THE SCHEDULE
Game 16
at No. 22 Azusa Pacific (8-2, 0-0 PacWest)
Tuesday, Feb. 24 • 6 p.m.
Cougar Baseball Complex • Azusa
Live Audio/Video • Live Stats

Games 17-20
at Cal State East Bay (3-5, 0-4 CCAA)
Friday, Feb. 27 • 2 p.m.
Pioneer Baseball Field • Hayward
Live Stats

Saturday, Feb. 28 • 11 a.m. (DH)
Pioneer Baseball Field • Hayward
Live Stats

Sunday, March 1 • 11 a.m.
Pioneer Baseball Field • Hayward
Live Stats

The 17th-ranked UC San Diego baseball team faces a five-game road week ahead. The Tritons first travel to Azusa for a primetime affair with West Region postseason implications at 22nd-ranked Azusa Pacific (8-2, 0-0 PacWest) on Tuesday night, Feb. 24. First pitch at the Cougar Baseball Complex is set for 6 p.m. UCSD and APU were third and fourth, respectively, in Monday's latest NCBWA West Region poll.

UCSD then returns to California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) play in Hayward at Cal State East Bay (3-5, 0-4 CCAA). The four-game series at Pioneer Baseball Field begins on Friday, Feb. 27, at 2 p.m. The teams will then contest a doubleheader on Saturday, Feb. 28, starting at 11 a.m. A seven-inning nightcap will follow approximately 30-40 minutes after a regulation nine-inning game. A single finale is also slated for 11 a.m. on getaway day on Sunday, March 1. UCSD is 10-5 overall, including 2-0 on the road, and 6-2 in CCAA play.

LIVE COVERAGE
All UCSD home games at Triton Ballpark feature a live online video stream and live stats. Select games will additionally have audio commentary, provided again this year by former Triton pitcher (2007-08) Tim Strombel (@Timmy2Sides). The next full broadcast (of nine) is the series opener with fierce rival and reigning West Region champion Chico State next Friday, March 6. The audio/video is free, but does require registration and a login. Some road contests will also have video. All have live stats. This week, only Tuesday night's game at Azusa Pacific has audio/video. Fans can access live coverage for home and away dates from the UCSD Schedule/Results page. Starting lineups, live between-inning updates and other gameday news and notes can be found by following Triton Baseball on the UCSD Athletics Twitter handle (@UCSDtritons).

THE NEW TRITON BALLPARK
Triton Ballpark on East Campus at UCSD has a brand-new look outside the foul lines in 2015. The extensive renovation was completed enough for competition to take place as scheduled with an Opening Day doubleheader on Sunday, Feb. 1. Some of the main features include a permanent grandstand to seat just over 500, a press box, new sunken dugouts, an area for food trucks, and restrooms, among several other amenities. Read details here. Arguably the crown jewel of the project, a beautiful clubhouse down the right field line, is expected to be completed by April. The first pitch at the new Triton Ballpark came from Trevor Scott, the first hit and RBI by Brandon Shirley, the first run by Tyler Howsley, and the first home run in the form of a grand slam by Brian Choi. View photo galleries from the ballpark construction here and Opening Day here.

TRITON BASEBALL IS BACK ON TWITTER
As of Feb. 1, Triton Baseball is back on Twitter @UCSDbsb! Be sure to give them a follow. Gameday info and updates will still predominantly come from the official UCSD Athletics Twitter handle @UCSDtritons. The majority of the Triton coaching staff, including head coach Eric Newman (@CoachEricNewman), are also on Twitter. Those links can be found at the bottom.

RANKINGS REPORT
UCSD appeared at No. 15 in the preseason edition of Collegiate Baseball Newspaper's NCAA Division II poll released back on Dec. 23. The Tritons moved up to No. 10 in the publication's first in-season listing on Feb. 16, but dropped back to No. 17 on Feb. 23. They are ninth in the D2 Baseball News poll as of Feb. 24, and 17th in the Perfect Game poll (Feb. 18) after beginning at No. 19 in PG's preseason edition (Jan. 29). UCSD was at No. 12 in the preseason National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) poll (Jan. 28), and up to No. 8 on Feb. 17. Regionally speaking, the Tritons are rated No. 3 in the West by the NCBWA (Feb. 23), and No. 2 by D2 Baseball News (Feb. 24).

