Bruins Face UCSB in Split-Venue Series

No. 22 UCLA (28-15) vs. UC Santa Barbara (30-16)
Friday, May 14, 2021 - 6:00 p.m. PT (Jackie Robinson Stadium)
Saturday, May 15, 2021 - 2:00 p.m. PT (Caesar Uyesaka Stadium)
Sunday, May 16, 2021 - 2:00 p.m. PT (Jackie Robinson Stadium)
Stream: Friday/Sunday | Saturday
Audio: UCLA Lean Player
Stream/Audio Play-by-Play Talent: Tim Wilhelm
Live Stats: Friday/Sunday | Saturday

No. 22 UCLA Faces UC Santa Barbara in Home-Away Series    
No. 22-ranked UCLA is in its conference-bye week, and will face UC Santa Barbara (30-16) in a home-and-away series starting Friday. The Bruins host the Gauchos on Friday night and Sunday afternoon, and head to Caesar Uyesaka Stadium for a Saturday matinee at 2:00 p.m. All three games of the series will be streamed by the respective home team. Tim Wilhelm will also be on hand for a live audio broadcast of each game, availabile through UCLABruins.com. Fans can also follow along with live stats at UCLAlivestats.com and live updates from the team Twitter account, @UCLABaseball. 

UCLA Outdoor Home Sporting Events Open to Team Guests    
In compliance with state and county public health guidance, UCLA outdoor home sporting events will be open to a limited number of team guests. Seating at these events will be limited in order to comply with updated state public health guidance for higher education and college athletics that has been adopted by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, as well as city, county and campus COVID-19 health and safety protocols. Tickets will not be available to the general public, and non-ticketed guests should not come to the competition venues. UCLA's campus remains closed to the general public.

Projected Pitching Matchups
Friday, May 14 - 6:00 p.m. PT 
UCLA - Zach Pettway, RHP, Sr. (1-3, 3.63 ERA)
UCSB - Michael McGreevy, RHP, So. (6-1, 2.96 ERA)
Saturday, May 15 - 2:00 p.m. PT 
UCLA - Sean Mullen, RHP, Jr. (8-1, 2.90 ERA)
UCSB - Rodney Boone, LHP, So. (8-3, 2.47 ERA)
Sunday, May 16 - 2:00 p.m. PT 
UCLA - Jesse Bergin, RHP, Jr. (4-3, 4.66 ERA)
UCSB - Cory Lewis, RHP, Fr. (4-3, 3.76 ERA)

The Week In Review    
UCLA is coming off a 3-1 week, rallying from a Friday night loss to record a series win on the road at Washington State, then taking a 9-8 decision over LMU in a Tuesday tune up in Westchester. 

• The Bruins dropped the WSU series opener 5-2, going ahead on a two-run homer by JonJon Vaughns in the fifth but allowing five unanswered runs the rest of the way. Zach Pettway was excellent on the mound for UCLA, taking a one-hitter into the sixth and ultimately allowing just three hits over six innings. Adrian Chaidez followed with a dominant seventh, striking out the side in order (all swinging). 
• UCLA rallied for three runs in the top of the ninth to claim a series-evening 7-6 win on Saturday. Trailing by two heading into the ninth, UCLA got the first two batters of the frame into scoring position on a HBP, single, and wild pitch. Pat Caulfield cashed in both those runners by rolling a grounder up the middle to tie the game, and came in himself to plate the go-ahead and game-winning run on a Kyle Cuellar flare later in the inning. The Bruins nearly doubled up the Cougars in the hit column (15-8) and saw JT Schwartz reach base in all six of his plate appearances (two singles, two walks, two HBPs). 
• The Bruins slugged their way to a 16-7 win on Sunday, clinching the series. The two teams traded blows early on - UCLA scored three in the top of the first, saw WSU respond with a four-spot to go ahead, then both teams plated a single run in the second - but the Bruins outscored the hosts 12-2 from the third inning on. Schwartz led the offense with a career-high four hits, and five separate Bruins had multiple hits. The Bruin bullpen combined to toss 4 2/3 innings without an earned run against, keeping the WSU bats at bay after the early back-and-forth. 
• Last weekend marked UCLA's third straight series win over Washington State
• Michael Townsend received the decision in all three games, the second time a Bruin pitcher has received three straight decisions over the last month (Max Rajcic; Apr. 24-30). 
• UCLA defeated LMU 9-8 on Tuesday night to improve to 7-0 this season in midweeks. Mikey Perez hit a grand slam as part of a five-run first and Pat Caulfield drove in three runs during the middle innings, which allowed the Bruins to build up a big enough lead to withstand a late charge from LMU, which scored in six consecutive innings starting in the fourth. The Lions got the tying run to third base with one out in the bottom of the ninth, but Max Rajcic came up with a clutch backwards-K before rolling up a grounder to first to strand the runner and end the game.

