The broken kneecap sustained by junior Billy Susdorf has forced
UCLA baseball coach Gary Adams to use outfielders that were not
expected to get much playing time this year. Sophomores Anthony
Norman, Josh Roenicke and Sean Carpenter and senior Brandon
Averill, unseated from third base by senior Preston Griffin, have
all made starts in the outfield spot opened by Susdorf’s
injury. “You always have to be ready to play, and I feel
fortunate that I have been able to get some time in the
field,” Norman said. The sophomore from Cerritos Junior
College believes the team’s depth has helped in
Susdorf’s absence. Norman was the first outfielder to play in
the vacant spot, getting his initial UCLA start against USC on
March 27. “After Billy’s injury, I knew I would have a
chance to play, and Skip (Adams) told me after the game, and I knew
I really had to focus,” Norman said. Recently, Roenicke has
become a factor in the fluid outfield situation. Although he has
only started two games in the outfield all season, just a week ago
Roenicke delivered one of the biggest hits all year for the Bruins.
Against Cal State Fullerton on April 20, with a tie game in the top
of the 12th, Roenicke, who came into the game as a defensive
replacement, hit a single with the bases loaded to score the
winning run in the Bruins’ 5-4 victory.
PAGE RETURNS: Sophomore outfielder Jarrad Page
returned to the lineup against the Titans on April 20 after being
out since April 6 due to back spasms. Page has started two games
since his return and is 2-for-10 at the plate. As a pinch runner on
Sunday at Cal, Page was thrown out trying to steal second with one
out in the ninth and the Bruins down by one.
LONG BEACH STATE TODAY: The Bruins travel 30
miles down the 405 Freeway to Blair Field to take on No. 5 LBSU in
their third meeting of the year. The Dirtbags have won eight of
their last nine games, their only loss in that span to UCLA, 11-1,
on April 13. That win avenged UCLA’s 3-0 loss on March 12.
LBSU ace, All-American Jered Weaver, gave up only one hit and
struck out 15 Bruins. The Dirtbags are led by their pitchers, who
are second in the nation with a team ERA of 2.37. The projected
starters are Brandon Villalobos for LBSU and junior David Johnson
for UCLA.