2010 College World Series: CWS

They were the College World Series' paradox teams. As national seeds -- indeed, two of only three among the original eight that actually reached the College World Series -- UCLA and Florida were supposed to be here. Yet no one knew how the Bruins and Gators would react to the national spotlight, given the only significant CWS history for either club came five years ago, when Florida (under a different coach) was swept by Texas in the 2005 championship series.

So when Florida starter Alex Panteliodis hit the first two UCLA batters to set up a run, it wasn't too surprising. And when Florida countered with two two-out runs off UCLA semi-ace Trevor Bauer, it looked like the battle of nerves was on.

But as the night progressed, Bauer settled down. And, significantly, the at-time spotty UCLA offense came through again and again, tearing through five Gators pitchers for 18 hits en route to an 11-3 victory, the first CWS win in program history after 0-2 performances in 1969 and 1997.

Nerves? What nerves?

Bauer (11-3), wearing his trademark sun-bleached, sweat-stained cap, struck out 11 in seven innings to set a school single-season strikeouts record. He allowed the powerful Florida offense just one more run -- a fourth-inning solo home run by Josh Adams -- after the two they scored in the first.

But the performance of the UCLA offense meant the pitching-and-defense-based Bruins didn't need Bauer to be at his absolute best. The Bruins (49-14) scored in every inning except the second, even though Florida pitching walked just two batters and permitted just three extra-base hits, all doubles.

UCLA got timely hits and capitalized on Florida mistakes, scoring three of its runs on a Gators fielding error and two wild pitches.

Niko Gallego and Beau Amaral, the 1-2 men in the UCLA lineup, combined for seven hits. Light-hitting catcher Steve Rodriguez had two hits and two RBIs from the No. 9 spot.

The Bruins took the lead for good in the third, keyed by leadoff singles from Gallego and Amaral. They moved to second and third on a double steal before Gallego scored on a fielding error by Austin Maddox at third base, and Amaral came home on a wild pitch by Panteliodis (11-3). Blair Dunlap, who had reached on Maddox's error, later scored the inning's third run on a single by Dean Espy, who wound up with three hits in all.

The loss overshadowed a remarkable play by Florida center fielder Matt den Dekker, who robbed UCLA's Brett Krill of extra bases to lead off the fourth with a sliding, over-the-shoulder basket catch on the warning track.

But that was a rare bright moment for the Gators (47-16), who now face elimination in a Monday game against rival Florida State, which has beaten Florida three times in four tries this season.

UCLA, meanwhile, moves into the winner's bracket against TCU, which, like the Bruins, picked up its first-ever CWS win on Saturday.

COLLEGE WORLD SERIES - Game 2 Recap - UCLA vs Florida