UCI trio steps up on road

LOS ANGELES — Sean Madigan and Francis Larson had three hits apiece and Ronnie Shaeffer hit a three-run home run to help the UC Irvine baseball team rally for a 9-6 nonconference win at Loyola Marymount Saturday.

UCI (2-0), ranked No. 8 by Baseball America, trailed, 2-0 and 5-3, before tying it with two runs in the sixth.

The visitors added two in the seventh and single runs in the eighth and ninth to allow sophomore Matt Summers to collect the win after three scoreless innings of relief.

Senior Kyle Necke got the final four outs to record the save.

Shaeffer, a sophomore designated hitter, homered to left-center field in the third to drive in Madigan and Reyes, both of whom had singled, to give UCI a 3-2 advantage.

After LMU (0-2) scored two in the third to reclaim the lead, then added another in the fourth off UCI starting pitcher Christian Bergman to lead, 5-3, UCI knotted the score in the sixth.

Madigan, a junior right fielder who saw his first action since injuring a knee that required surgery and earned him a medical redshirt year in 2009, doubled in a run, then scored when Reyes reached on a throwing error to forge the deadlock.

With Summers, who came on for Bergman with one out in the fifth, quieting the Lions’ bats, the Anteaters regained the lead for good with a two-run seventh.

Senior second baseman Casey Stevenson walked to start the frame, then scored when the left fielder made an error on Shaeffer’s single, allowing Shaeffer to get to second base.

Larson followed with a single, moving Shaeffer to third, from where he scored on a fielder’s choice grounder by junior left fielder Drew Hillman.

Reyes reached on an error with one out in the eighth, stole second and went to third on a groundout. Stevenson then produced an RBI single to plate UCI’s third unearned run.

Larson, a senior catcher, homered to lead off the ninth, the 18th of his career, leaving him four shy of matching the school career record held by Cody Cipriano and Jaime Martinez.

Summers allowed three hits, walked one and struck out four.

Necke allowed one run in 1 1/3 innings.

Bergman allowed five runs, all earned, on 10 hits in 4 1/3 inning.

Madigan was three for four, Larson was three for five and Shaeffer was two for four.

LMU committed five errors.

The three-game series finale is scheduled today at 1 p.m. at Anteater Ballpark.

— From staff reports

Nonconference

UC Irvine 9, Loyola Marymount 6

SCORE BY INNINGS

Bergman, Summers (5), Lines (8), Necke (8) and Larson; Carreon, Esquivel (6), Eusebio (8) and Koch. W – Summers, 1-0. L – Esquivel, 0-1. Sv. – Necke (1). 2B – Larson (UCI), Madigan (UCI); Koch (LMU). HR – Shaeffer (UCI), Larson (UCI); Johnson (LMU), Koch (LMU), Guthrie (LMU).