Baseball Drops 5-1 Decision To Hawai'i

Thursday, May 22

Honolulu, HI

9:35 pm

UC Riverside

25-27, 11-11

Hawai'i

21-30, 5-17

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
UC Riverside	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	7	2
Hawai'i	1	1	0	0	0	0	3	0	X	5	9	0

Photo by: Gabriel L. Acosta

Baseball Drops 5-1 Decision To Hawai'i

5/23/2014 5:51:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

Honolulu, HI—The UC Riverside Baseball Team was trying to move back to the .500 mark Friday evening at Hawai'i's Les Murakami Stadium, but the Highlanders left 10 runners on base as the Rainbow Warriors picked up a 5-1 victory.

It was the first conference win of the season at home for Hawai'i (21-30, 5-17), who previously hosted the top three teams in the conference—UC Irvine, Cal Poly and Long Beach State.

Despite the fact that the Highlanders put runners on base in seven of the nine innings and moved men into scoring position in four, UCR managed just the one run, as many of the Highlanders scoring opportunities came with two outs.

In the top of the third, Cody Hough and Alex Rubanowitz both struck out before Joe Chavez was hit by a pitch and Devyn Bolasky doubled down the left field line. An intentional walk to Thomas Walker loaded the bases, but David Andriese struck out to end the inning.

Francisco Tellez and Drake Zarate were both retired to begin the top of the fourth before Matt Ellis singled to left and Hough drew a walk, but Rubanowitz popped up to short for the final out.

In the top of the sixth, already trailing 2-0, Andriese led off the frame with a walk and stole second. After a Tellez ground out, Zarate tripled to right center to drive in the Highlanders' only run of the game, Ellis then flied out to right, but Zarate was thrown out at the plate trying to score the tying run.

Hough and Rubanowitz grounded out and fouled out respectively to start the top of the seventh before Chavez singled up the middle. But Bolasky's grounded out to second stranding one.

UCR finally put the lead-off man on base in the top of the eighth when Walker singled up the middle. Andriese was hit by a pitch, and both runners moved up 90 feet on a wild pitch. They would remain there, however, as a fly out, a strike out and a line out followed.

In the top of the ninth, Hough and Chang struck out, before Chavwz singled through the right side for his second hit of the night, but Bolasky struck out swinging to end the game.

Scott Squier (5-5) pitched a complete-game for the Rainbow Warriors, allowing seven hits and three walks while striking out nine.

Hawai'i touched Highlanders' starter Jake Smigelski (8-6) for single runs in the first and second before the senior settled down and retired 13 of 14 batters in the second through sixth innings.

The Rainbow Warriors scored three more runs in the bottom of the seventh, two of which were unearned. Tyler Young singled to start the inning, and Hawai'i used one of its three outs to sacrifice him to second. Rubanowitz couldn't handle LJ Brewster's grounder, as the Highlanders were dinged for their conference-leading 83rd error of the season. That allowed Young to score to make it a 4-1 ballgame, A walk to Stephen Ventimilia and Kaeo Aliviado's RBI single through the right side scored Brewster ending Smigelski's night.

Kevin Sprague came on in relief and got Adam Hurley to lift a fly ball to center which scored Venitimilia with the final run of the game.

The Highlanders and Rainbow Warriors play game two of their three-game Big West Conference series on Saturday beginning at 9:35 pm PT.