Quick Hits     

• The Bruins have won three straight and six of their last eight, including two straight series wins
• UCLA enters the weekend at No. 33 in the RPI
• UCLA is 7-0 this season in midweeks
• JT Schwartz enters the week with the top batting average in the Pac-12 (.408) and the No. 4 OBP in the country (.534)
• Michael Townsend is tied for the NCAA lead in pitching appearances (29)
• Sean Mullen leads the Pac-12 with eight wins

In This Week's Polls    
UCLA appeared in four of five major national polls on Monday, ranking as high as No. 17 (Collegiate Baseball) and remaining top-25 in the polls for the NCBWA (No. 19), USA TODAY Coaches Poll (No. 22), and D1Baseball (No. 23). 

Schwartz Named UCLA Student-Athlete of the Week After WSU Performance    
Redshirt sophomore first baseman JT Schwartz was named the UCLA Student-Athlete of the Week after torching Washington State last weekend. The Newport Beach native batted 7-10 for the weekend and reached base in 13 of 16 plate appearances (.813 OBP). On Saturday, he reached base all six times he came to bat (two singles, two walks, two HBPs) then followed that up with a career-high four hits in Sunday's rubber match win. 

Kaprielian, Poteet Make Debut MLB Starts May 12 In Banner Night for UCLA Baseball    
Oakland A's right-hander James Kaprielian and Miami Marlins farmhand Cody Poteet were both called up by their respective clubs on Wednesday to make their first-career MLB starts. Paired with Gerrit Cole's regularly-scheduled turn, the Bruins had three alums starting on the hill for MLB teams on the same day for the second time in school history. 

• James Kaprielian at Boston (W, 5 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 6 K): The Sox loaded the bases with nobody out in the first inning, but Kaprielian limited the damage to one run there and then allowed just two hits and no runs the rest of the way.
• Gerrit Cole at Tampa Bay (W, 8 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 12 K): Had a masterful start against the Rays, striking out a dozen as the Yankees squeaked out a 1-0 win. He eclipsed the 1,500 career-strikeout mark in the outing. 
• Cody Poteet at Arizona (W, 5 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 6 K): Became the first Marlin ever to strike out six and walk none in his Major League debut. Surrendered just two hits after the first inning. 
• Combined line: 3-0, 1.50 ERA, 18.0 IP, 12 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 24 K

The All-Time Series Against UCSB    
UCLA owns a 53-39-1 record all-time against UC Santa Barbara. The two teams are meeting in a weekend series for the first time since 2005, with the Gauchos taking two-of-three in that split-venue set (the home team won all three games, with the opener at JRS and the next two games at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium). The Bruins are looking to break a five-game winless streak against UCSB, having played them just five times since 2014 and one time since 2017. 

Last Time Out Against UCSB    
The Bruins dropped an 8-5 road decision to UCSB on Mar. 3, 2020 in the most-recent matchup between the two schools. UCLA held a 4-1 lead by the middle of the fifth, but the Gauchos went ahead for good with a four-spot in the bottom half of that frame. Noah Cardenas went 2-5 to lead the Bruins offensively, while Sean Mullen (2.1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 4 K) dealt out of the bullpen. Freshman righty Jared Karros drew the start for UCLA, allowing three earned over four innings. The loss was UCLA's first of the 2020 season, snapping an 11-game winning streak out of the gate. 

Pettway Named Finalist for Senior CLASS Award    
UCLA senior righty Zach Pettway on May 10 was named one of 10 finalists for the 2021 Senior CLASS Award. The award honors senior student-athletes who have excelled both on and off the field during their collegiate careers. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.