Bouncing back from losing streak, UCLA baseball defeats Cal State Fullerton

Amid a five-game losing streak, the Bruins relied on some fresh faces to get back to winning ways.

UCLA baseball (25-19-1, 10-12-1 Pac-12) found the answer Tuesday night, defeating Cal State Fullerton (28-16, 17-4 Big West) in 10-2 fashion. The victory marked the team’s first home win since April 15 and its highest-scoring inning since March 18.

“We needed that, clearly,” said coach John Savage. “The guys responded tonight against a really good team. Fullerton’s a team that is most likely going to win the Big West, so that was as good a team win as we’ve had in a while.”

The Bruins found early offensive success in the third inning. Exposing open spaces along the foul lines, a triple from junior outfielder Daylen Reyes scored the game’s first run, while a single scored another before a single and a hit batter loaded the bases.

Stepping up to the plate, freshman outfielder Jarrod Hocking slammed the ball over the left field fence, notching the second home run and the first grand slam of his collegiate career. Hocking, displaying his two-way ability, cleaned up Fullerton’s fly balls in center field throughout the contest, recording five putouts.

Hocking credited his grand slam to his persistence in batting practice.

“Sunday, I was really struggling against Cal – they were throwing me a lot of fastballs I was swinging and missing,” Hocking said. “Before the game, I was working on getting my timing down, it was 2-2, and I knew the fastball was coming, so I just got the head out.”

Not to be outdone, Fullerton attempted its own rally in the top of the fourth. Launching a solo homer and before putting runners on first and second, the Titans threatened to cut UCLA’s lead.

Reaching into the bullpen, Savage called upon freshman Finn McIlroy to limit the damage. Despite conceding a run, the right-hander brought his team out of the inning, striking out one in the process. Across 2.2 innings, McIlroy threw a team-high three strikeouts while allowing just one hit.

The Bruins recorded just two hits in the sixth frame, but four walks and a stolen base by senior catcher Darius Perry paved the way for another bases-loaded spot. Senior outfielder/left-hander Josh Hahn’s two-run single capped off the score at 10-2 for the Bruins’ first double-digit scoring performance since April 8.

To the surprise of the Bruin fans in attendance, junior JonJon Vaughns took the mound in the top of the seventh. Vaughns moved from his usual position in the outfield to pitch and did not give up a hit in the frame.

“He’s got a really good arm. It’s a 90-plus (miles per hour) arm,” Savage said. “Our pitching has been a little beat up, so we threw him in the bullpen a couple of days ago, and he was competitive.”

After the seventh-inning stretch, UCLA held its lead, shuffling the pitching staff and maintaining its defensive edge. For Savage, the win was something to build off of heading into critical series against No. 15 Oregon State and Arizona State.

Junior right-hander Caedon Kottinger said Monday’s practice shed new light on the mentality of the roster.

“Coming into yesterday’s practice, we just wanted to dominate one thing at a time,” Kottinger said. “We’re all buying in, we understand the spot that we’re in, and we’re ready to go no matter what comes our way.”