LOS ANGELES, Calif. (April 18, 2010) – On a sunny
afternoon at Anderson Field the Occidental College Tigers upended
the No. 11 University of Redlands Bulldogs using a two-out eighth
inning rally to score four runs to produce a come-from-behind 6-3
Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory.
On the hill today Stephen Hilliard was solid,
retiring the side in order in four innings, as he forced nine fly
ball outs and nine ground ball outs. With two gone in the eighth,
down 3-2, he handed the ball to Brooks Belter who
shut the door for the Tigers, facing and sitting down, the final
four batters of the game without the ball leaving the infield dirt.
Hilliard struck out a pair, walking just one and scattered six hits
as he allowed three runs, all earned.
The Tigers and Bulldogs both put runs up on the board in the
same innings. UR struck first when Will Wetmore connected for a
two-run homerun in the third. Oxy reciprocated with runs on a pass
ball and wild pitch as Kevin Ozaki and
Logan Allen crossed the plate, respectively.
Things remained scoreless until the eighth when Wetmore drove in
his third run of the game with a single.
Occidental then sent 10 men to the plate in the bottom of the
inning, forcing two pitching changes. With one out and runners on
first (Hilliard) and second (Jacob Lee who pinch
ran for Glenn Gray after singling) Pedro
Aldape connected for a game-tying RBI double down the left
field line. Tyler Eyrich drew a walk to load the
bases and Daniel Kelley then layed down a bunt and
UR got a diving Hilliard at the plate in one of the closest calls
of the afternoon. Anthony Salsedo then became the
man of the hour when he drove in both Aldape and Eyrich.
Back-to-back Redlands' errors allowed the Tigers to push a
final insurance run across the plate.
Overall, Salsedo was 3-for-4 with a stolen base while Ozaki went
2-for-4, swiping a bag. Brenton Wunner drew one of
the three Tigers walk and stole a bag as well.
Next Friday Occidental (13-21, 10-14 SCIAC) will host the
University of La Verne (20-15, 14-10) at 3:00 p.m. on Anderson
Field.
Article by: Tracy Maple, Sports Information
Director
