May 3, 2003
MALIBU, Calif. - The Santa Clara University baseball team dropped the opening game of its three-game series with Pepperdine as the Waves captured game one by a score of 9-5. The game spanned two days as it was suspended in the eighth inning on Friday due to rain and completed on Saturday morning. The win moves Pepperdine's record to 30-16 overall and 18-4 in the West Coast Conference while the Broncos drop to 25-23 overall and 17-6 in league play.
Prior to the game being halted, the Waves drew first blood in the bottom of the first inning as David Uribes singled to left field with one out and moved up one base on a Brandon Daguio single up the middle. Uribes moved up to third when Chris Kelly flew out to right field and scored one batter later on a Taylor Klosowski single through the left side, making the score 1-0 in favor of Pepperdine.
The Broncos scored twice in the top of the fifth on three hits highlighted by a two-run single to right center by Jim Wallace that plated Michael Lange and Scott Dierks to give Santa Clara a 2-1 lead. Lange reached earlier in the inning on a fielder's choice while Dierks reached when he was hit by a pitch for the 17th time this season.
SCU added one run in the top of the sixth inning to extend their lead to 3-1 as Lange lined a single off the diving glove of Uribes at second base that deflected into shallow right field allowing A.J. LaBarbera to score from second base. LaBarbera led off the inning with a single through the right side and moved to second on a Ryan Chiarelli groundout.
Four runs on seven Pepperdine hits in the bottom of the sixth inning gave the Waves back the lead at 5-3. Of the four runs only one of them was driven in on a hit as two costly Santa Clara errors allowed three Pepperdine runners to advance on the miscues. Ty Harper's single to right field drove in Kelly who led off the inning with a double to right center, marking the lone RBI in the inning.
The Waves added one run in the bottom half of the seventh inning as a RBI double from Harper scored Klosowski from first who reached on a walk to begin the inning. The run moved Pepperdine's lead up to 6-3.
A solo home run from Kevin Estrada in the bottom of the eighth gave the Waves a 7-3 lead. A Patrick McBride pitch hit Uribes just before the game was suspended for the evening, as the rain made the conditions unplayable.
Upon the two team's return on Saturday at Noon, McBride returned to the mound with Uribes on first, no men out and a 3-0 count on Brandon Daguio. Daguio walked on the first pitch thrown to him on Saturday, moving Uribes to second. Both men moved up one base on a Kelly single to left center. McBride got the next two batters before giving up a two-run single to Harper, making the score 9-3 in favor of Pepperdine.
Kea Kometani came on to throw the ninth inning for the Waves and secured the win despite giving up a two-run home run to Wallace that cut the score to 9-5. Dierks and Will Thompson also picked up hits in the inning as Wallace finished the day 3-for-4 with four RBI in the loss.
Starter Greg Ramirez improved to 7-2 on the year for Pepperdine with his eighth inning performance as Matt Travis fell to 5-7 as he allowed five runs on 12 hits in 5 1/3 innings of work.
Santa Clara and Pepperdine are slated to play game two of the three-game series Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. Sunday's series finale is scheduled for a 1 p.m. first pitch on the Pepperdine campus.