It was a third-straight thriller in the Big Ten Conference tournament for the UCLA Bruins, knocking off the Oregon Ducks to claim the program’s first-ever Big Ten tournament championship.
It was a dramatic conference tournament for UCLA, winning all three games via a walk-off and being down to their final out in two different games. After Mulivai Levu did the honors in the quarterfinals on Friday and the semifinals on Saturday, it was Phoenix Call getting by a pitch to score Jarrod Hocking in the 11th inning.
UCLA had to battle throughout the Big Ten tournament but they’ll leave Nebraska victorious after three-straight hard-fought wins. Oregon has been a pesky opponent for the Bruins this season but after the win on Sunday, UCLA is 3-1 on the season versus the Ducks.
Outfielder Will Gasparino tripled in a run to give UCLA a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning, scoring Payton Brennan.
The Bruins got a great start from freshman Angel Cervantes, with the young right-hander pitching five innings of shutout ball while picking up five strikeouts. After Cervantes, the Bruins used four relievers with three of them finding success.
Justin Lee was the lone UCLA reliever who struggled, with Lee not recording an out in the sixth inning, allowing two consecutive home runs. After Oregon took a 2-1 lead, the Bruins drew even in the ninth inning with Aidan Espinoza driving home Roman Martin with UCLA down to their last out.
UCLA loaded the bases in the 11th inning, before both Cashel Duggar and Espinoza both struck out, leaving things up to Call. Call wore a pitch to drive the game-winning run, giving the Bruins plenty of momentum heading into the NCAA tournament.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: UCLA caps off the Big Ten tournament with a third-straight walk-off win
Reporting by Dylan McNeill, UCLA Wire / UCLA Wire
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