Martinez homer wins it for Anteaters

IRVINE ? With a 5-4 win over UC Riverside on Saturday night, the UC Irvine baseball team clinched third place outright, moved within 1 1/2 games of second place in the Big West Conference, upped its school single-season Division I victory record to 36 and strengthened its argument for a berth in the NCAA Regionals.

But Anteaters Coach Dave Serrano said all of that paled in comparison to what a pair of dramatic, late-inning home runs did for a program that lists back-to-back NCAA Division II championships in 1973 and 1974 as its greatest distinction.

Matt Morris drilled a two-run homer to left field with no outs in the ninth inning to erase a 3-1 deficit and force extra innings.

After the Highlanders took a 4-3 lead in the 10th, UCI senior Jaime Martinez followed Cody Cipriano’s leadoff double with a blast far beyond the left-field fence to provide the winning margin and spark a wild celebration.

“Something like that, with the magnitude of what this game was to this program, really sets the program to maybe the next level,” said Serrano, who noted the last time he experienced a victory as dramatic was the regular-season finale of Cal State Fullerton’s run to the 2004 national championship, when he was the Titans’ pitching coach.

“It let guys know we can overcome a lot of stuff. In a big game, a big atmosphere, with what was at stake, to be down and be frustrated and come back ... That was pretty special. I’m very proud to be the leader of these young men, hopefully, for a few more weeks, at least.”

UCI (36-21, 11-9 in conference), which won for the 17th time in its last 22 games, can earn a share of second place with a win today against Riverside and two Long Beach State losses to visiting Cal State Fullerton.

The Fullerton-Long Beach game Saturday was postponed when a light tower at Blair Field failed. The two teams will play a doubleheader today.

“It has been about overcoming for this team all year long,” Serrano said. “Hopefully, we’re rewarded [by receiving a regional berth]. If someone out there doesn’t think this team should be rewarded, to move on, then somebody is not appreciating college baseball the way it’s supposed to be played.”

The Anteaters’ place in the conference standings, and its relative worth to the NCAA selection committee, appeared much more tenuous after the Highlanders took advantage of a throwing error to score twice and break a scoreless tie in the seventh.

Riverside (28-25, 8-12) added a run in the eighth for a 3-0 cushion, but UCI ? held in check for seven innings by Haley Winter ? began shoveling out of its hole when it scored a run in the eighth.

Cipriano, a junior second baseman who is now seven for nine in the series, broke up Winter’s shutout with an RBI single in the eighth.

With runners at second and third and two outs in the eighth, Martinez struck out to end the threat. It was an at-bat he would later redeem.

But first, Morris followed Zach Robinson’s single with a game-tying blast in the ninth. It was Morris’ second homer of the year, his first since Feb. 19.

“That Morris home runs should not be forgotten,” Serrano said. “That ball was smoked.”

Morris’ blast chased Winter ? attempting to finish off his first complete game of the season ? from the mound and brought on reliever Daniel Stange.

Riverside’s Brett Bilger singled with the bases loaded on the 12th pitch of his at-bat against UCI closer Blair Erickson to put the Highlanders back on top in the 10th.

But Morris threw out a runner at the plate on the play to end the inning. It was the third Riverside runner nailed at the plate, each one the third out to end Highlander rallies.

Cipriano opened UCI’s winning rally in the 10th by launching a double to left-center.

Martinez, who upped his school career record home run total to 21, said he came to the plate with his previous at-bat still gnawing at him.

“I’m not going to lie to you, [the strikeout] was in the back of my mind,” said Martinez, who leads UCI with 45 RBIs. “I knew going up there, I was going to try to redeem myself for my team, not just for myself. All the hard work and effort my teammates put into this game, to come back in the ninth and the 10th, it was just great to be a part of.”

Martinez said he was expecting an off-speed pitch and jumped on Stange’s curveball.

Erickson earned the victory, despite allowing three hits and four walks in his two innings.

Starter Glenn Swanson worked seven strong innings, allowing just two earned runs and eight hits. Kyle Necke worked a scoreless eighth.

Cipriano finished four for five, while Martinez and Morris had two hits apiece for the winners.