UCLA Blanked by Washington in Middle Game, 3-0

LOS ANGELES – The No. 7-ranked UCLA baseball team dropped a 3-0 decision in 10 innings to Washington on Saturday night at Jackie Robinson Stadium.

The loss was the first of the season for the Bruins (16-4, 6-2 Pac-12) at home, and snapped a six-game winning streak. UCLA had previously won 13 in a row at Jackie Robinson Stadium to open the year.

Bruin pitchers – led by freshman right-hander Michael Barnett – combined to allow just two hits over nine scoreless frames to start the game.

However, Washington (15-6, 3-2) strung together five knocks in the tenth for a decisive three-spot. Leadoff man Cam Clayton brought in the game-winning run on a bases-loaded bouncer up the middle that went for an RBI fielder's choice, and Will Simpson and Johnny Tincher followed with RBI hits to bring the score to 3-0.

UCLA got a one-out single from graduate second baseman Knox Loposer in the bottom half of the frame, but couldn't build on that.

Barnett, making his first-career weekend start, was masterful on the mound for the Bruins, delivering 5 2/3 innings of no-hit, shutout ball.

He started his outing by retiring seven consecutive batters, and ended the game having faced just one over the minimum after Jeter Ybarra reached on an error in the sixth inning.

Barnett issued just two walks on the day – rolling up double play balls to wipe out both runners – and struck out three. His outing was by far a career-long, eclipsing his previous mark of three innings.

Bruin relievers danced out of a couple potential jams in the late innings.

Chris Aldrich got a lazy fly ball to center to get UCLA out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth, Cody Delvecchio retired six in a row after inheriting a two-on, no-out jam in the seventh, and Luke Jewett induced a twin killing in the ninth to wipe out a leadoff single.

Three pitchers combined to record the shutout for Washington. Lefty Stu Flesland III went the first five innings, yielding just three hits and striking out five. Reilly McAdams followed by going six-up, six-down before handing off to Josh Emanuels, who allowed just that Loposer single over the final three innings of the game.

UCLA's best opportunities to get on the board came in the first and the sixth. The Bruins got men on early – Malakhi Knight led off with a double in the first, and UCLA got two free runners aboard with nobody out in the sixth – but in both cases could not come up with a clutch hit.

The Bruins and Huskies decide the series on Sunday afternoon at 12:00 p.m. PT. The game will be televised on the Pac-12 Networks.