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Junior Jon Olsen allowed just four hits and walked only one batter over seven shutout innings to pick up his first win of the season as the #13 UCLA Bruins shutout the Portland Pilots, 13-0. The Bruin bullpen threw another two scoreless innings ball to finish off the shutout.
Meanwhile, the Bruin bats were on full display from the get-go.
In the bottom of the first, Daniel Amaral led off with a walk and he proceed to steal both second and third. Michael Toglia also walked to give the Bruins runners on the corners and two outs when Chase Strumpf homered to left-center to clear the bases as UCLA took a 3-0 lead.
While that would be all the Bruins needed, they added an insurance run in the third and three more in the fourth. That’s when Ryan Kriedler drove home two runs with a single to left, but got caught trying to stretch his single into a double. Sophomore catcher Will McInerny then homered down the right field line to make it 7-0, Bruins.
Kyle Cuellar got in on the party when he doubled down the right field line in the fifth to score Toglia.
Just in case the bullpen might not hold an eight run lead in the top of the ninth, the Bruins decided to add on a few more runs in the bottom of the eighth — five more to be exact. Kriedler started the big inning off with a homer to left. Amaral walked and advanced to third on a Toglia single while Toglia moved to second when Jack Stronach walked to load the bases. Strumpf then singled to short to move everybody up and keep the bases loaded and Mitchell followed with a 2-run single up the middle while a wild pitch to Hirabayashi scored Strumpf and it was 13-0, Bruins. With runners on first and second and two out, Kriedler struck out to end the inning and miss the extra point.
Today, UCLA looks for the sweep when freshman righthander Zach Pettway heads to the hill for the Bruins against another freshman righthander, Portland’s Eli Morse. Hopefully, the Bruin bats still have some hits left in them after getting 14 hits yesterday. First pitch is at 1:00 pm.
Go Bruins!!!