Everything unraveled for UCLA in the bottom of the third inning.
Heading into the frame, UCLA held a 3-1 lead over Cal State Fullerton and seemingly all the momentum in the game. The Bruins had a ton of momentum heading into the game, too, as winners of their last four games.
Then, in the bottom of the third, the UCLA defense fell apart.
The Bruins allowed six runs in that inning – on three errors. Within a matter of minutes, all of the steam that UCLA had gained over the past week suddenly vanished.
UCLA was unable to regain its composure for the rest of the game, falling 10-7 at Goodwin Field.
The downfall began with a line drive to center field to start the bottom of the third. Freshman Daniel Amaral – who was starting just his fourth game in center field this year – tried to make a big play with a diving catch. The ball slipped under Amaral’s diving reach, rolling about 15 feet past him.
No error was recorded on the play, but in reality UCLA handed over an extra 90 feet to Fullerton. The Titans would have only had a single if Amaral had played the ball on a hop. As it stood, however, they had a runner on second base.
The next Fullerton batter hit an RBI single up the middle, scoring the runner from second base and making it a 3-2 ballgame.
After a four-pitch walk, UCLA gave up yet another 90 feet by playing unsound defense.
With the count at 1-1, freshman pitcher Justin Hooper made a nice move off the mound, catching the Fullerton baserunner straddled between second and third base. It was a solid play by Hooper – one that could have turned the tide of the inning if executed completely.
But then UCLA botched the run down, throwing the ball off the helmet of the Fullerton baserunner. The ball ricocheted into shallow left field, allowing both Fullerton baserunners to advance.
The foiled run-down attempt turned what could have been a one-on, one-out situation into a two-on, nobody-out situation.
That’s when the runs started to pile up for the Titans.
Fullerton left fielder Dalton Blaser hit a line drive through the left side, which brought the runner home from third base. Then – on the same play – UCLA junior left fielder Brett Stephens struggled with fielding the bouncing ball as it entered his glove. Stephens’ error allowed another run to score.
Just like that, the Titans had a 4-3 lead. They wouldn’t trail again for the rest of the game.
By the end of Fullerton’s six-run inning, all three of UCLA’s outfielders had committed an error. Meanwhile, the Bruins cycled through three different pitchers in the inning, with none of them being able to record that much-needed strikeout.
After that third-inning debacle, it seemed as if UCLA’s defensive struggles carried over to the offense. The Bruins went 5-for-24 from the plate over the final six innings. They were 6-for-15 before that.