UCLA baseball gives up ninth-inning homer in shocking loss

John Savage thought it was a routine out.

“When it went up,” the UCLA baseball coach said, “I thought it was a fly ball to right.”

The Saint Mary’s player who hit it with the score tied in the ninth inning Friday thought similarly, not immediately knowing whether it would leave the ballpark.

“No, I just kind of like hit it,” designated hitter Jacob Johnson said. “I thought I put a great swing on it and can’t control what happens.”

What happened was a sequence that left everyone stunned inside Jackie Robinson Stadium.

As Johnson’s fly ball off closer Easton Hawk carried … and carried … and carried, Bruins right fielder Jarrod Hocking shuffled his feet on the warning track while trying to get a bead on it. He leaped at the wall and couldn’t come up with it.

Johnson’s solo homer barely cleared the right field wall, giving the Gaels a monumental 3-2 upset over the top-ranked and severely short-handed Bruins in the Los Angeles Regional opener. It was the first time that the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament had lost its opener against a No. 4 seed.

“I don’t even know where to start,” Saint Mary’s coach Eric Valenzuela said after logging the program’s first victory over a top-ranked team.

A small pocket of Gaels fans celebrated with “Beat LA!” chants after putting the Bruins (51-7) on the verge of elimination largely thanks to Johnson’s two homers.

And so a team that went wire to wire in the regular season as the No. 1 team in the country now has its back against the wall.

Coming off three straight walk-off wins in the Big Ten Tournament, the Bruins put on a baserunner in the bottom of the ninth when Phoenix Call singled through the left side of the infield on a two-strike pitch.

But Dean West struck out and Roch Cholowsky flied to center field, deepening a slump in which he’s hit .200 over the last two weeks.

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What it means

Known for comebacks, UCLA will have to mount a different sort of rally, needing four consecutive victories to advance from the Regional.

The Bruins will get center fielder Will Gasparino back on Saturday after he served a one-game suspension for malicious contact in the Big Ten Tournament championship. They also hope second baseman Aiden Aguayo (ankle) and outfielder Payton Brennan (abdomen) can return.

Turning point

After taking a 2-1 lead on Roman Martin’s solo homer in the fourth inning and a Cholowsky sacrifice fly in the fifth, the Bruins gave up the tying run in the sixth.

After Wylan Moss walked the leadoff hitter, Savage went to reliever Landon Stump, who gave up a one-out, run-scoring double down the right field line.

MVP: Jacob Johnson

Johnson went 3-for-4 with two homers and two RBIs, including the go-ahead run on his ninth-inning blast.

“After I put a good swing on it, just run out of the box,” Johnson said of not being able to control what happened. “It was awesome that it went out.”

Up next

The Bruins will face the loser of the late game between Virginia Tech and Cal Poly at 1 p.m. Saturday.