Courtesy of San Diego State Athletics

LOS ANGELES – Timely hitting, clutch pitching and a steady defense were all on display Tuesday night, as San Diego State scored a monumental  4-3 upset over No. 1/1 UCLA in a midweek clash at Jackie Robinson Stadium.

The Aztecs (5-3) flashed their power with three solo home runs to help register their first victory over a top-five opponent since a 15-2 drubbing of No. 5 San Diego on Feb. 23, 2008.

In additoin, Aidan Russell was masterful in a relief role, retiring the final 11 batters of the night, including five strikeouts, to collect his second save of the season.

Russell’s performance preserved the win for starter Alec Belardes (1-1), an Arizona State transfer who earned his first collegiate victory after yielding three runs on three hits and three walks with a trio of strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings.

The Bruins (6-2) jumped out to the early lead in the first when Dean West crossed the plate on Mulivai Levu’s RBI groundout. Earlier, West drew a leadoff walk and moved to third on a stolen base and Roch Cholowsky’s infield single. However, Belardes prevented further damage by striking out Roman Martin before inducing a groundout to Payton Brennan.

The Aztecs gradually seized the momentum courtesy of the long ball in three consecutive innings, as Anthony Marnell IV, Tyce Peterson and Zane Kelly each provided a solo blast in the third, fourth and fifth, respectively.

Marnell drilled the first pitch from UCLA starter Angel Cervantes over the right-field to lead off the third, circling the bases for his first home run in a Scarlet and Black uniform.

Belardes fought himself off the proverbial ropes in the bottom of the frame after West and Cholowsky were both hit by a pitch with one out. The two runners advanced on Levu’s grounder to first but were left stranded when Martin flew out to right.

With two outs in the fourth, Peterson went yard for the second time this season, connecting on a 1-1 offering from Bruin reliever Zach Strickland to put the Aztecs in front for good at 2-1.

SDSU extended its advantage in the fifth on Kelly first round-tripper of the year, as the junior outfielder took Strickland’s 1-2 pitch deep over the right-field fence with two outs.

The Aztecs scored what proved to be the winning run in the sixth when Jabin Trosky raced home on Zach Justice’s RBI single. Previously, Trosky led off with a base hit through the right side, chasing Strickland. Reliever Cal Randall was poised to get out of the inning unscathed after consecutive strikeouts.

Moments later, Peterson tapped a grounder to Martin at third, but the throw to second on a potential force play went awry, allowing Trosky to take third. Justice promptly made the Bruins pay by threading a grounder on a 0-2 pitch through the right side of the infield.

UCLA narrowed the gap in the bottom of the frame when Cholowsky walked and scored on a double by Martin, who advanced on a wild pitch and eventually crossed the plate on Aiden Aguayo’s RBI groundout, following a walk to Brennan.

Russell, who took the mound and induced the aforementioned grounder, avoided further trouble by striking out Cashel Dugger on five pitches.

Along with Russell’s wizardry, SDSU received exceptional defense in the eighth inning when Max Farrell snared Levu’s sharp liner at first, while Adam Magpoc chased down Martin’s deep fly ball to the wall in left field.

The Bruins went quietly in the ninth as Russell struck out Brennan and Aguayo, while Jake Jackson put the squeeze on Dugger’s fly ball to center, as the Aztec dugout rushed the field in jubilation.

Trosky extended his hitting streak to eight games with two hits, tying Peterson and Kelly for game-high honors.

UP NEXT
San Diego State continues its road swing this weekend when it travels to the Evergreen State for a four-game series at Washington, Feb.27-March 2. All four encounters from Husky Ballpark will air live on Big Ten Network+.