SPOKANE, Wash. --- UC Irvine baseball couldn't hold on to their slim lead Sunday relinquishing it late to the host Gonzaga Bulldogs to finish the shortened weekend set with a 3-2 loss at Patterson Baseball Complex at Coach Steve Hertz Field.
PITCHING PRESTIGE
The arms were the story of the afternoon in a game that took exactly two hours to complete.
Nick Pinto settled in after a run allowed in the first inning allowing three of his last 16 hitters to reach.
The Anteaters (11-3) meanwhile didn't have a ton of opportunities to get at Gonzaga (2-11) starter Jacob Rutherford, but with two on in the third inning,
Caden Kendle connected the other way to drive in a pair of two-out runs on a double to lead, 2-1.
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Rutherford had it going the rest of the way allowing just two hits and two walks down the final six innings to sew up the complete game and victory. Rutherford is the first opposing starter to even pitch past the sixth inning this season, and limited UCI with seven strikeouts.
FINAL SCORE: GONZAGA 3, UC IRVINE 2
The Bulldogs found single runs in the seventh and eighth inning to overcome the 2-1 lead the 'Eaters held for four innings. Sam Stem's two-out solo home run tied things in the seventh off of
Tanner Brooks. In the eighth, Gonzaga put two on with help from a sacrifice bunt, and pinch-hitter Dylan Johnson punched a single through to give the Bulldogs the 3-2 lead off
Michael Stanford.
Pinto finished with the no-decision picking up two strikeouts in five innings. Stanford suffered the loss giving him two on the week in his one inning of work.
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The small offensive production came from
Jo Oyama who had two hits including a triple. Kendle drove home two more runs for 25 on the season.
"These were two good games for us to play in," noted head coach
Ben Orloff. "Gonzaga pitched it really good, first time a starter has gone past against us this year, pitched it well, we didn't get many opportunities and we lose a close game."
BACK HOME
The Anteaters finish with a split of the two games at Gonzaga. Next up is a return to Anteater Ballpark with a Tuesday game slated against San Diego State at 6:00 p.m., and then Big West action gets going at home this weekend with a three-game series starting Friday night against Cal State Fullerton.
