BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KEYT) - The UC Santa Barbara Baseball team (28-15, 14-8 Big West) took Hardt Field by storm on Friday night, routing Cal State Bakersfield (20-26, 9-13 Big West) by scoring 18 runs on 18 hits, though the five Roadrunner errors did the home team no favors. Jackson Flora earned the win behind five shutouts innings while Donovann Jackson earned the save by working the final four frames — the first time that the two Jacksons have covered the entire game between themselves since Feb. 15, 2025 — but the story of the night was the Gaucho offense. At the top of the lineup, Liam Barrett had a career night with four hits, driving in a pair of runs. Nate Vargas matched his season high with four RBIs, and William Vasseur did the same with his three RBIs. Xavier Esquer also had three RBIs on the night, contributing to Santa Barbara's season-high run total. The last time the Gauchos had scored 18 runs was April 12, 2025, at UC Riverside.
HOW IT HAPPENEDThe Santa Barbara bats gave their ace, Flora, more cushion than he could have wished for in the first inning, with Barrett sending the second pitch of the game into right center for a single. The first of two errant throws in the inning set up Gauchos on second and third, with Vargas' single to left center bringing both runs home. The second errant throw, on a bunt attempt just like the first, helped the Gauchos load the bases, and Esquer helped un-load them with a two-RBI single into right center. Nick Husovsky's RBI single into right center brought up a full handful of runs for Santa Barbara as the Gauchos batted around for the first of two times on the evening.
A pair of Roadrunner singles suggested the home team could rally back, but Flora quashed that idea with his first of eight strikeouts. He essentially cruised through the remainder of his five-inning stint on the mound, setting down the side in order in both the second and fourth innings, both times with a pair of punchouts involved. He allowed just one baserunner in the third and two in the bottom of the fourth but no runs.
By the time Jackson replaced Flora on the bump for the bottom of the sixth, the Gauchos' lead had rocketed up to 16. Vasseur's steal of home made it six in the third, then Rowan Kelly's RBI single made it seven in the fourth. Vasseur got a double out of a ball lost in the lights right after, bringing home Kelly to make the score 8-0. Barrett picked up his first RBI of the night on a check-swing single that jumped all the way into left field, and a misplay out there allowed him to run all the way to third on the play; third base coach Matt Fonteno nearly sent the Gauchos' left fielder to try for a little-league home run but threw up the stop sign at the last minute.
The real back-breaking inning was the sixth. Vargas batted twice in the frame and recorded hits both times, leading things off with a single. An error kept him safe at second and allowed Kelly to reach on a fielder's choice, then Vasseur's second double of the night scored them both. Another error put runners on the corner with Vasseur at third and Noah Karliner on first, then Esquer's sacrifice fly brought Vasseur home and the Gauchos' run total to 12. Barrett picked up his second RBI in as many innings with a (full-swing) single, then Corey Nunez dropped an RBI hit into center to extend Santa Barbara's lead to a full two touchdowns. In his second at-bat of the inning, Vargas drove a double into the right-center gap and plated a pair to make the score 16-0.
Jackson allowed one run in the sixth, but that was his only fault of the night. The crafty lefty picked off the man who had dared to drive in a run against him, then retired the final nine batters he faced in order to earn his first save of the season.
The Gaucho offense struck its final blow in the top of the eighth, with Nico Libed — part of the vast bench brigade that had been deployed by that point — earning a bases-loaded walk, then Kelly legging out an infield single.
UP NEXTWith Cal Poly and UC San Diego's losses (to UC Irvine and Long Beach State, respectively), the Gauchos are now tied for second in The Big West standings, just one game out of first place. Santa Barbara will look to continue its climb back towards the top of the pile and secure the series on Saturday in game two. First pitch from Hardt Field is set for 6:30 p.m. Fans can catch all the action live on ESPN+ or by following along with a free audio-only stream and live stats through ucsbgauchos.com.
(Article courtesy of UCSB Athletics)
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