SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — After two short outings to start the year, UC Santa Barbara Baseball finally got to unleash star pitcher Tyler Bremner on Friday night, with the righty dealing seven innings of one-run ball to help the No. 20 Gauchos (8-1) defeat Fresno State (4-5) in the first game of a three-game series at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium, 3-1. Xavier Esquer provided the key swing at the plate, driving in the game-winning run with an opposite-field home run. After Bremner's day was done, Chase Hoover nailed down his second save as a Gaucho.   
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
With both teams' aces on the mound, Friday was a pitchers' duel, but each starter had to work around traffic early. A double play in the first and a caught stealing in the second led to some squandered opportunities for the Gauchos, but both Bremner and the Santa Barbara defense were turning in some clutch moments on the other side of the ball. After a leadoff infield single and stolen base, Bremner had to work around a runner on third with one out in the top of the first, inducing a flyout to shallow right and a groundout to first to get out of the jam. In the top of the second, right fielder Rex DeAngelis was involved again, this time making a diving Superman catch, then throwing to first to double off the runner, who had taken off on the pitch.
 
The Gauchos nearly pulled off another escape act in the top of the third, when a leadoff single, wild pitch and productive groundout had put another Bulldog on third with one out. Bremner got another shallow flyout to keep the runner from tagging, and first baseman Jack Holman was inches away from snagging what would become a two-out RBI double on his diving attempt. But the ball snuck between Holman's glove and the foul line and the visitors had a 1-0 lead.
 
After the third, the game looked more like a true pitchers' duel, with Fresno's starter setting down the Gauchos in order in the third and the fourth. Bremner answered by setting down the Bulldogs in order in the top of the fourth and fifth. Then, in the bottom of the fifth, Santa Barbara's offense finally broke through. Corey Nunez started the two-out rally by blooping a single into shallow right, then Esquer followed him and took a two-strike pitch the other way for a two-run homer to right center.
 
Bremner just kept getting better as the night went on, and he cruised through the Bulldog order in the top of the sixth. He struck out the first hitter on three pitches, then induced a lineout on the first pitch to the next batter. Three pitches after that, he got a grounder to second to end the frame on just seven pitches. He nearly repeated the trick in the seventh, setting down the side in order again, punctuating what would be his final inning with a strikeout.
 
Nic Peterson relieved Bremner for the eighth and got out number one on his first pitch. The second Bulldog batter put up more of a fight, singling up the middle after a long at-bat. Peterson erased him any though, flashing the leather to snag a grounder right back at him and start a 1-4-3 double play to end the inning.
 
The Gauchos worked an insurance run across in the bottom of the eighth, loading the bases on a double, single and hit batter before a balk made the score 3-1, Santa Barbara. Hoover was tasked with protecting that lead in the top of the ninth, and struck out the first batter he saw. He worked around a one-out single and stolen base, getting a flyout to right and ending the game with another strikeout
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• Tyler Bremner needed just 74 pitches to get through his seven-inning quality start on Friday, allowing just the one run on three hits. He did not walk a batter and struck out four, moving to within touching distance of number 200 in his career. Bremner is now four K's away from the double century mark.
• Santa Barbara native Chase Hoover continued his phenomenal homecoming with his second save of the season on Friday night. Through eight innings of relief, Hoover has struck out 12 batters and walked just two, with opponents hitting just .125 against him.

 
UP NEXT
The Gauchos and Bulldogs will continue this series on Saturday, March 1 at 3:05 p.m. from Caesar Uyesaka Stadium. Fresno State is set to start Hayden Crews on the mound, while Santa Barbara will give the ball to sophomore fireballer Jackson Flora. Tickets are on sale now at ucsbgauchos.com/tickets, and kids in sixth grade and below get in free to all Gaucho home games this season with the Yardi Youth Pass. Visit ucsbgauchos.com to learn more. For fans following from afar, the game will be live on ESPN+ with live stats available at ucsbgauchos.com/BSBLiveStats.