Wednesday, May 21
Omaha, Neb.
8:00 AM (PT)
UCLA
40-15
8
vs
6
Illinois
30-24
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Illinois
1
0
1
1
0
2
1
0
0
6
7
0
UCLA
0
0
5
0
0
1
1
1
X
8
10
1
Roman Martin
Photo by: Big Ten Conference
No. 13 UCLA Outlasts Illinois, 8-6, in Big Ten Tournament Opener
May 21, 2025 | Baseball
OMAHA, Neb. – No. 13 UCLA punched its ticket to the knockout round of the Big Ten Baseball Tournament presented by IFS.ai, outlasting Illinois 8-6 to secure the top spot in its pool.
The victory marks the Bruins' (40-15, 22-8) third straight win and pushes them to the 40-win milestone - a benchmark they've now reached seven times under Head Coach John Savage. This marks UCLA's first 40-win season since 2022.
Payton Brennan highlighted the offensive effort by driving in three runs during his 2-for-4 performance at the plate. Phoenix Call was also massively productive in the nine-spot, collecting three hits in a perfect 3-for-3 day.
Recently named Big Ten Player of the Year Roch Cholowsky delivered yet again, launching a crucial eighth-inning homer, a blast that marked his 21st of the season. Illinois wanted no part of the star shortstop as he reached base four times, twice via intentional walks and once by way of a hit by pitch.
Cholowsky broke UCLA's single-season hit-by-pitch record when he was plunked for the 20th time.
UCLA used nine pitchers to get the job done on the mound on Wednesday morning. Ian May got the start and lasted 2.1 innings before his day came to an end. This would be the longest outing of any member of the Bruins' pitching staff.
Jack O'Connor (3-0) notched his third win of the season after tossing 1.1 innings and surrendering a run. Freshman Easton Hawk slammed the door in the ninth, throwing a hitless final frame to secure his fifth save.
Illinois pushed a run across in the opening frame to take an early lead, but the Bruins escaped a bigger threat by turning a heads-up double play after catching the runner straying from second on a fly out to left.
A two-out base hit from Vytas Valincius doubled the Illini lead in the top of the third.
The Bruins seized control in an explosive third inning, erupting for five runs to take command. Call sparked the rally with a bouncer up the middle for UCLA's first hit, followed by Dean West's sharp double down the left field line. Illinois opted to intentionally walk Cholowsky, but the strategy backfired as Mulivai Levu delivered a sacrifice fly for UCLA's first run.
The inning continued when Roman Martin hit a ground ball to shortstop, but Cholowsky beat the throw and was ruled safe after review to prolong the inning. UCLA pounced on the opportunity, as Salgado worked a bases-loaded walk and another run crossed on an Illinois balk. Payton Brennan then delivered a crucial swinging with a pair of runners in scoring position, crushing a two-run double over the centerfielder's head to cap the five-run outburst and give UCLA a 5-2 advantage.
The Fighting Illini got run back in the fourth with another two-out hit, this time off the bat of Colin Quagliano. In the sixth, Illinois scored twice to tie the ballgame after a home run from Drake Wescott and a wild pitch later in the inning.
UCLA put itself out in front in the bottom half of the frame when Call's third hit of the game brought a run around to score.
Illinois equalized once again when it manufactured a run in the top of the seventh, but the Bruins answered following the seventh-inning stretch when Brennan threaded a single through the drawn-in infield, bringing home Martin who had opened the inning with a scorching double down the left field line.
Cholowsky made Illinois pay for finally challenging him in the eighth, launching a no-doubt solo blast to left center that gave UCLA a two-run cushion going into the ninth.
Hawk slammed the door in the final frame, retiring the side with ease to punch the Bruins' ticket to the semifinals.
The Bruins will conclude pool play tomorrow morning with its contest against No.7-seed Michigan at 8 a.m. PT (10 a.m. CT). The game will be broadcast on Big Ten Network.
The victory marks the Bruins' (40-15, 22-8) third straight win and pushes them to the 40-win milestone - a benchmark they've now reached seven times under Head Coach John Savage. This marks UCLA's first 40-win season since 2022.
Payton Brennan highlighted the offensive effort by driving in three runs during his 2-for-4 performance at the plate. Phoenix Call was also massively productive in the nine-spot, collecting three hits in a perfect 3-for-3 day.
