UCLA’s Adam Plutko is holding the Mississippi State offense in check through six innings in Game 1 of the College World Series finals. Putko’s offense gave him a nice cushion, too, with a big two-RBI hit in the fourth inning as the Bruins jumped out to multi-run lead.
College World Series 2013 finals update: UCLA leads 3-1, but Mississippi State lurking
UCLA’s Adam Plutko is pitching a spectacular game to keep the Bulldog offense grounded through six innings.
The Bruins got the big hit they needed in the top of the fourth after uncharacteristically stranding six runners in the first three innings. UCLA’s Brenton Allen reached base on a one-out single and then the Bulldogs’ attempted defense of a sacrifice bunt went ... awry:
UCLA’s Eric Filia went to the plate two batters later with two runners in scoring position and proceeded to single to right, driving in two runs to put his team up 3-0.
Mississippi State answered in the bottom of that inning, though, using a pair of singles and a hit-by-pitch to load the bases with two outs before drawing a walk to force in their first run of the game. Trey Porter smoked a ball deep to right field shortly thereafter, but it landed harmlessly in Filia’s glove to end the threat.
Bulldogs reliever Chad Girodo, who entered in the second inning, then sat the Bruins down in order for the first time in the game in the top of the fifth.
Mississippi State continued making solid contact off of Plutko in the bottom of the fifth, however, but strong defensive work behind him kept the Bulldogs off the board. For visual learners, here’s Filia making a phenomenal grab to rob Nick Ammirati of extra bases:
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