A LOOK BACK AT LAST WEEK
UCSD went 3-2 last week. The Tritons first relinquished a 7-2 lead after six innings to drop a 9-8 home decision to crosstown rival Point Loma on Tuesday night, Feb. 17. UCSD surrendered its largest inning of the year, with the Sea Lions scoring six in the seventh frame, having still not allowed that many runs in any other game in 2015. UCSD then battered Cal State Dominguez Hills, 12-0, 2-0 and 19-0, to clinch a second straight CCAA series. Starter Justin Donatella (6.0 IP, 3 H, 3 BB, 8 K) combined with two others on a five-hit shutout in Thursday's opener in Carson, with the Tritons producing a season-high 17 hits offensively. At CSUDH again the next afternoon, seniors Trevor Scott (7.0, 7 H, 2 BB, 3 K) and Dan Kolodin (2.0, 2 K) teamed up on the mound. UCSD then put together a six-run second en route to taking command at 13-0 after four innings to open Saturday's doubleheader in La Jolla, and went on to an easy 19-0 victory. Starter Alon Leichman (5.0, 3 H, 5 K) preceded four relievers. The visiting Toros managed to salvage the series finale, 3-1 in seven innings, to round out Saturday's twin bill.

AROUND THE CCAA
At 6-2 in league play, UCSD is currently occupying the fourth position in the 11-team CCAA standings. The Tritons are behind a trio of squads that began conference play a week later than them, that are all unbeaten, in Cal State L.A. (4-0), Cal State Monterey Bay (4-0) and Chico State (3-0). A full league slate was contested for the first time last week. Follow all of the action this week through the CCAA baseball scoreboard. Bookmark it here.

SHUTOUTS ON SHUTOUTS
In completing back-to-back-to-back shutouts to begin its series last week with league rival Cal State Dominguez Hills, UCSD achieved the feat of three straight shutouts for the first time in program history, dating back through the 1980 season. The Tritons on five previous occasions had posted two successive shutouts, most recently at home to start off the 2014 series with the Toros, on March 6 (1-0) and March 7 (7-0). UCSD now already has five shutouts in 2015, having produced seven a year ago, the program's most in a single season in the NCAA Division II era since 2001. In all last week, Triton pitching kept CSUDH scoreless for 27.2 innings.

HIT-BY-PITCH RECORD
Cal State Dominguez Hills pitchers hit UCSD batters a total of nine times during a 19-0 drubbing in game one of the Feb. 21 doubleheader in La Jolla. That constituted a Triton program record at least for the Division II era (since 2001), and likely all-time. UCSD was plunked seven times in a single game four times prior, in 2007, 2005, 2004 and 2003.

LEW ON BASE
Senior second baseman Erik Lewis is the only Triton to reach base in each of the first 15 games this year. Combined with a season-ending streak of 23 in 2014, the Upland product has made it safely on base in the last 38 contests. Lewis, who led the CCAA in runs scored a year ago with 56 and was second in walks (42), is currently tied for second in walks (12) and sixth in RBI (11).

STELLAR PITCHING
UCSD has the second-best team ERA in the CCAA, at 1.88, behind only Chico State's 1.80. The Tritons have a league-best 121 strikeouts. They have allowed just 33 runs in 15 games, with 27 of them earned. Front-line starters Justin Donatella (2-1) and Trevor Scott (3-1) boast an ERA of 0.56 and 1.07, respectively, with Donatella yet to allow a run in 12.0 innings pitched in CCAA play. Donatella paces the squad with 22 strikeouts, while Scott is first with 25.1 innings and second with 21 strikeouts. Having appeared a team-best seven times, Chad Rieser (0.73 ERA) has given up a single run (Feb. 15), and has 16 strikeouts in 12.1 frames. The senior left-hander struck out the side in order in both the sixth and seventh in his most recent outing on Feb. 21 against Cal State Dominguez Hills. The Tritons as a team have issued only 31 walks.

