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2025 College World Series: UCLA's Dean West ends potential Murray State rally with highlight-reel catch

ns_headshot_2024-clearby: Nick Schultz06/14/25NickSchultz_7
UCLA LF Dean West makes highlight-reel catch vs. Murray State
Screenshot courtesy of @NCAABaseball/X

Just when it looked like Murray State was getting ready to make a charge in the 2025 College World Series, Dean West entered the chat. The UCLA left fielder made a highlight-reel catch to stop the potential rally in the fifth inning.

West took away extra bases on a Dominic Decker line drive with runners on first and second. At least one run would have scored on the play, and potentially a second.

Instead, UCLA maintained a 6-1 lead heading into the bottom of the fifth inning. The Racers’ lone run came on the previous play when Carson Garner sent an RBI single to right.

West is in the midst of an impressive season for UCLA, helping the Bruins reach the College World Series for the first time since 2013. He entered Saturday’s game fourth on the roster with a .315 batting average to go with 40 RBI and a team-leading 48 walks.

West knows how important it is for UCLA to get back to Omaha and compete for a College World Series title. Now that the Bruins made it to Charles Schwab Field, he knows they have to finish the job, and that road started with Murray State Saturday afternoon.

“It’s been a long time since we have been back here,” West said in a pre-tournament press conference. “Last time we were back here was 2013. And we want to come back here put our name back out there on the map and show everyone what West Coast baseball has to offer.”

UCLA headed into Saturday with a 47-16 overall record, including a 22-8 mark in Big Ten play to win the conference title in Year 1 in the league. The Bruins then hosted both the Regional and Super Regional at Jackie Robinson Stadium, winning both rounds – capped by a 7-0 win over UTSA in Supers.

By returning to Omaha, John Savage echoed a sentiment from Dean West. He hopes for more respect for baseball on the West Coast, especially in the transfer portal era.

“I think the dialogue is West Coast baseball is dead, and it’s moving all to the Southeast and Atlantic coast,” Savage said. “And we have lost a lot of players to that area. But I’ve always said you can win a national championship with players from Santa Barbara to San Diego. I’m telling you, they’re all over the place. And then you include Central California. You include Northern California. There’s players.

“But it’s become harder. It’s become harder to — this was a No. 1 recruiting class in the country, this Cholowsky class. They’ve stuck together and they’re as good as advertised. A lot of classes are not as good as advertised. We had a class several years ago that wasn’t quite as good. And things have changed. You can get hurt in the draft now and be perfectly fine with the portal, where before, oh God, LSU got hurt in the draft or UCLA got hurt in the draft. Those days are long gone. You can recover within 48 hours.”