Oregon first baseman Brandon Cuddy belted a fifth-inning grand slam and drove in seven runs to power the Ducks to an 11-3 victory over No. 14 UC Santa Barbara Saturday afternoon at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium.
It was the second consecutive game-winning hit for Cuddy, who had a tiebreaking two-run single on Friday for his twelfth-ranked Ducks (10-1). The Seminole State College transfer also opened the scoring with a two run triple in the fourth before closing his day with an RBI groundout in the ninth.
For the Gauchos (7-3), it is their first series loss of the season and their first series loss to a non-conference opponent in nearly two years (Mar. 8-10, 2013 at Texas). Cuddy’s grand slam was also a statistical rarity, as it was the first home run of any kind allowed by UCSB starting pitcher Shane Bieber in his career.
Bieber, a sophomore righty, pitched five full innings on Saturday, allowing eight hits, eight runs (three earned), two walks, and striking out eight. Each of the five Oregon runs scored in the fifth inning was unearned.
UCSB was led offensively by junior cleanup hitter Robby Nesovic in the contest, as the DH went 1-2 with an RBI. He has now reached base in all 10 of UCSB’s games this season while recording an RBI in eight.
Senior left fielder Cameron Newell extended his reach base streak to 14 games with a sixth inning single.
The Gauchos were actually the first ones on the board Saturday, plating a single run in both the first and third innings.
Nesovic opened up the scoring in the first with a sac fly, scoring leadoff hitter Andrew Calica, who had reached on his team-leading sixth hit by pitch. Though he snapped a four-game hit streak, Calica did score a pair of runs.
Freshman shortstop Clay Fisher picked up his first career extra base hit to start the third, chopping a grounder over the third baseman’s head for a two-bagger. Senior right fielder Luke Swenson later plated his shortstop with an RBI groundout. Swenson went 1-4 on the day, giving him hits in each of his eight starts.
Ducks starter David Peterson went six innings while allowing four hits and three earned runs to pick up his first win of the year. Reliever Trent Paddon earned the three-inning save, allowing just a single hit while fanning a trio.
UCSB will look to salvage a win from the series on Sunday afternoon, sending junior lefty Justin Jacome to the mound. He will be opposed by righty Jack Karraker. First pitch is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.
