March 31, 2009
Box Score
RIVERSIDE, Calif. - The 23rd-ranked University of San Diego baseball team's late rally fell short in a 8-7 loss to No. 22 UC Riverside Tuesday evening in a non-conference game at the Riverside Sports Complex.
With the loss, the Toreros fall to 19-11 overall and see their five-game winning streak come to an end. With the end, the Highlanders improve to 17-6 overall.
The Highlanders got on the scoreboard first, as in the first inning they scored two runs on two hits. The UCR runs came on a Michael Hur run-scoring double and a USD fielding error to give USR a 2-0 lead.
San Diego then exploded in the top of the third inning, scoring six runs on six hits. Back-to-back singles by Jon Hotta and Nick McCoy led off the inning and Sean Nicol loaded the bases with a walk. Chris Engell then drove in two runs with a single to right field, to tie the game at 2-2 with no outs. After Zach Walters moved both runners up a base on a sacrifice bunt, James Meador loaded the bases again with a walk. Steven Chatwood then drove in Nicol from third on a sacrifice fly to right field. Tony Strazzara then drove in Engell with a loop RBI single to left centerfield and Bryan Haar then drove in the next run with a single down the left field line. Hotta then came back to the plate and hit a RBI infield single to give the Toreros a 6-2 lead.
The Highlanders then took back three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning. The UCR runs came on a Hur RBI single through the left side, a Ryan Getz RBI single through the right side and a pass ball to cut the lead to one at 6-5.
Riverside then scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to take a 8-6 lead. The Highlander runs came on a Bryan Horst RBI single and a USD fielding error.
Offensively for the Toreros, both Strazzara and Hotta went 3-for-5 with Strazzara driving in two to lead the offense.
USD starter Matt Couch looked impressive in is first outing in over 12 months, as he allowed two runs, one earned, on three hits in three innings of work. Matt Hauser (1-1) was saddled with the loss for the Toreros, as he allowed two runs, one earned, on two hits in 2.2 innings of work. Dustin Emmons (1-0) was credited with the win for the Highlanders as he allowed no runs on one hit in 1.2 innings of work. Joseph Kelly picked up his fifth save of the season, as he allowed one on two hits in 1.0 innings of work.
The Toreros will return to action on Friday, as they head to the Bay Area to resume West Coast Conference action in a 7 p.m. game against Santa Clara University.
