Zarate Drives In Five As Baseball Holds On For 8-7, 11 Inning Win Over Cal State Fullerton

Sunday, May 11

Fullerton, CA

1:00 pm

UC Riverside

22-24, 10-8

Cal State Fullerton

25-22, 8-10

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
UC Riverside	5	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	1	8	16	0
Cal State Fullerton	2	0	0	0	0	2	0	1	2	0	0	7	12	2

Photo by: Gabriel L. Acosta

Zarate Drives In Five As Baseball Holds On For 8-7, 11 Inning Win Over Cal State Fullerton

5/11/2014 5:55:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

Fullerton, CA—Designated hitter Drake Zarate helped stake the UC Riverside Baseball Team to a five-run lead thanks to a grand slam in the first, and it was his RBI single in the top of the 11th that helped the Highlanders to an 8-7 win over Cal State Fullerton.

The Titans Grahamm Wiest struck out Joe Chavez to begin the game, but Devyn Bolasky and David Andriese sandwiched a pair of singles around a Thomas Walker walk to put the Highlanders up, 1-0. Nick Vilter then reached on a fielder's choice thanks to an error by shortstop Keegan Dale that loaded the bases. One out later, Drake Zarate clubbed the first pitch he saw over the right field fence for the first home run of his career. Only one of the five runs was earned due to the error.

UC Riverside (22-24, 10-8) starter Ben Doucette struggled early issuing a pair of walks to begin the bottom of the first. A passed ball moved both runners up 90 feet, and one out later, Matt Chapman laced a double to left cutting the Highlanders lead to three, 5-2.

Both starters settled down after the first, as Wiest allowed just three more hits over the next five innings. Doucette kept the Titans off the board over his next four innings, but he walked J.D. Davis to open the sixth, and gave up a single to Chapman to put runners on first and third. Doucette handed the game over to Dylan Stuart, and Greg Velazquez sacrificed Davis and Chapman to second and third. Jake Jefferies singled through the left side scoring both runners to make it a one-run game.

Paul Bickford took over for Wiest to start the seventh, and Chavez greeted him with a single to center. After Bolasky sacrificed him to second, Walker singled through the right side to put the Highlanders back up by two, 6-4.

Kevin Sprague took over for Stuart in the bottom of the eighth, but the Titans touched him for a walk, a passed ball and two singles to once again cut the UC Riverside advantage to a single run.

The Highlanders tacked on what they hoped would be an insurance run in the top of the ninth, as Walker doubled to open the inning off of reliever Koby Gauna, and Francisco Tellez brought Walker home with single to left.

UCR would need all of that and more as Cal State Fullerton (25-22, 8-10) tied the game in the bottom of the ninth with a single, a double and a pair of sacrifice bunts.

UC Riverside nearly plated the go-ahead run in the top of the tenth as Walker singled through the left side with Hough on second and Bolasky on first, but Hough was thrown out at the plate.

The Highlanders' offense came through in the 11th, though, as David Andriese singled through the left side, moved to second on a sac bunt, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and scored on a Zarate single.

Joie Dunyon (1-1) retired the final four Titans in order to pick up his first victory of the season.

The Highlanders are home for the next five games beginning with a Tuesday, 6 pm PT meeting at The Plex with Loyola Marymount.