UC Riverside junior Drake Zarate hit a grand slam for his first career home run and UC Santa Barbara junior Austin Pettibone tossed a four-hit shutout, earning them Big West Baseball Field Player and Pitcher of the Week accolades.
Zarate Drives In Two Game-Winners Against Cal State Fullerton
UC Riverside junior Drake Zarate (Norco, Calif./Norco HS) claimed Big West Baseball Field Player of the Week honors after accounting for two game-winning RBI and belting his first career home run against Cal State Fullerton.
As the designated hitter for the Highlanders, Zarate drove in six of their 11 runs to help UCR win the series. He hit .417 (5-for-12) and slugged .667 to keep UCR in fourth place in the Big West.
In Friday’s 3-2 victory, Zarate’s sac bunt in the top of the second scored David Andriese to give UCR a lead it would not relinquish. On Sunday, Zarake made his first career home run extra memorable with a first inning grand slam, staking the Highlanders to a 5-0 lead. After the UCR bullpen squandered the advantage to let the game go into extra innings, Zarate was the hero in the top of 11th. With runners at the corners and one out, his base knock to left field scored the winning run in an 8-7 victory.
Zarate, who entered the series with nine RBI on the year, totaled six against the Titans. He notched a career-high five RBI in the finale.
Others nominated: Nick Torres (Cal Poly); J.D. Davis (Cal State Fullerton); Colton Vaughn (Long Beach State); Tino Lipson (UC Davis); Greg Mahle (UC Santa Barbara); Adam Hurley (Hawai‘i)
Pettibone Hurls Second Career Shutout
UC Santa Barbara junior Austin Pettibone (Yorba Linda, Calif./Esperanza HS) threw a complete game shutout against Cal State Northridge to collect Big West Baseball Pitcher of the Week praise.
The 6-4 right-hander needed just 85 pitches to pace the Gauchos to the 6-0 victory on Saturday. Pettibone scattered just four hits for his second career shutout. He exhibited superb control, throwing a first-pitch strike to 22 of 30 batters and retiring 29 of 30 batters with four pitches or less. Pettibone, who retired the first 10 batters he faced to open the game, struck out five Matadors and finished with no walks.
Pettibone improved to 3-1 on the year and earned the UCSB pitching staff’s first shutout of the season. He also earned his 21st career victory, moving into a tie for fourth in program history. He is just one win shy of tying for third.
Others nominated: Justin Calomeni (Cal Poly); Justin Garza (Cal State Fullerton); Shay Maltese (Cal State Northridge); Andrew Rohrbach (Long Beach State); Harry Stanwyck (UC Davis); Sam Moore (UC Irvine); Dylan Stuart (UC Riverside); Matt Cooper (Hawai‘i)