IRVINE, Calif. --- UC Irvine baseball followed its season-high offensive output with another one Tuesday afternoon in Anteater Ballpark thumping Michigan, 15-3.
SPINNING THE TIRES
The start of the game was already bumped up to a 2:00 p.m. first pitch to get in front of the rain coming later in the evening, and the visiting Michigan Wolverines (4-3) got a leg up on the Anteaters (6-1). A couple of baserunners in the first were dismissed by UCI starter
Sean Higgins making his 'Eater debut, but the Wolverines dropped two runs on him in the second off the bat of Greg Pace Jr. with a triple off the left-center wall.
Michigan held the 'Eaters down who could not get anything home with the bases loaded in the second, and UM added a third run on a ground ball in the fourth for a 3-0 lead.
STEPPING ON THE GAS
The Anteaters flipped the script in the fourth much like their late-inning charge Monday night at USD and pasted a seven-spot in the fourth inning. The scoring started after the first two hitters reached and
Chase Call slugged a booming home run deep to left-center field to tie things up at 3-3.
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UCI wasn't done as
Thomas McCaffrey laced a one-out single up the middle and continued the frame against a new pitcher. With two on and two out,
Will Bermudez rolled a grounder in the hole that was gloved by first baseman Jake Marti and knocked down, his flip to the pitcher covering was wide allowing the runners to move up and around and scoring McCaffrey to put UCI up, 4-3. The error haunted Michigan as UCI got a perfectly-placed bloop single from
Caden Kendle to plate two more, and a sky double from Tony Martinez made it a seven-run inning.
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UC Irvine added to it in the sixth inning with six more runs. The speed got it going with
Luke Spillane legging out a double and then a bunt single by
Jo Oyama led to
Will Bermudez flipping an RBI single out to left field. Another throwing error scored a run and put Anteaters on the corners for Martinez who clobbered his third home run in as many days well out to right field for the capper on the inning and a 13-3 lead.
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FINAL SCORE: UC IRVINE 15, MICHIGAN 3
The 'Eaters got two more on a Call two-out single to complete his five-RBI day. All nine Anteater hitters had a hit, part of 12 on the day, with eight different 'Eaters crossing home plate. Joining Call with big days were Martinez driving in four and three RBIs for Kendle to give him a team-high 16 on the year.
"We never felt like we were out of it," said freshman
Anthony Martinez. "Everyone stayed in the game every pitch. We knew we could win, there was no doubt in our minds." Martinez himself has built a six-game hitting streak and put up nine extra-bases hits including home runs in three straight games. "The beginning of the season was definitely a slow start. It took some adjusting, working with coach Bloodworth and Orloff in the cages definitely helped coming out here and feeling more comfortable."
The pitching flew under the radar holding the Wolverines to three runs.
Andre Antone bridged the gap to the big offensive innings allowing just one unearned run in two innings.
Michael Stanford carried UCI with 2.2 shutout innings picking up three strikeouts and his first win of 2023. All six pitchers had a punchout including Cam Wheeler,
Tanner Brooks, and
Jacob King down the stretch for 16 in total on the afternoon.
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UCI evens the series all-time with Michigan, 1-1, and remains unbeaten in 2023 in midweek games, 2-0, and at home, 4-0.
Along with Higgins' UC Irvine debut,
Auggie Gutierrez made his collegiate debut with an at-bat as a pinch-hitter and an inning in the field.
UP NEXT
UCI is back on a winning streak now with two in a row as it heads back on the road to Arizona State to face its third Pac-12 opponent this season. The series begins Friday, March 3 with first pitch at 5:00 p.m. PDT.