CRUZ OVER TO FIRST BASE
Junior All-American Troy Cruz has already drawn 19 walks in 15 games this season, tops in the CCAA. He remains on pace to break former Triton standout and current first-year assistant coach Nick La Face's single-season program record of 47 bases on balls, set last year. Cruz carries a team-best on-base percentage of .574, which ranks third in the league. UCSD players hold the top four spots in the conference in walks, as Jack Larsen (12), Erik Lewis (12) and Michael Mann (11) follow Cruz. A year ago, it was La Face, Lewis (42) and Justin Rahn (35) ahead of the pack.

YOUNG OUTFIELD
In each of the first 15 games this season, UCSD has started the same outfield, from left to right, of redshirt freshman Justin Flatt, redshirt sophomore Brandon Shirley and true sophomore Jack Larsen. The trio has combined for five of the Tritons' six home runs, with Flatt and Larsen pacing the team at two apiece. Flatt served as the leadoff hitter for the first six contests, with Shirley taking over at the top of the order for the last nine. Flatt has generated the longest hit streak by a Triton thus far in 2015, hitting safely in each of the first eight games before going 0-for-1 in the doubleheader nightcap with SF State on Feb. 14. He reached base safely in each of the first 12. Larsen, who has batted either third or fourth in the lineup, leads the CCAA with 18 RBI.

VETERAN INFIELD
Over the first 15 games, the Tritons have generally started the exact same veteran infield. Just like in 2014, it's been Troy Cruz at third base, Erik Lewis at second and Michael Mann at first, with Tyler Howsley, a part-time starter at shortstop as a freshman a year ago, taking over that spot for good. The only exceptions have been three starts at third for junior Andrew Hobson when Cruz has been on the mound, and a pair of starts at first for Pierce College transfer Zach Friedman. Brett Levy has been behind the plate for 10 of the 15 games, with fellow fourth-year senior Brian Choi drawing a pair of starts.

ELEVEN CCAA SETS WITHOUT A LOSS
With a pair of three-games-to-one victories over SF State and Cal State Dominguez Hills to begin the 2015 CCAA schedule, UCSD has now gone 11 straight league sets without defeat. The Tritons completed the 2014 CCAA slate without suffering a series loss, with three sweeps, two 3-1 wins, and four splits. They were last bested 3-1 at Cal State Monterey Bay to end the 2013 campaign.

POWERFUL START
The Tritons hit five home runs during their season-opening four-game series with Western Oregon, having needed 38 contests to achieve that total in 2014. Prior to the 8-3 victory in the nightcap with Western Oregon on Feb. 1, the previous time that UCSD hit three home runs in a single game was a 10-5 loss at Cal Poly Pomona on Feb. 23, 2012. Brian Choi's grand slam was the first by a Triton since Justin Rahn's against CPP in the third inning of a 20-5 triumph during the NCAA West Regional in La Jolla on May 16, 2014.

STRONG FIELDING
UCSD continues a tradition of being strong defensively. The Tritons are currently fielding at a .970 clip (387-168-17) for 2015, third-best in the league. They posted a .974 fielding percentage (1395-581-52) a season ago to rank second in the CCAA, behind only Chico State (.977), and fifth in the entire country in Division II. In 2013, UCSD was 11th nationally at .972. The 2010 squad that went to Cary, N.C., set a Division II record with a .984 mark.

CRUZ A STAR OF THE YEAR
UCSD junior Troy Cruz was named on Jan. 14 as one of eight San Diego Hall of Champions Amateur Stars of the Year for 2014. A local product out of Chula Vista and Bonita Vista High School, Cruz was a two-time SDHOC Star of the Month during the 2014 calendar year, hitting .326 for the Tritons with 33 runs, 11 doubles, three triples, 39 RBI and a team-best nine steals. On the mound, he posted an 8-3 record with a 2.90 ERA over a team-best 87.0 innings pitched, helping guide UCSD to a record sixth CCAA tournament title and into the NCAA postseason. Cruz was recognized at the 69th Annual Salute to the Champions on Monday, Feb. 23, at the Town and Country Resort & Convention Center. Both he and Triton head coach Eric Newman were in attendance, with Cruz addressing the crowd. Read a Triton Q&A with Cruz here.

