Tulane University
UCLA
Baseball Splits Doubleheader With UCLA
Mar 2, 2002 | Baseball
March 2, 2002
NEW ORLEANS, La. - Junior southpaw Nick Bourgeois struck out a career-high 10 batters and gave up just three hits in 7.0 strong innings to lead the Tulane University baseball team to a 4-1 victory over the UCLA Bruins Saturday evening in the second half of a doubleheader at Turchin Stadium.
After dropping the series opener, 9-7, the Green Wave had to endure a rain delay that lasted more than an hour and a 15-minute lightening delay, but Tulane weathered the storm - literally - to get the win and set up the rubber match for Sunday at noon.
The second game got under way at approximately 4:15 p.m. but with two outs and a 2-2 count on UCLA catcher Casey Grzecka five batters into the ballgame, heavy rain forced the two teams to their respective dugouts. While the game did not resume until 6:16 p.m., Bourgeois (2-0) showed no ill affects of the delay as he struck out Grzecka and retired 17 batters in a row before giving up a walk in the top of the seventh inning.
In the meantime, the Green Wave offense generated a pair of runs in the third on RBI singles by Jon Kaplan and Michael Aubrey, a run in the fourth on a solo homer by Scott Madden, and another run in the sixth when Bryan Stelmack hit a leadoff double and came around to score on a single by Brooks Shankle.
The Bruins were able to scratch across a run in the seventh when Adam Berry reached on a fielder's choice and Grzecka and Billy Susdorf hit singles to score him from third.
Bourgeois was able to get out of the inning with just one run on the board before giving way to Joey Charron who faced just one more than the minimum in the final two frames to earn his second save of the year.
UCLA's Wes Whisler was saddled with the loss after giving up four earned runs on eight hits while walking three and striking out three in 6.0 innings on the hill.
The Green Wave were not as fortunate in the series opener, however. As they have done all season, Tulane pounded out 17 hits to UCLA's 11, but left 16 runners on the base paths in the 9-7 loss.
Scoring opportunities eluded the Green Wave throughout the contest, and Tulane did not help its own cause by committing a pair of errors that led to four unearned runs.
Stelmack led the Green Wave offense with three hits in three trips to the plate with an RBI and a pair of runs scored. Kaplan, Aubrey, James Jurries, Aaron Feldman and Anthony Giarratano also joined the hit parade with two hits each.
Tulane's Beau Richardson (1-1) was saddled with the loss after giving up seven runs - four earned- on seven hits while striking out three and walking a pair in 5.0 innings of work. The Green Wave used six pitchers in the contest, but the miscues missed opportunities proved to be too much.
David Johnson earned the victory in relief, his first career collegiate win, and Susdorf got the save after shutting out the Green Wave in 1.1 no-hit innings.
