IRVINE, Calif. --- UC Irvine went blow-for-blow with UC Davis Friday night coming out with just enough to edge the Aggies, 6-5, and score a second Big West series in Anteater Ballpark.
UC Davis (20-30, 9-14) snapped up the early lead with a towering solo homer by Cameron Olson to make it 1-0 in the first. The Aggies built on the lead with another home run, this time a two-run shot helped by an error on the previous play, to extend the lead to 3-0 in the fifth.
The Anteaters (23-32, 9-14) answered with help from an Aggie error in the bottom half of the inning. Christian Koss reached out and found a single to get the 'Eaters on the board, and senior Evan Cassolato dumped a double into the gap with two outs to tie the game up, 3-3.
Keston Hiura started the sixth inning off with his 53rd career double, making him the all-time doubles leader in UCI history, and promptly scampered around the bases on a two-strike squeeze play from Parker Coss to put UCI ahead, 4-3.
Michael Martin bridged the gap in the sixth and seventh throwing shutout baseball and left with the lead in possibly his final appearance as an Anteater giving way to Calvin Faucher.
The senior was unable to make that stand up walking the bases loaded and eventually allowing the tying run on a sac fly for a 4-4 score.
The Anteaters answered once again with another leadoff hit from Hiura, bumping his average to .428, and then a throwing error from reliever Chris Brown on a Devin Pettengill sacrifice put UCD in a bind with runners on second and third and no out. A walk and a pitching change loaded things for Adrian Damla who also walked forcing home the go-ahead run, and then a long sacrifice fly from Koss gave UCI an important insurance run leading 6-4 into the ninth.
Faucher bent allowing and infield single with runners on the corners and nobody out, but worked a fly out and foul out to get the final out swinging with the tying run on third capturing the Anteaters' second weekend series by a count of 6-5.
Faucher nailed down his third win of the season and sixth of his career. Starter Jordan Bocko lasted five innings allowing two earned runs, both on homers, but not figuring in the decision. Davis starter Justin Mullins went seven innings and 93 pitches with three of the four runs he let in coming unearned. The loss fell to Chris Brown who faced only three hitters.
Hiura led the offensive charge with three hits and scoring twice. Koss and Cassolato each had two RBI while Parker Coss scored twice and added an RBI.
The Aggies were paced by Hooper and Olson each with a home run. Olson added a triple and scored twice while Hooper drove home two runs.
The final game of the series and season still has significant implications as the winner will finish the season at a respectable fifth place in the conference while the loser cannot finish lower than seventh. It all goes down at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday with a senior ceremony taking place prior to the start that kicks off at about 12:35 p.m.
