Gorgen one-hits Dons

IRVINE — Though he’s just 5-foot-10 and his fastball won’t likely prompt Major League scouts to unholster their radar guns, UC Irvine junior pitcher Scott Gorgen is more than a gutty little overachiever. Gorgen became a third-team All-American last season when he helped carry the Anteaters to their first Division I College World Series.The well-spotted fastball and the waist-bending changeup were there in force in his one-hit, complete-game shutout of nonconference visitor San Francisco, before 821 at Anteater Ballpark.

But he also unveiled, for the first time this season to a home crowd, a biting two-seam fastball and a snapping curveball. He faced just two over the minimum, using 102 pitches to key a 4-0 UCI win that extended the No. 20-ranked ’Eaters’ best start in the 30-season history of their program.

All the Anteaters will tell you the junior right-hander is better than he was last season, when he was 13-3 with a 2.83 earned-run average and struck out 117 in 136 2/3 innings.

Gorgen struck out a career-high 12, walked one (with two outs left in the ninth), and had five balls hit out of the infield. A first-pitch, leadoff line-drive single to left by sophomore catcher Ryan Lipkin kept Gorgen from a no-hitter, a goal he said he carries with him to every starting assignment.

“That’s one of the best [outings] I’ve ever seen from him,” said UCI senior catcher Aaron Lowenstein, who caught Gorgen’s four straight complete games near the end of last season, including one in the NCAA Regionals and another in the Super Regionals.

“He was using his changeup, he was spotting his fastball and he threw his curveball, which was nasty, late-breaking and hard,” Lowenstein said. “And he went right after guys. My hat’s off to him. He did an unreal job.”

First-year UCI Coach Mike Gillespie was also effusive with praise.

“I don’t know how he could be a lot better than that,” Gillespie said. “He jumped ahead, pitched ahead, stayed ahead. Really he was almost unhittable. There might have been, I don’t know, two balls, three balls maybe hit hard. He was really impressive tonight.”

Gorgen, whose previous best statistical outing was a complete-game, three-hit shutout in which he fanned 11 late last season at UC Riverside, was typically energetic.

“That’s probably one of best times I’ve ever felt throwing,” he said. Coming out of the bullpen my body felt strong and ready to go.”

Gorgen (2-0) threw six shutout innings, surrendering just one hit, in the season opener at Nevada, where freezing temperatures tampered with the feel he uses on his changeup, leading to six walks and just three strikeouts.

The two-seam fastball, Gorgen said, emerged late last season. But using his curveball is something new under first-year pitching coach Ted Silva.

“I started really pushing the two-seam fastball this year and the breaking ball just kind of came with it,” Gorgen said. “Coach [Dave] Serrano [UCI’s former head coach and pitching coach] didn’t like to throw [the curveball] a lot, because I was having success with the fastball and the change. But Coach Silva likes [the curve] because it’s a third pitch. I’m starting to develop it and starting to feel good about throwing it.”

With Gorgen’s performance, opponents are hitting .193 against UCI pitching this season, which takes some pressure off the offense.

But freshman first baseman Ryan Fisher, one for three with three runs batted in to pace UCI’s eight-hit attack, has returned the favor. Fisher, who hit two homers and drove in four runs in Gorgen’s first start, is now seven for 16 this season (.438) and has a team-leading 10 RBIs, including at least one in every game.

Fisher’s sacrifice fly to left plated Ben Orloff to open the scoring in the third inning and sophomore designated hitter Francis Larson (two for three) followed with an RBI single.

Fisher singled in Orloff and junior Ollie Linton to double the lead in the eighth.

UCI has never won its first five games. It’s previous best opening was a 5-1 record in 2005, Serrano’s first season.

Linton stole three bases and Orloff swiped two.

The series continues today at 1 p.m.

Nonconference

UC Irvine 4, San Francisco 0

SCORE BY INNINGS

Bialosky and Lipken; Gorgen and Lowenstein. W – Gorgen, 2-0. L – Bialosky, 0-2. 2B – Bardeen (UCI).

BARRY FAULKNER may be reached at (714) 966-4615 or at [email protected].