UCI’s Bell rings up big hit

IRVINE — A scheduling anomaly that shifted a typical Friday night Big West Conference series opener to Thursday must have caught the baseball gods off guard.

Because UC Irvine was able to pull off a 3-2 win in 12 innings despite committing some offenses against the game that typically equate with defeat.

Junior pinch-hitter Dillon Bell singled in the winning run with no outs in the 12th, after Casey Stevenson opened the inning with a line-drive single to left and Francis Larson’s routine fly ball to left field was misplayed for an error.

Stevenson advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored when Bell bounced a 3-1 pitch to the left of diving shortstop Devin Lohman, who was playing in on the grass.

It was the second hit in just more than a month for Bell, who had been one for 15 since going two for two in a March 8 win over South Alabama.

“I just wanted to help the team win,” said Bell, who while attempting to bunt on the first pitch he saw from Josh Corrales, fouled it off the screen. “I’ve been struggling a little bit lately, so it’s just nice to get in there.

“It was second and third [Larson advanced to second on defensive indifference], with the infield in, so either a ground ball up the middle or something in the air [would work],” Bell said. “[Corrales] kept the ball down low, so I just got on top of it and put it through the middle.”

Until then, the Anteaters put their fans through some misery, stranding at least one runner in nine straight innings prior to the 12th. They left 15 on base total.

No. 5-ranked UCI (20-9, 6-1 in conference) botched a two-strike squeeze bunt that turned into one of its three double plays from the sixth to the 10th innings.

UCI also had a difficult, but not spectacular attempt to catch a fly ball bounce off the glove of freshman left fielder Jordan Leyland, who was off balance after charging and going into a slide to try to catch the ball.

Leyland was also doubled off on a one-out line drive to the second baseman for the final out of the sixth, terminating a rally in which the hosts scored the tying run that wound up sending the game into extra innings.

UCI had its first hitter reach base without scoring in the seventh, eighth, 10th and 11th.

The Anteaters, however, did play errorless ball for only the second time in their last six games, and benefitted from strong mound work by each of their four pitchers.

“It was a really ugly game,” Bell said. “Thankfully our pitchers did well. We couldn’t execute at all offensively, so our pitchers kept us in the game and it ended up working out for us.”

Starter Danny Bibona gave up a run on three singles in the first, ending his scoreless-innings streak at 13 1/3 . He set down 15 straight before Jordan Casas doubled with one out in the sixth.

Lohman followed with a triple into the right-field corner to plate Casas, giving Long Beach State (14-15, 2-2) a 2-1 advantage.

Bibona gave up five hits in seven innings, throwing 112 pitches.

Brock Bardeen and Noel Avison threw scoreless innings in the eighth and ninth, respectively, before All-American closer Eric Pettis worked three scoreless innings to earn his third win in four decisions this season.

Senior shortstop Ben Orloff picked two throws out of the dirt, one on a throw from first baseman Jeff Cusick on an attempted sacrifice bunt and the other from catcher Larson on a stolen-base attempt, for the first and third outs in the Long Beach 12th.

Freshman second baseman Tommy Reyes went two for four to lead the ’Eaters’ nine-hit attack (all singles).

Long Beach State, which had 10 hits, committed four errors, the first of which produced an unearned run off starter Adam Wilk, as well as the unearned game-winner.

Long Beach State, playing its first extra-inning game of the season, used six pitchers, who issued six walks and hit three batters.

Big West Conference

UC Irvine 3, Long Beach State 2

SCORE BY INNINGS

Wilk, Rasco (8), Born (8), Ruiz (8), Markovitz (10), Corrales (11) and Hoime; Bibona, Bardeen (8), Avison (9), Pettis (10) and Larson. W – Pettis, 3-1. L – Corrales, 0-1. 2B – Casas (LB). 3B – Lohman (LB).

BARRY FAULKNER may be reached at (714) 966-4615 or at barry.faulkner@latimes.com.