April 14, 2006
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The double play played a major role in bringing down the Santa Clara University baseball team Friday night as they dropped a 3-0 decision to the Pepperdine Waves at Stephen Schott Stadium. The Broncos could not generate enough offense as the Waves turned three rally-killing double plays.
With the loss the Broncos (20-16, 3-5 WCC) drop their second conference series while the Waves (23-15, 4-4 WCC) gain ground in the race for a top-two slot. The teams will return to action tomorrow afternoon for a 1 p.m. start as Santa Clara will look to salvage the final game of this series.
Pepperdine starter Barry Enright earned his seventh win of the season, going seven innings allowing no runs and six hits. Despite leaving the game after allowing three-straight singles and the bases loaded in the eighth, reliever Brett Hunter retired the next three SCU batters and finished off the ninth to earn his sixth save.
Nick Kliebert did most of the offensive damage for the Waves, going 3-for-4 with a pair of runs driven in. David Uribes had two singles and scored a run in five at-bats.
Justin Kuehn went six innings for the Broncos, allowing nine hits and three runs. Kris Watts was 1-for-3 with a double to highlight the SCU offense.
Both pitchers breezed through the first four innings but in the fifth Kuehn ran into trouble. With one out, Uribes and Adrian Ortiz then singled and advanced a bag on a wild pitch. Two batters later Kliebert's two-out, two-run single got Pepperdine on the board first.
With runners at the corners an inning later, Chase d'Arnaud ran out a potential double play, allowing Danny Worth to score from third for the 3-0 lead.
Enright retired the first 12 batters he faced until Watts' double to lead off the fifth started things off for the Broncos. SCU got two on with only one out, but a 6-4-3 double play ended the rally. A double play in each of the next two innings killed Bronco rallies as twice they had baserunners doubled off on balls in the air.
The eighth inning proved to be Santa Clara's best chance of the night as the first three batters all reached with singles to chase Enright. Facing Hunter, Gabriel Alcantar grounded into a fielder's choice with Dustin Realini forced out at home.
The next two batters were retired on a strikeout and a fly ball to center to end the threat and the Broncos went quietly in the ninth.