‘Eaters begin week with road date at UC Riverside

The UC Irvine baseball team has a score to settle tonight when it travels to the Riverside Sports Complex for a nonconference game against Big West Conference rival UC Riverside at 6.

The Highlanders (16-25) won two of three from the Anteaters (30-12) in their conference series, April 18-20 at Anteater Ballpark.

UCI will start sophomore Tom Calahan (0-1 with a 2.49 earned-run average), who has not allowed an earned run in his last eight appearances. It’s Calahan’s second career start.

Riverside, the 2007 Big West Conference champion, is slated to start freshman Eddie Orozco (0-2, 11.57 ERA). Orozco has allowed 40 hits, has walked 10 and has struck out 16 in 18 2/3 innings this season.

UCI is led by junior shortstop Ben Orloff, who has a hit in 16 of his last 17 games to raise his batting average to a team-high .346.

The Anteaters, hitting .302 as a team, also feature junior center fielder Ollie Linton (.335, three homers, 29 RBIs and a conference-best 31 stolen bases.) and sophomore Francis Larson (.327 with six home runs and 33 RBIs).

UC Riverside has won four straight and seven of its last nine.

UCI Coach Mike Gillespie said sophomore pitcher Christian Bergman, who boasts a Big West-best 1.41 ERA, should return in Big West home series against Pacific, beginning Friday. Bergman has been out for two weeks with soreness in his right elbow and shoulder.

Sophomore first baseman Jeff Cusick, out the last two weeks with a shoulder injury, is also close to returning, Gillespie said.

— Barry Faulkner