April 23, 2011
STANFORD, Calif.-- Kenny Diekroeger's bloop single to center finished off a four-run, two-out rally as No. 26-ranked Stanford (19-13, 5-7 Pac-10) won the rubber game with No. 11-ranked UCLA (21-14, 10-5 Pac-10) 5-4 on Saturday afternoon.
Stanford had managed just three hits off of Adam Plutko, Mitchell Beacom and Nick Vander Tuig (3-3) until the ninth. Vander Tuig was then an out a way from his fifth save, until freshman Brian Guymon took the first pitch up the middle for his third hit.
Pinch hitter Justin Ringo then followed with a walk, before Jake Stewart singled up the middle to make it 4-2. Zach Jones' double then hugged the first base line, plating two to tie it at 4-4, chasing Vander Tuig from the game.
Reliever Zach Weiss then threw nine straight balls to load the bases, before Diekroeger's 3-2 single, off of reliever Brandon Lodge, fell between center, right and second base, plating Jones from third and giving the Cardinal its first walk-off win of the year.
Danny Sandbrink pitched into the sixth in his first weekend start of the season, giving up two runs on four hits over 5.1 innings. Plutko countered with one unearned run on four hits over 6.1 innings.
Chris Reed (2-1), who gave up a run in the ninth, got the win.
UCLA scored the first three runs of the game off an RBI groundout in the fourth, an RBI double from Beau Amaral in the sixth and Chris Valaika's first career homer, in the seventh.
A passed ball in the seventh cut the lead to 3-1, before UCLA scored its fourth run with a wild pitch in the ninth.
NOTES:Stanford hosts Cal on Monday and are at Saint Mary's next Tuesday, before traveling to Arizona State starting on Friday... UCLA center fielder Beau Amaral robbed Stephen Piscotty of extra bases in the top of the fourth, running down a deep ball, just to the left of center... the home run by Valaika was the first home run allowed at Sunken Diamond all year. Stanford has allowed just five home runs all year.