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Bruins reach 30 wins in Cal State Fullerton defeat, Cholowsky ends homer drought

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Junior shortstop Roch Cholowsky runs the bases. (Kai Dizon/Daily Bruin senior staff)

Baseball


No. 1 UCLA7
Cal State Fullerton3
Noah Massey

By Noah Massey

April 8, 2026 11:02 p.m.

It’s safe to say that Roch Cholowsky is officially out of his home run slump.

The All-American junior shortstop did not leave the yard for three weeks before notching his 11th long ball of the season Sunday against the Trojans.

Cholowsky delivered two round-trippers, tying junior center fielder Will Gasparino for the team lead, as No. 1 UCLA baseball (30-2, 15-0 Big Ten) defeated Cal State Fullerton (15-16, 9-6 Big West) 7-3 on Tuesday evening at Goodwin Field in Fullerton, California. UCLA extended is winning streak to 24 and became the first Division I squad to reach 30 wins this season.

“They know what the big picture is, where we want to go,” said coach John Savage on Sunday following UCLA’s win over USC. “It’s no secret. It’s not about a streak, but it’s a lot of days of showing up the right way. And it’s not an easy game to win as many games as we have.”

Cholowsky served the game’s opening blow in the first frame, clobbering a 3-1 delivery 420 feet over the left-center field wall.

The Bruins struck again in the bottom of the frame, as Titan second baseman Eli Lopez threw the ball away while trying to turn a double play. The error allowed freshman designated hitter Trey Gudoy to scamper home for the second run of the game.

Gudoy put together the first multi-hit game of his career Tuesday. He delivered three hits and two runs for a UCLA offense that was missing Gasparino, who was sidelined after getting ejected during Sunday’s contest.

“We have a bunch of guys on the bench that they can rotate around in the DH spot,” Gudoy said. “So, I’m just taking advantage and staying ready every time.”

(Kai Dizon/Daily Bruin senior staff)
Freshman right-hander Angel Cervantes releases his pitch while warming up in the bullpen. (Kai Dizon/Daily Bruin senior staff)

In just 29 at-bats this season, Gudoy has slashed .379/.500/.448 and has amassed more free passes than strikeouts.

In the bottom of the second inning, the Bruins’ lead was toppled by a three-run two-out Titan rally against freshman right-hander Angel Cervantes.

Despite entering Westwood as the most highly touted prospect of the freshman class, Cervantes has struggled so far this season.

Though he has remained the Tuesday starter and has not received an entry in the loss column, Cervantes has posted a 5.91 ERA and a 1.55 WHIP – the worst marks for any UCLA pitcher who has recorded an out this season.

But the Titans lead did not stand for long. Two innings later, the Bruins strung together a three-run two-out rally of their own.

Junior left fielder Dean West delivered the two-run double that gave UCLA the lead back – a feat it would not relinquish.

(Kai Dizon/Daily Bruin senior staff)
Junior right-hander Jake Swenson goes through his pitching delivery. (Kai Dizon/Daily Bruin senior staff)

The Titans’ final offensive throes came in the sixth inning. Junior right-hander Jake Swenson gave up two hits to kick off the inning.

On the second hit – a ground ball single up the middle – Fullerton first baseman Andrew Kirchner noticed junior center fielder Phoenix Call fumble the baseball. Kirchner seized the opportunity and scrambled for third base.

Call quickly recovered from the mistake and delivered a perfect throw to third base, nailing Kirchner for the first out of the inning.

Despite exclusively playing infield last season, Call played 20 games in the outfield his freshman year and has also manned the position for multiple summer league teams.

Though the Titans still had a runner at second, who would eventually advance to third following a wild pitch, Swenson struck out the final two batters of the inning.

“My mentality, no matter what the score is, is just that it’s a 0-0 ballgame,” Swenson said. “We know the offense is going to produce runs, so it’s just really up to the bullpen, including me, to just treat it like it’s a 0-0 ballgame. That way, we won’t get too big or too confident in ourselves.”

UCLA did not allow a single batter to reach second base safely for the remaining three frames.

Though the pitching didn’t require assistance, Cholowsky scored a second home run, giving the Bruins two additional cushion runs in the ninth inning and effectively ending the contest.

UCLA will travel to New Jersey to take on Rutgers for a three-game set this weekend, where it will look to remain undefeated in Big Ten conference play.

“I’m personally excited,” Swenson said. “New Jersey, never been there. I think a lot of the guys are as well. Looking forward to it for sure.”

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