium. Cal State, a staple powerhouse of collegiate baseball for the past 20 years, entered into the contest 24-6 overall, coming from two huge victories in three games against No. 5 Long Beach State this past weekend.
The Waves got up to an early lead in the third inning when freshman second baseman David Uribes scored on a wild pitch, bringing the score to 1-0. The Waves would add a second run in the fourth inning and that would be all they needed against the talented CSUF team. Junior right-hander Brandon Boesch was on the mound and threw a spectacular eight innings, allowing seven hits and one unearned run in a 2-1 victory.
The win marked Pepperdine’s third over a top-10 team this season, the other two being victories against No. 8 USC and No. 5 Long Beach State. The victory vaulted the team to a 16-14 record in what has been a season of big wins and big losses.
According to senior James Carroll, a win over a storied franchise like CSUF can do a lot for a team like the Waves, which has been struggling as of late.
“It was huge,” Carroll said. “We’ve had a rough week or two, had a couple big wins and bad losses … this definitely gives us confidence going into a tough weekend with San Diego… and any time you can get a win against a team like Fullerton, who everyone is watching, that puts you in the national scope, and that could help us come NCAA tournament time.”
Coming off a 5-4 loss to Gonzaga University last Monday, Santa Clara looked for revenge against Pepperdine this past weekend in a three-game WCC series at its home field, Buck Shaw Stadium.
Pepperdine started strong in the first inning when senior shortstop Kevin Estrada launching a solo homerun as the Waves first batter of the game. But Santa Clara retaliated in the bottom half of the inning as leadoff hitter hit a solo shot to tie the game at 1-1.
Unfortunately for the Waves, Santa Clara, with its dynamic duo of hitting and pitching, was able to hold them from scoring any more runs until the ninth inning, while Santa Clara would generate nine more runs over the next eight innings.
In the top of the ninth, junior Chris Kelly added another run for Pepperdine with a solo shot to left center field, his ninth homerun of the season and his 33rd of his career. But, when all was said and done, Santa Clara came away with the series opener 10-2.
On Saturday, Pepperdine sent senior right-hander Greg Ramirez to the mound looking for the win.
Late in the game, the score was 3-2 in favor of Santa Clara. That’s when freshman left fielder Brandon Daguio stepped up to the plate in the top half of the ninth inning and quickly tied the game, firing a single into left field scoring standout freshman Uribes for the tying run.
After holding off Santa Clara in the ninth, the game went into extra innings where Santa Clara’s designated hitter closed the books with a one out homerun in the bottom of the tenth, giving the Broncos the win 4-3.
Ramirez produced another solid effort as he allowed only six hits and two walks, while striking out a career high eight batters over eight innings of work.
Pepperdine looked good from the get-go Sunday as last week’s Co-Pitcher of the Week, Barrack attempted to follow up his career performance with another great game. Barrack would accomplish just that, striking out seven Santa Clara batters in just seven innings on the mound. With the Waves hitting the ball well, Pepperdine was able to produce eight runs. Two of the major contributors on the day were Estrada and Daguio, who each had two RBIs.
But Barrack was again the man who would come through for the Waves on Sunday as he chalked up his fourth win of the season while only allowing two runs and six hits in a 8-2 victory. The 8-2 win over Santa Clara helped Pepperdine claim the final game of the three- game series and moved them to 15-14 overall, 6-3 in the WCC.
The loss dropped Santa Clara to 12-19 overall and 4-4 in WCC play.
“They were tough games, and it was good to come away with one win,” Carroll said.
With a big weekend ahead, the Waves hope to back up their big wins by getting the games they’re supposed to.
“We’ve got a lot of freshman on this team, and they’re still getting into it,” Carroll said. “It’s learning process all along the way, but I’m excited for the second half of the season to get started. Once these guys start clicking, and I’m sure they will, we’re going to get the big wins.”
April 03, 2003