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(March
3, 2008) - Freshman Tony Nix banged out three hits including
his first career homer as UC Riverside picked up a 6-0 win
over LaSalle at the Riverside Sports Complex Monday afternoon.
Junior D.J. Smith earned his first win of the season after
striking out five and not allowing a run in his six innings
of work.
Playing their seventh game in eight days, the Highlanders
(3-7) recorded nine hits and had four pitchers combine to
shutout their first opponent of the season. Junior Drew Garcia
picked up two hits and also drove in two along with sophomore
Ryan Goetz who added two hits of his own.
UCR picked up a run in the second on junior centerfielder
Carl Uh'ls RBI single that dropped in down the right field
line to score junior catcher Jordan Opdyke from third. The
Highlanders put up a three-spot in the fourth on an RBI single
from Goetz and a two-run single to left by Garcia to give
Smith a 4-0 cushion after four complete.
Smith (1-0) attacked hitters throughout the day, walking only
one before he ran into some trouble in the sixth. After getting
the first two batters to ground out, he allowed a single,
walked the next batter and then hit the following hitter to
load the bases. With his pitch count mounting, Smith buckled
down and escaped the threat getting LaSalle's Zach Feierstein
to line out softly to senior third baseman Ben Price.
The Highlanders added a run in their half of sixth as Uhl
drew a walk to start the inning and advanced to third on a
Goetz single. Uhl later scored on a LaSalle wild pitch to
put UCR up 5-0 through six. Nix then added the final Riverside
run with his line drive shot to left field in the seventh
to make it 6-0.
Junior Ryan Platt pitched a scoreless seventh. Freshman Dustin
Emmons fired a hitless eighth, and junior Rob Waite struck
out the final batter in the ninth to preserve the UCR win.
The Highlanders host San Diego State on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m.
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