REDLANDS, Calif. – The University of Redlands Baseball team (18-20, 10-14 SCIAC) completed a series sweep of Caltech thanks to a 10-5 win in Game 1, followed by a walk off 4-3 victory in Game 2 on senior day Saturday afternoon at The Yard. The Bulldogs end the season on a six-game winning streak and finish sixth in the conference standings.
Game 1 (W, 10-5)
Senior Max Clark (Rancho Cucamonga, CA) hit his 25th career home run, and his ninth of the season, in the first inning as he put the Bulldogs up 1-0.
The very next inning Jake Burgess (Riverside, CA) singled home Kaiya Saito (Bellevue, WA) for a 2-0 lead.
The Beavers, though, kept the Bulldogs off the board the next three innings and tied the game in the top of the fifth with a pair of runs.
Redlands was able to seal the win with a four-run sixth as Burgess drove in two more runs, scoring Gabriel Ceja (Long Beach, CA) and Cade McClelland (Mission Viejo, CA). Luke De Vries (Irvine, CA) and Jared Anderson (Gilbert, AZ) then each collected RBI's as Will Daniels (Crestline, CA) and Burgess both scored.
Caltech made a comeback attempt in the seventh when they scored three times to draw within one, 6-5, but McClelland's two-run shot in the bottom of the inning was enough to keep the Bulldogs ahead. The final two runs came off the bats of Ceja and McClelland in the eighth as the Bulldogs won 10-5.
Ceja, McClelland, and Burgess each had three hit days as McClelland and Burgess both drove in three runs. Nathan Buchan (Mercer Islands, WA) got the start and threw six innings giving up three runs to end his season with his fourth win. Jakob Russell (Fontana, CA) and senior Omar Barraza (San Mateo, CA) each had scoreless relief appearances out of the bullpen.
Game 2 (W, 4-3)
After an offensive happy first game and a run for each side in the second inning, the two pitching staffs were able settle in and pitch well to end the second game of the twin bill.
The first run of the contest for Caltech came on a double steal attempt that got the runner at first in a run down, but the runner at third was able to cross the plate prior to the inning ending with the other runner being tagged out.
Barraza collected an RBI-double into left center as he brought McClelland home all the way from first after he singled earlier in the inning.
After a scoreless third, Clark stole home in a double steal attempt that saw the Beaver catcher throw to second to get the out there, but Clark gave the lead to Redlands with the stolen base.
Ceja doubled the lead to two, 3-1, in the sixth as his productive out, a sacrifice fly to center, allowed senior Esteban Nakashima (Riverside, CA) to score after he drew a lead-off walk.
Much like game one, Caltech did not go away quietly, as they tied the game at three in the eighth. An inning later with pinch runner Will Cell (Seattle, WA) on second, Burgess continued his great day with a single through the hole on the right side for the walk off hit and a 4-3 win.
Redlands managed only six hits in comparison to the 12 for the Beavers, but the pitching staff stranded ten CIT runners while the Bulldogs were able to scrape together four runs.
First-year Kyler Bacosa (San Jose, CA) started and threw five innings giving up just one run with a career-high seven strikeouts to end the season. Russell struck out two and Julian Zuniga (San Diego, CA) got his first collegiate win.
Redlands will bring back the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) ERA leader Tyler Reiter (San Diego, CA) for an additional season in 2024 as he joins a young group of Bulldogs.