DAVIS, Calif. --- UC Irvine baseball pulled out the series win with a decisive Sunday win, 13-2, in Dobbins Stadium against UC Davis.
- The Anteater offense got on the board early and often Sunday after struggling to get runs across in the series' first two games
- Jacob McCombs beat out a double play ball in the first inning to extend the frame and drive in a run to lead, 1-0
- UCI got the first two runners on in the second inning and got a sacrifice fly by Will Bermudez before the dreaded double play ball for a 2-0 lead
- The 'Eaters dropped five runs in the third inning with James Castagnola leading the charge with a bases loaded single scoring two. With two outs, Northern California native Rowan Felsch made his presence known with a two-run home run off the scoreboard as UCI took a 7-0 lead through the inning
- While the bats were putting up their display, Ryder Brooks on the mound was matching their energy with zeroes on the board
- The redshirt sophomore stranded a pair in the first and got a 1-2-3 second inning to start the day well
- He continued with a well-timed double play ball in the fourth inning, and escaped his worst jam by stranding the bases loaded in the sixth inning
- He walked the leadoff man in the seventh before being pulled from the game. That run later scored on a passed ball giving him just one unearned run to his name while pitching into the seventh
- UCI had built an 8-0 lead before allowing their first run, and added to it with runs in the eighth and ninth innings
- Colin Yeaman had the crushing blow with a three-run home run in the eighth. The hit extended his hit streak to 19 games
- Felsch was robbed of his fourth hit in the ninth inning on a diving play, and it also served as the team's fourth sacrifice fly of the game
- The win secured the series victory as UCI has now won eight of nine weekends. UCI sits at 25-8 on the year and remain one game back in the Big West standings with a record of 13-2
- Felsch finished the day with three hits, three RBI, and scored twice
- The win was a team effort on offense with all nine players scoring a run, eight delivering a hit, and seven drivng in runs
- The one 'Eater without a hit, Chase Call, did his part reaching three times via hit by pitch and hitting a sacrifice fly
- Yeaman's home run is his team-leading 11th of the season
- Frankie Carney finished his weekend with three multi-hit games and eight hits overall scoring twice on Sunday
- Brooks dazzled on the mound allowing four hits and no earned runs while striking out four. His fourth win on the season was bolstered by his quality start on just 88 pitches
- UCI starting pitching did not allow an earned run on the weekend over 19 innings
UCI comes back to Anteater Ballpark for their next five games starting Tuesday night vs. LMU. A weekend series on Thursday-Friday-Saturday follows against Hawai'i, and then No. 10 UCLA finishes the homestand Tuesday, April 22.
Postgame Thoughts from head coach Ben Orloff
"We took good at-bats, better at-bats up and down the lineup, especially early there in th game. Felt like in the first inning, scoring three was big, three good at-bats in the second, and then to get that big inning in the third; this place played a little more offensive today, but we hadn't been able to sustain at-bats and get the big inning so to create some space in that inning was huge. And we did it with a lot of guys having good at-bats in a row."
"We got three really good starts. You kind of hate leaving here without a sweep with the three starts that we got. Ryder was really good today - length, height was really good, facing a right-handed-heavy lineup, the ball was sinking and he was down with it. Ryder was really good."
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