Recently named Big Ten Player of the Year Roch Cholowsky delivered yet again, launching a crucial eighth-inning homer, a blast that marked his 21st of the season. Illinois wanted no part of the star shortstop as he reached base four times, twice via intentional walks and once by way of a hit by pitch.
Cholowsky broke UCLA's single-season hit-by-pitch record when he was plunked for the 20th time.
UCLA used nine pitchers to get the job done on the mound on Wednesday morning. Ian May got the start and lasted 2.1 innings before his day came to an end. This would be the longest outing of any member of the Bruins' pitching staff.
Jack O'Connor (3-0) notched his third win of the season after tossing 1.1 innings and surrendering a run. Freshman Easton Hawk slammed the door in the ninth, throwing a hitless final frame to secure his fifth save.
Illinois pushed a run across in the opening frame to take an early lead, but the Bruins escaped a bigger threat by turning a heads-up double play after catching the runner straying from second on a fly out to left.
A two-out base hit from Vytas Valincius doubled the Illini lead in the top of the third.
The Bruins seized control in an explosive third inning, erupting for five runs to take command. Call sparked the rally with a bouncer up the middle for UCLA's first hit, followed by Dean West's sharp double down the left field line. Illinois opted to intentionally walk Cholowsky, but the strategy backfired as Mulivai Levu delivered a sacrifice fly for UCLA's first run.
The inning continued when Roman Martin hit a ground ball to shortstop, but Cholowsky beat the throw and was ruled safe after review to prolong the inning. UCLA pounced on the opportunity, as Salgado worked a bases-loaded walk and another run crossed on an Illinois balk. Payton Brennan then delivered a crucial swinging with a pair of runners in scoring position, crushing a two-run double over the centerfielder's head to cap the five-run outburst and give UCLA a 5-2 advantage.
The Fighting Illini got run back in the fourth with another two-out hit, this time off the bat of Colin Quagliano. In the sixth, Illinois scored twice to tie the ballgame after a home run from Drake Wescott and a wild pitch later in the inning.
UCLA put itself out in front in the bottom half of the frame when Call's third hit of the game brought a run around to score.
Illinois equalized once again when it manufactured a run in the top of the seventh, but the Bruins answered following the seventh-inning stretch when Brennan threaded a single through the drawn-in infield, bringing home Martin who had opened the inning with a scorching double down the left field line.
Cholowsky made Illinois pay for finally challenging him in the eighth, launching a no-doubt solo blast to left center that gave UCLA a two-run cushion going into the ninth.
Hawk slammed the door in the final frame, retiring the side with ease to punch the Bruins' ticket to the semifinals.
The Bruins will conclude pool play tomorrow morning with its contest against No.7-seed Michigan at 8 a.m. PT (10 a.m. CT). The game will be broadcast on Big Ten Network.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: O'Connor, Jack (3-0)
L: Dye, M. (0-2)
S: Hawk, Easton (5)
Batting:
2B: Chee-Aloy, C 1
HR: Westcott, D. 1
RBI: Valincius, V 2 ; Westcott, D. 1 ; Quagliano 2
SH: Schroeder, J 1
SF: Valincius, V 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Chee-Aloy, C 1 ; Schupmann, K 2 ; Westcott, D. 1 ; Quagliano 1 ; Schroeder, J 1
HBP: Jennings, C. 1 ; Schupmann, K 1
Batting:
2B: West, Dean 1 ; Martin, Roman 1 ; Brennan, Payton 1 ; Call, Phoenix 1
HR: Cholowsky, Roch 1
RBI: Cholowsky, Roch 1 ; Levu, Mulivai 1 ; Salgado, AJ 1 ; Brennan, Payton 3 ; Call, Phoenix 1
SH: Dugger, Cashel 1
SF: Levu, Mulivai 1
Base Running:
RUNS: West, Dean 1 ; Cholowsky, Roch 2 ; Martin, Roman 2 ; Salgado, AJ 1 ; Hocking, Jarrod 1 ; Call, Phoenix 1
HBP: Cholowsky, Roch 1 ; Martin, Roman 1 ; Call, Phoenix 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
1
H
3
RBI
1
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
3
AB
2
R
2
H
1
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
OF
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RHP
/ Baseball
1B
/ Baseball
INF
/ Baseball
RHP
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