After losing two of three games against UCLA this past weekend, the Arizona baseball team pounded Loyola Marymount on Monday, March 22, by a score of 18-2. Here are a few key stats that stood out in the Wildcats victory over the Lions.
Five home runs:
The Wildcats hit five home runs in Monday’s win over Loyola Marymount, resulting in nine of the 18 runs scored by Arizona. Four of those five home runs were hit by the freshman duo of Jacob Berry and Daniel Susac. Berry went 3-5 on the afternoon, also adding in a triple and four RBI’s, while Susac went 4-5 with four RBI’s as well. Sophomore Branden Boissiere hit the other home run for the Wildcats.
Head coach Jay Johnson mentioned following Sunday’s game against UCLA that Berry was arguably the best pure hitter in the Wildcats lineup, and the freshman followed that up with this monstrous performance.
7-12 with runners in scoring position:
Arizona has been up-and-down this season when hitting with runners in scoring position, but that was a strong suit for the team in Monday’s win as they combined to hit 7-12 in that category. It was most prominent in the seventh inning when the Wildcats had the bases loaded with two outs when Boissiere singled in two runs before Susac smashed a three-run home run. It was one of those games where the Wildcats not only racked up a ton of hits, but also recorded those hits at the right time with runners on base.
Arizona will need to continue to put together those clutch hits with runners on base as they continue into Pac-12 play.
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Three innings of relief from juniors Austin Smith and Jonathan Guardado:
Johnson mentioned last week that there are a number of pitchers who haven’t seen the mound too often this season but are very capable when needed later on this season. We saw two of those pitchers on Monday in Smith and Guardado, who combined to throw the final 3.0 innings of the game, allowing two runs on four hits with two strikeouts and zero walks.
This is a long season, and depth becomes crucial down the stretch. This type of experience for all of these pitchers is crucial early in the season and will benefit them all late in the season when we are nearing the NCAA tournament.
The Wildcats will return home this weekend for three games against Oregon. The first game is set for Friday, March 26, with first pitch scheduled for 7 p.m. MST.
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