The UCSD baseball team’s four-game weekend series against the Cal State Monterey Bay Otters did not go according to schedule, but the Tritons won’t complain, as they have won the first three games and will go for the sweep on April 16 in Monterey after weather forced the series past its planned April 15 finale.
“”Hopefully we will complete the sweep,”” head coach Dan O’Brien said. “”We’re excited that we’ve won the first three but we feel like it’s a little unfinished business at this point. We’re looking forward to finishing this thing off tomorrow.””
The three wins strengthened the team’s hold on third place in the California Collegiate Athletic Association standings as the Tritons head into a pivotal four-game series this weekend against Chico State, which trails them by only two games.
In the series opener on April 13, UCSD freshman starting pitcher Daniel Simmons struggled somewhat, allowing seven runs in 5.1 innings. But he kept the Tritons in the game, as the two teams matched each other with two runs each in the second and fourth innings. In the sixth inning, the Tritons put up three runs in the top half and the Otters couldn’t match them, scoring two runs and finding themselves behind 8-7. Cal State Monterey Bay came back with a run in the bottom of the seventh inning off junior right-handed pitcher Nick Rodiek to tie it up, but UCSD responded with a five-run outburst in the top of the ninth inning to put the game away.
Senior southpaw Todd Gimenez earned the win in relief and the UCSD offense was led by the top of the lineup – freshman shortstop Vance Albitz, sophomore first baseman Matt Cantele and senior outfielder Matt Lawson – who accounted for nine hits, seven runs and nine of the team’s RBIs.
After the win in the opener, the Tritons began to prepare for a doubleheader on April 14, but the games were delayed by a day. The off-day did not hurt Triton momentum as the team pulled off a come-from-behind 7-6 win in the first game and blew the Otters out of the water in game two by a final score of 26-5.
In the first game of the doubleheader, UCSD held a lead until a four-run seventh inning put the Otters ahead, 6-5. After sacrificing the lead, the Tritons came up in the top of the eighth and tied the game on two Cal State Monterey Bay errors and an RBI bunt from Albitz. After holding the Otters scoreless in the bottom of the eighth, sophomore second baseman Garett Imeson singled with one out and came home for the go-ahead run off senior outfielder Bryan Silverman’s two-out double. Before notching the win, UCSD narrowly avoided a comeback bid by Cal State Monterey Bay, as the Otters put runners on second and third with no outs. But a groundout and a game-ending double play by former Triton turned Otter Brian Trump sealed the win.
In the late game, the Tritons scored 11 runs off three home runs in the first inning and never looked back. Rodiek earned the win, getting plenty of run support during his five-inning outing.
“”We had hit three home runs before they even got an out in the first inning,”” O’Brien said.
Cantele’s bat was scorching throughout the three games, and his three home runs in the series give him 17 on the year – one short of the school record, which is held by Bob Natal.
“”This has a chance to be the best offense in our program’s history,”” O’Brien said. “”What’s most exciting is that a different guy is stepping up every day. I think that our hitters have done a great job and the assistant coaches that work with the hitters have done a great job and I think it’s just a very complete offense.””
The Tritons have had a pretty complete offense all year, but the 26 runs is the most since another 26-run outburst gave the team a win over the University of Redlands in 1998.
“”When we put up 26 runs,”” O’Brien said, “”it’s not something I’m completely surprised by, because we have the ability to do that on any given day. If someone steps up and throws a good ballgame, then I don’t see us scoring 26 runs, but if you show some signs of weakness, we have a chance to score a lot of runs.””
With the toughest part of their schedule coming up next, the Tritons will look to ride Cantele’s hot bat and the rest of the Triton offense to hold off No. 11 Chico State, which can move past the Tritons into third place with a series win.
“”We have some goals as a team and we want to win every series we play down the stretch,”” O’Brien said.
