Garret Claypool was in a jam.
His Bruins led Long Beach State by four runs in the bottom of the fifth, but the Dirtbags had runners at the corners with nobody out.
The senior right-hander responded with a strike-out, a pick-off of the runner on first, and another strike-out to extinguish the threat.
The No. 23 Bruins would keep tacking on runs the rest of the night behind Claypool, culminating in a 10-1 win that pushed the team’s record to 4-0. Junior outfielder Brett Krill led the charge at the plate, going 4-for-5 with two RBI and three runs scored. Sophomore catcher Steve Rodriguez slammed his team-leading fourth home run for the Bruins, who have now scored in double-digits in each of their games this season.
It turned out that Claypool wouldn’t need much run support, as the senior went seven strong innings, giving up one run on five hits while striking out four and throwing just 89 pitches.
The UCLA offense continued to swing hot bats collectively, scoring in all but three innings and pounding out 14 hits. The Bruins have now scored a combined 50 runs through four games this season; a season ago, the offense didn’t achieve that total their tenth game. It was UCLA’s final tune-up before a weekend that will see them play Vanderbilt, Oklahoma State and USC on consecutive days.
Compiled by Ryan Eshoff, Bruin Sports senior staff