TRITON NOTES
Trevor Scott and Jack Larsen were named on Feb. 3 as the 2015 season's first CCAA Baseball Pitcher and Player of the Week, respectively ... Troy Cruz was chosen to the NCBWA Preseason All-America Third Team at the utility spot, with Cruz (first team), Justin Donatella (second) and Erik Lewis (second) each named to NCBWA Preseason All-West Region teams (Jan. 23) ... UCSD was picked to place third in the 2015 CCAA regular-season race by the league's 11 head coaches, as announced on Jan. 27, with reigning West Region champion Chico State favored.

ROSTER NOTES
UCSD's 36-player 2015 roster features 17 letterwinners, seven returning redshirts and 12 newcomers ... The Tritons have retained six out of nine regular position players and three of four starting pitchers ... UCSD returns a quartet of all-conference performers from a year ago in junior All-American and two-time All-CCAA First Team selection Troy Cruz, senior Erik Lewis (first team), junior Justin Donatella (first) and senior Michael Mann (third) ... All but two players on the roster, junior pitcher Alon Leichman (Kibbutz Gezer, Israel) and redshirt freshman Tim White (Stratford, CT), are California natives ... Besides Cruz (Chula Vista/Bonita Vista HS), the five other San Diego products are redshirt freshman catcher Steven Coe (Valley Center/Valley Center HS), and newcomers Troy Forester (Carlsbad/Palomar College/Carlsbad HS), Cameron Kurz (Encinitas/La Costa Canyon HS), Tyler Plantier (Poway/Del Norte HS), and Jack Rupe, Jr. (San Marcos/Mission Hills HS) ... Plantier is the son of Phil Plantier, who played eight seasons in Major League Baseball for five franchises, and served as the hitting coach of the hometown San Diego Padres from 2011-14 ... Tyler Howsley, Jack Larsen and Gradeigh Sanchez all played together at Mission Viejo's Capistrano Valley High School.

SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN
UCSD's 2015 schedule consists of 49 regular-season games, including 28 at home within the friendly confines of Triton Ballpark. The Tritons face CCAA favorite Chico State at home for the second year in a row, with that four-game series between archrivals set for March 6-8. UCSD wrapped up a season-opening, season-long 11-game homestand on Feb. 17. The CCAA Championship will be held in the neutral-site city of Stockton for the third year in a row, but after the previous two editions took place at Banner Island Ballpark, the four-team tournament is headed back to Klein Family Field on the campus of the University of the Pacific, May 7-10. It would be a familiar locale for the Tritons, who won their third and fourth CCAA tourney titles back-to-back at the venue when the event was held there previously in 2010 and 2011.

HEAD COACH ERIC NEWMAN
Eric Newman is in his fourth season as the UCSD head coach. The 2012 CCAA Coach of the Year has a 107-69 record (78-46 CCAA) in charge of the Tritons and 202-141 overall in his six-plus seasons as a head coach. Newman guided UCSD to the 2012 CCAA regular-season and tournament titles in his first go-around in La Jolla, and a subsequent trip to the NCAA Division II West Regional. His Tritons won a record sixth conference tourney crown last May in Stockton, to again nab the CCAA's automatic berth into the NCAA Championship. With UCSD earning the region's top seed, Triton Ballpark played host to the 2014 NCAA West Regional. Newman has now led the Tritons to two CCAA banners and two NCAA postseason appearances in his three years, as well as two 30-win campaigns. He previously went 95-72 in three seasons at the helm of Dallas Baptist University from 2005-07.

