OMAHA, Neb. — On a warm Saturday afternoon at Charles Schwab Field Omaha, the UCLA Bruins kicked off their Men’s College World Series journey with a hard-fought 6-4 victory over the Murray State Racers. This marked UCLA’s first appearance at the CWS in 12 years and a significant milestone for Murray State, who made their debut in the tournament as one of the few Group of Five schools to reach this stage.
The Bruins, seeded 15th, showcased their offensive firepower early, tallying runs in three of the first four innings to build a commanding 6-0 lead. Their breakout moment came in the fourth inning, a four-run explosion that proved to be the game’s decisive stretch.
UCLA starter Michael Barnett, a junior with a 12-1 record and a 4.09 ERA, battled through a challenging start, throwing 28 pitches in the first inning alone. Despite walking two batters and facing bases loaded early, Barnett managed to keep the Racers at bay through 4 2/3 innings before leaving the game due to leg cramps, as explained by coach John Savage.
“Very hot out there today,” Savage told ESPN. “I think our guys dealt with that a little bit.”
Offensively, UCLA’s scoring began with a bases-loaded walk by Roman Martin in the first inning, giving the Bruins an initial 1-0 lead. Dean West followed with a clutch RBI single in the second, scoring Cashel Dugger and extending the advantage.
The pivotal fourth inning featured a safety squeeze bunt by sophomore shortstop Roch Cholowsky, who led the Bruins with his 80th RBI of the season. Cholowsky’s bunt, a play he called on his own, forced Murray State pitcher Nic Schutte to throw across his body, resulting in an out at first base but allowing a run to score. Coach Savage praised the play, saying, “It led to four runs, kind of the difference in the game.”
After Cholowsky’s bunt, Martin added an RBI single, and AJ Salgado delivered a two-run double, a shot clocked at 115 mph, that emptied the bases and pushed UCLA’s lead to 6-0.
Murray State, the fourth-ever regional No. 4 seed to reach the CWS, faced an uphill battle from that point. Nic Schutte, the Racers’ right-handed starter, struggled early with control, walking four batters and allowing eight hits over five innings. Despite his challenges, Schutte managed to strike out three and threw 90 pitches, 51 for strikes.
The Racers finally got on the board in the fifth inning with an RBI single by Carson Garner off UCLA reliever Wylan Moss, who had replaced Barnett. This was followed by a run-scoring sacrifice fly by Dan Tauken in the sixth and two more runs in the eighth inning on back-to-back RBI groundouts by pinch hitter Charlie Jury and Conner Cunningham, narrowing the gap to 6-4.
Defensively, UCLA made several highlight-reel plays that stifled Murray State’s momentum. Dean West’s diving catch in left field to strand two runners was a standout moment, as was the Bruins’ nation-leading 64th double play of the season in the second inning. Murray State coach Dan Skirka lauded UCLA’s defense, stating, “That’s as good a defensive team and display that I’ve seen.”
Despite the deficit, Murray State showed resilience, with senior center fielder Jonathan Hogart and others contributing key hits during their late-game rally attempts. However, UCLA’s freshman closer Easton Hawk sealed the win with a perfect ninth inning, striking out two batters and preserving his eighth save of the season.
With the win, UCLA improved to 27-1 this season when scoring first, the best mark in Division I baseball. They advance to face the winner of the Saturday evening showdown between SEC rivals LSU and Arkansas on Monday at 4 p.m. PDT. Murray State remains alive in the double-elimination tournament and will play the loser of that matchup on Monday at 1 p.m. CDT in a must-win elimination game.
The game drew a crowd of 24,346, with Murray State players and fans soaking in the unique atmosphere of Omaha’s baseball haven. Senior outfielder Jonathan Hogart reflected on the experience, while teammate Dustin Mercer described it as “baseball heaven” and admitted, “I never felt famous before until I got here.”
Looking ahead, UCLA coach John Savage tempered enthusiasm with caution, reminding that the road to a championship is long. “Yeah, you want to win the first game, no question about it,” he said. “But we’ve got a long, long ways to go.”
Meanwhile, Murray State’s historic run has captured attention, as the Racers are just one loss away from elimination but have demonstrated grit and competitiveness throughout the tournament. Their next game will be critical in determining how far this Cinderella story can go in Omaha.
