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Mixed results in Oklahoma

By Daily Bruin Staff

May 22, 1997 9:00 p.m.

Friday, 5/23/97 Mixed results in Oklahoma BASEBALL: Sixth-seeded
Harvard surprises UCLA with strong pitching

By Kristina Wilcox Daily Bruin Contributor STILLWELL, Okla. –
The UCLA athletic department suffers from the postseason Ivy League
jinx. This is demonstrated by the men’s basketball loss to
Princeton in the first round of March Madness last year and the
baseball team’s surprising defeat at the hands of Harvard in the
first game of the Midwest Regionals Thursday morning. The
sixth-seeded Crimson (33-14) of Cambridge, Massachusetts, a team
that often plays in 35-degree weather in front of tiny crowds,
defeated the top-seeded Bruins (40-19-1), who enjoy the spoils of
sunny Southern California and crowds in the low thousands. Besides
the loss in general, there were two other shocking things about
what happened at the Allie P. Reynolds Stadium in the first game of
these regionals in front of 1,500 fans. The first was the Harvard
offense, which was not fooled by UCLA left-handed starting pitcher
Tom Jacquez (9-4). Leading 2-0 after four innings, Jacquez
relinquished the lead for good in the top of the fifth when he
allowed three runs on five consecutive singles. Jacquez, who
usually dominates batters, left the game after five plus innings
after throwing 87 pitches, a lot of which were fouled off. This is
only the fourth time this season that Jacquez had not pitched at
least seven innings. After the game, Bruin head coach Gary Adams
defended his choice of starting pitchers. "I knew all along that
Tommy was the one to pitch in this game," Adams said. "Normally he
throws much fewer pitches than anyone else on the staff." "I have
to tip my hat to their hitters," Jacquez said. "They battled back
with two strikes against them. They just kept coming back." Harvard
head coach Joe Walsh noted that he had seen right-hander Dan Keller
– who went four innings in relief of Jacquez – a lot in the Cape
Summer League and that first-hand knowledge really helped his
starting lineup get off to a fast start against Keller. Keller’s
second pitch in the game was hit for a two-run single by Crimson
catcher Jason Keck, who was given a lot of credit by Walsh for the
dominance of the Harvard pitchers in this game. The second surprise
was Harvard starting pitcher Frank Hogan’s ability to silence the
big bats at the top of the Bruin batting order. Hogan (8-2) was the
Pitcher of the Year in the Ivy League, but he had to face a UCLA
squad that collectively batted .332 during the regular season and
averaged 9.3 runs a game. Hogan and closer Donald Jamieson held
that offense to only two runs on six hits. "I knew that the way I
have been pitching this year, just hitting spots and changing
speeds. You can beat teams like that," Hogan said. Hogan executed
that plan to perfection Thursday in eight-plus innings. "Their
pitchers kept us off balance and really mixed up their pitches,"
Adams said. "I give a lot of credit to the Harvard team," Adams
continued. "I don’t necessarily think we played a bad game. They
played a good game and beat us." But that exasperating Ivy League
curse still rings true. So when does the football team play Yale? *
* * Left fielder Jon Heinrichs lost his 20-game hitting streak
Thursday, going 0 for 4 with a walk. Shortstop Troy Glaus continued
a streak of his own, however, reaching base safely for the 60th
consecutive game. * * * Harvard is now 9-1 in first-round regional
action. This was the Crimson’s third win over ranked opponents this
year. The other wins were over Miami (ranked 11th at the time) and
the University of Massachusetts (19th). The Associated Press UCLA’s
Jon Heinrichs, left, walks off the field as Harvard players
celebrate their 7-2 upset victory over the number-one-seeded
Bruins. Related Links: NCAA

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