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(March
24, 2008) - UC Riverside dropped a 5-4 decision to Texas Tech
after a wild pitch brought home the Red Raider winning run
in the bottom of the ninth to give TTU (12-10) the victory
Monday night. Sophomore first baseman Ryan Goetz finished
with two hits for the Highlanders (5-12).
Junior
center fielder Carl Uhl led off the game with a home run to
give UCR an early 1-0 lead. But the Red Raider offense answered
with a run of their own in their half of the first off of
Highlander sophomore starter Paul Bargas, using a two-out
RBI double to tie the game at 1-1.
UCR
came right back in the second, as sophomore shortstop Bryan
Horst laced a two-out single up the middle to bring home two
Highlanders and open up a 3-1 UCR lead. The left-handed Bargas
retired Texas Tech in the second and third innings before
running into trouble in the middle innings.
TTU’s
leading home run hitter, Roger Kieschnick, hit a two-run shot
in the fourth to tie the game at 3-3. One inning later, the
Red Raiders took a 4-3 lead on a two-out RBI infield single.
With
Texas Tech clinging to a 4-3 lead in the eighth, UCR took
advantage of a sophomore right fielder Joey Gonzales double
that left off the inning. Gonzales came home one batter later
on senior left fielder Aaron Wible’s RBI ground-out
to tie the game at 4-4.
UCR
junior reliever Ryan Platt came in for Bargas in the eighth
and sat TTU down in order. But the Highlanders went in order
in their half of ninth to set up the ninth for Texas Tech.
In
the Red Raiders half of the ninth, their rally started with
a one-out single which was followed by a walk, setting up
first and second. Both runners then moved up a base on a UCR
passed ball during the next at-bat. The Highlanders defense
stepped up the following play, gunning down the runner at
home for the second out of inning as he tried to score on
a ground ball to first base. Goetz made a perfect throw to
junior catcher Jordan Opdyke to put the Highlanders one out
away from escaping the inning and going to extra innings.
The game would end two pitches later though, as a pitch got
away from Platt, went past Opdyke, and to the backstop, allowing
the Red Raider runner to come across for the game-winner.
Platt
(0-1) suffered the loss after Bargas had hung tough against
a powerful Texas Tech lineup, allowing three earned runs on
six hits and striking out five in seven innings. Highlander
junior second baseman Drew Garcia saw his seven-game hitting
streak come to an end.
The
Highlanders wrap up their two game series with Texas Tech
Tuesday.
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