The UC Santa Barbara baseball team is in a tight race at the top of the Big West Conference standings with rival Cal Poly and captured a crucial 15-5 victory over UC Riverside on Friday at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium.
Xavier Esquer led the way with two hits and seven RBIs as the Gauchos found ample momentum on offense Friday night, tallying 12 total hits after winning the first game of the three-game series 1-0 in a memorable Jackson Flora shutout.
Calvin Proskey had a strong start on the mound, holding UC Riverside scoreless through the first four innings while recording six strikeouts, giving the offense the opportunity to build an early lead.
“Calvin (Proskey) did a great job today, came out for us and made it easy for us to take the pressure off, like (Jackson Flora) yesterday,” Esquer said. “Even though we wanted to score more runs than one, he made it easy for us to keep going, keep going, keep going. We have big trust in our pitching staff, so it’s a big team game.”
Liam Barrett got Santa Barbara started with a swing at Riverside’s first pitch of the game, sending the ball deep to right field to give the Gauchos a 1-0 lead. After UCR walked three runners to load the bases, Esquer hit one deep to left field for a grand slam, making the score 5-0 after the first inning.
UCSB extended its lead to 6-0 in the third inning when Nick Husovsky drove in a runner from second with an RBI single. The Gauchos ran into some trouble in the fifth when Proskey allowed a single with runners on first and third, making the score 6-1 and ultimately ending Proskey’s day.
Cole Tryba came in relief and immediately found himself in a bases-loaded jam after issuing a walk, but he pitched his way out of trouble unscathed, striking out the final Riverside batter to end the inning.
UCR made its second pitching change of the game to start the bottom of the fifth, and Nate Vargas responded with a solo home run to make it 7-1. After a single from William Vasseur and Rowan Kelly being hit by a pitch, Esquer stepped up to the plate and hit his second home run of the game deep to left-center field, extending the Gauchos’ lead to 10-1.
“You’ve got to show up every day, so I know as long as I do the right things, little things for the team, I know our pitching staff is going to come out,” Esquer said.
Tryba continued to pitch effectively, retiring the side quickly and earning his second strikeout of the game. The seemingly unstoppable Gauchos offense added two more runs in the sixth inning off a wild pitch and an RBI single to make the score 13-1.
In the final three innings of the conference matchup, UCR scored four runs to cut into the deficit, but it was too little, too late as UCSB added two more runs to secure the final 15-5 margin.
It was a much-needed victory for the Gauchos in the race for the No. 1 seed in the Big West Championships.
The Gauchos face UC Riverside in the final game of the three-game series Saturday as they hope to maintain their edge over Cal Poly. UCSB and Cal Poly are both 21-8 in Big West play, and a win in the final game would secure the No. 1 seed for the Gauchos.
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