CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP) — The UC Irvine baseball team had six different players drive in runs in the first five innings and the Anteaters avoided elimination with a 17-7 romp over Tulane on Sunday at the Corvallis Regional.
UC Irvine (45-13) will play Oregon State in the nightcap. If the Anteaters win, a final game will be played on Monday to decide the regional championship with a berth in the super regionals on the line.
Caden Kendle doubled and scored on an Anthony Martinez single in the top of the first to give the Anteaters a 1-0 lead.
Tulane (36-26) took a 2-1 lead in its half of the inning. Teo Banks reached on an infield error and scored on a double by Brady Marget, who later scored on a balk by UC Irvine starter Danny Suarez.
The Anteaters used a sacrifice fly by catcher Abraham Garcia-Pacheco to tie the game in the second. They took a 4-2 lead in the third on an RBI groundout by Dub Gleed and a bases-loaded walk to Chase Call. A sac fly from Kendle in the fourth and a run-scoring groundout by Woody Hadeen pushed the Irvine advantage to 6-2.
The Green Wave loaded the bases with nobody out in the bottom of the sixth but managed just one run.
UC Irvine put the game away with a nine-run seventh, sending 15 batters to the plate. Tulane pushed across four runs in the bottom of the ninth after being down to the last strike.
Related Articles
Oregon State baseball tops UC Irvine at Corvallis Regional
Women’s College World Series: UCLA blanked by Oklahoma
Alexander: In NCAA’s lawsuit settlement, the little guys get shafted
Women’s College World Series: UCLA all smiles after Game 1 win
Idaho volleyball coach Chris Gonzalez resigns after ‘overwhelming evidence of poor treatment’ finding
Ricky Ojeda (6-1) earned the victory after 3 1/3 hitless innings in relief. He walked three and allowed one run with three strikeouts. Suarez left after surrendering two unearned runs on two hits, striking out five in 2 2/3 innings.
Billy Price (3-3) took the loss after yielding four runs on six hits and a walk, retiring just seven batters.
UC Irvine has made two College World Series appearances — 2007, 2014. The Anteaters won back-to-back national championships in 1973-74 at the Division II level.
Tulane won regional titles in 2001, 2004-05. The Green Wave advanced to the CWS in 2001 and 2005.
