Bulldogs Erupt Late to Sweep Caltech, Improve to 8-4 in SCIAC Play

By David James Heiss

Redlands News Collective

Credit: goredlands.com

Sophomore infielder Tyler Barsness of Palm Desert finished 5-for-5 to help the Bulldogs secure a series sweep and move to 8-4 in SCIAC play.

The University of Redlands baseball team utilized a historic individual performance and a late-inning offensive explosion Saturday to sweep a doubleheader against the California Institute of Technology.

The Bulldogs (14-13, 8-4 SCIAC) took the opener 8-3 before cruising to a 12-1 victory in the nightcap, moving two games above .500 in conference play.

In Game 1, Redlands and Caltech remained deadlocked at 3-3 heading into the final frame. The Bulldogs' early offense relied on the long ball, receiving solo home runs from senior Ian Umscheid in the third and junior Mason Chetcuti in the fifth.

The stalemate broke in the ninth when sophomore Tyler Barsness singled and was moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by sophomore Karlsen Drake. Junior Eddy Stone then delivered the game-winning RBI double to center field. Redlands added four insurance runs in the inning, fueled by a senior Tanner Gerosa single and a pair of Beaver throwing errors.

Sophomore reliever Tanner Currier earned his third win, tossing two scoreless innings in relief of senior starter Erik Radder, who struck out seven over seven frames.

The momentum carried into Game 2, where Barsness turned in one of the most prolific offensive performances in program history. Barsness went 5-for-5, becoming the 24th player in Redlands history to record a five-hit game and the first since 2022.

Junior Jesse Bullard ignited the scoring with a two-run double in the first, followed by an RBI single from Stone, who finished the game a perfect 4-for-4. Sophomore Aziz Bishop broke the game open in the sixth with a three-run home run, part of a three-hit, three-RBI afternoon for the outfielder.

On the mound, senior Brett Edwards earned his third win of the season, limiting Caltech to five hits over seven innings. Freshman Chad Kober and junior Gavin Duenez combined for two hitless innings to seal the sweep.

Redlands travels to Thousand Oaks on Friday, April 3, for a 3 p.m. matchup against California Lutheran University.