Feb. 24, 2015
Lions 5 – Highlanders 2
The UCR baseball team dropped its third home game of the season in a 5-2 loss to the Loyola Marymount Lions. The Lions outhit the Highlanders 10-5 while tallying five RBIs to UCR’s two.
Loyola Marymount was the first team to draw blood as Austin Miller opened play with a single to right field, stole second and scored behind a David Fletcher single.
Adding another run in the fourth, the Lions produced a 4-0 lead in the top of the fifth inning behind a two-RBI double down the left field line.
UC Riverside got two runs on the board in the bottom of the fifth inning, but the team wasn’t able to conjure up a comeback as another LMU run in the ninth sealed the victory, 5-2.
Feb. 26, 2015
Cougars 11 – Highlanders 3
Travelling to Pullman, Wash. to face off against the Washington State Cougars, the Highlanders lost their fourth straight game, 11-3. The Cougars had no trouble reading UC Riverside pitches as the Cougars smacked 14 hits on the day compared to the Highlanders’ five.
UCR was the first team to scratch in the first contest of a four-game series as Dante Chupek led off the game with a double to left field, eventually crossing home plate when teammate Robby Witt got caught attempting to steal second base.
Highlander starting pitcher Keaton Leach got into trouble in the second inning as Washington State not only tied the score but moved ahead in the contest, generating three runs to lead 3-1.
Despite the Highlanders tying up the contest 3-3 in the third, the Cougars’ bats continued to find their marks. The team scored in the fourth (three runs), fifth (two runs), seventh (two runs) and eighth innings (one run) to cement an 11-3 victory.
Feb. 27, 2015
Cougars 3 – Highlanders 0
Despite the UCR pitchers only allowing five hits, the Cougars again got the better of the team en route to a 3-0 victory.
Neither team got on the board until the sixth inning when the Cougars’ Cameron Frost smacked a double to left field to score a runner and put Washington State up 1-0.
UC Riverside threatened to score in the eighth inning, but it was the Cougars who tacked on two runs in the same inning to escape a pitchers’ duel the victor, 3-0.
The Highlander trio of Angel Landazuri, Jordan Kron and Gabe Genter only allowed five hits on the day while Cougars starter Joe Pistorese gave up a pair of hits in six innings.
Feb. 28, 2015
Highlanders 4 – Cougars 1
The Highlanders ended a five-game losing skid with a 4-1 victory over Washington State on Saturday afternoon.
UCR struck early and often, building a 3-0 lead in four innings. After tallying a run in the opening inning, the Highlanders put two runs on the board in the third off of Cougar relief pitcher Ryan Walker.
Joe Chavez scored the Highlanders’ final run of the afternoon, advancing to home plate behind a Vince Fernandez double to left field.
UC Riverside remained in the driver’s seat the rest of the way, allowing only one Washington State run in the eighth inning.
March 1, 2015
Cougars 6 – Highlanders 5
Facing a 5-0 deficit after the opening inning, the Highlanders reeled off five runs in the sixth and seventh but couldn’t muster a much-needed win, falling 6-5 to the Washington State Cougars.
The Cougars crossed home plate five times in the first inning thanks to three UCR errors.
UCR finally broke through in the sixth inning as a Vince Fernandez triple to left field brought home teammate Joe Chavez to put the Highlanders on the board, 5-1.
Head Coach Troy Percival’s club continued to chip away, scoring four more runs to tie the game, 5-5, in the top of the seventh.
The following inning, however, Washington State scored yet another run to seal the victory, 6-5.
UC Riverside next plays at hosting San Diego University on Tuesday, March 3.