ABOUT THE COUGARS
Azusa Pacific (8-2, 0-0 PacWest) is coming off of a three-game sweep of a non-conference series with Montana State Billings played entirely at neutral-site Dixie State in St. George, Utah. The Cougars have been idle since last Tuesday, Feb. 17. APU has completed a three-year transition period from the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) into the NCAA Division II, and is eligible for the first time in 2015 for the NCAA Championship. Just 10 games into its Division II era, Azusa Pacific is ranked for the first time, at No. 22 by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper. The Cougars head into Pacific West Conference play with a four-game set at Academy of Art this weekend. They were picked to place fourth (one first-place vote) in the nine-team PacWest in the league's preseason coaches' poll. APU is 5-2 against CCAA opposition in 2015, and still awaits a return date at UCSD on Tuesday, April 7 (6 p.m.). The Cougars won their only previous home game this season, 2-1 in 10 innings in walk-off fashion over Cal Poly Pomona on Feb. 13. Junior right-hander Josh Staumont, who spent his freshman season at Biola, is a legitimate Major League Baseball prospect from the Division II ranks with a fastball touching 98-99 mph. He is currently 0-0 with a 1.86 ERA and team-best 18 strikeouts over 9.2 innings pitched for his first two starts. As a staff, the Cougars have a 4.76 ERA. Azusa Pacific is batting .328 with seven home runs, led by junior second baseman Daniel Martin's (Escondido/La Costa Canyon HS) five already. The Cougars are coached by Paul Svagdis, in his 13th season.

SERIES HISTORY
Azusa Pacific leads the all-time series, 20-10, though the Tritons took a four-game split-venue set a season ago, 3-1, outscoring the Cougars, 38-16, in the process. That series concluded with a resounding doubleheader sweep in La Jolla of 11-7 and 16-0 on April 26. The teams have played just seven times in the last 14 years since UCSD moved up to Division II. They split a pair in Azusa earlier last year on March 24-25, with the Cougars winning 3-1 the first night and UCSD taking a 10-6 decision the next. APU was a 7-5 victor in 11 innings at Triton Ballpark on April 13, 2013. Azusa trailed 5-1 after four frames that day before rallying, tying the game with a three-run eighth before winning in extras. The 2003 campaign saw UCSD come out on top 19-6 at home and then 7-5 in Azusa.

ABOUT THE PIONEERS
Cal State East Bay (3-5, 0-4 CCAA) has contested a pair of four-game sets over the past two weeks. After taking three out of four at home from local non-conference foe Academy of Art to start the season, the Pioneers were swept on the road by Cal State Monterey Bay to begin CCAA play this past weekend. Scores against the Otters were 14-4, 18-8, 7-6 and 3-1. The Pioneers as a team have a .271 batting average, 6.30 ERA, and .948 fielding percentage. Bob Ralston is in his fourth season in charge at his alma mater.

SERIES HISTORY
UCSD leads the all-time series, 19-9-1, and holds a 14-6 advantage since 2010, when Cal State East Bay joined the CCAA as its 11th member. The Tritons rallied to win last year's set, 3-1, also in Hayward, after dropping the opener. Each of the previous two years resulted in four-game splits. Both times, the home team produced a doubleheader sweep in the middle of two wins by the visitors. In 2013, the Pioneers posted scores of 10-7 and 11-3 around Triton victories of 3-2 and 3-0. The 2012 season featured four close affairs in Hayward in early March. UCSD bookended the series with wins of 5-4 and 4-1 around a doubleheader sweep by East Bay, 6-5 in 10 innings and 3-2 in seven. In La Jolla in 2011, the then-top-ranked Tritons took three out of four. The teams previously faced off nine times as fellow NCAA Division III programs prior to UCSD's move up to Division II in 2001.

GEAR HERE
UCSD Athletics has partnered with Advanced-Online to provide a web-based, on-demand option for UCSD apparel and merchandise. Fans have access to over 600 products that can be processed and shipped within 24 hours. Visit the site at UCSDTritonsGear.com.

SOCIAL MEDIA - #TritonsRising
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Coach Burleson Twitter (@CoachB_UCSD)

UP NEXT
Following this week's road activity, UCSD returns home next weekend and welcomes in bitter rival Chico State for a four-game CCAA series. The opener has a 6 p.m. start under the lights at Triton Ballpark on Friday, March 6, and is slated to feature a marquee pitching match-up between junior Triton ace Justin Donatella and Wildcat All-American Luke Barker.

#TritonsRising