THE SCHEDULE
Games 9-12
vs. Concordia Irvine (3-5, 0-0 PacWest)
Friday, Feb. 19 • 6 p.m.
Triton Ballpark • La Jolla
Live Video • Live Stats
Saturday, Feb. 20 • 2 p.m. (DH)
Triton Ballpark • La Jolla
Live Video • Live Stats
Sunday, Feb. 21 • 12 p.m.
Triton Ballpark • La Jolla
Live Video • Live Stats
The 16th-ranked UC San Diego baseball program continues a 13-game season-opening homestand with a four-game non-conference series against Concordia Irvine this weekend at Triton Ballpark. The Tritons (7-1) and Eagles (3-5) open the set in primetime on Friday night, Feb. 19, at 6 p.m. The teams then meet in a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 2 p.m., with the nightcap a shortened seven-inning affair. First pitch for Sunday's finale is set for 12 p.m.
ADMISSION POLICIES FOR TRITON BALLPARK
General admission for all regular-season home games at Triton Ballpark is $5. UCSD students are admitted FREE with valid identification. Dogs and other pets are not allowed, nor are coolers. University food truck, Flavors of the World, is on site for all home contests, with a more ballpark-oriented menu featuring the Triton Dog, sliders, nachos, pizza, sunflower seeds, peanuts and popcorn. Also new this year for those chilly primetime affairs are hot beverages like coffee, tea and hot cocoa. The food truck accepts Visa, MasterCard, Triton Cash and Dining Dollars.
PARKING INFO
Parking on the UCSD campus is free on weekends, but a permit is required for weeknight contests. They can be purchased at the machine near the entrance to the Triton Ballpark parking lot. Please be aware of the danger of foul balls to your vehicle when parking. Overflow parking is available in the lots beyond the right field wall, still along Voigt Drive.
LIVE COVERAGE
A selection of UCSD home games at Triton Ballpark feature live online video at our new streaming portal, UCSDtritons.tv. Audio commentary is provided again this year by former Triton pitcher (2007-08) Tim Strombel (@Timmy2Sides). This week, all four games will be broadcast. Some road contests also have video and/or audio. All games have live stats. Fans can access live coverage from the Schedule/Results page, or by clicking on the links above. Starting lineups, live between-inning updates and other in-game news and notes can be found by following Triton Baseball all season long on the UCSD Athletics Twitter handle (@UCSDtritons). Also be sure to follow the team @UCSDbsb. Finally, check out the new and improved CCAA live scoreboard here to keep up on results around the league.
UCSD, VIASAT LAUNCH ONLINE STREAMING PARTNERSHIP
UC San Diego Athletics has partnered with local broadband services and technology giant ViaSat to create UCSDtritons.tv, an online streaming platform. The channel will carry all Triton home basketball and volleyball contests, a selection of baseball, softball and water polo games, and a variety of home events featuring virtually every one of UCSD's 23 intercollegiate sports at least once. All broadcasts are live, in high definition, and can be viewed for the first time from smartphones and tablets alongside desktop and laptop computers. UCSD alum and former pitcher (2007-08) Tim Strombel (@Timmy2Sides) is back for another season as the play-by-play voice of Triton Baseball. Viewing is subscription-based, though it will remain free from UCSD campus IP addresses. A package that gives viewers access to all streamed events through the 2015-16 academic year is available for $29.99. A single-day pay-per-view option can be purchased for $5.99, meaning doubleheaders are two-for-one. Most events are archived.
MIGHTY 1090 INTERVIEWS
Mighty 1090 AM talent Jordan Carruth is conducting flavorful interviews with UC San Diego student-athletes and coaches on a weekly basis, and they are definitely worth a listen. The station recently launched a page dedicated to UCSD athletics, where you can find all of the archived interviews. Here are the links to baseball interviews:
• Coach Newman (2/3/16)
• Plantier (2/18/16)
RANKINGS REPORT
UCSD has moved up in all four national and both regional polls after going 5-1 last week, with a victory over previously-10th-ranked rival Cal Poly Pomona on Sunday. The Tritons are rated as high as sixth by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA). Regionally speaking, their performance over the first two weeks have moved them up from No. 2 behind CPP, to No. 1, in both the D2 Baseball News and NCBWA polls.
LAST TIME OUT
UCSD went 5-1 during an incredible stretch of six games in four days, amounting to 72 hours. The Tritons began with a three-game sweep of UT-Permian Basin to reach a perfect 5-0 for the first time in their NCAA Division II history (since 2001). They then split Saturday's doubleheader with Cal State San Bernardino, before posting a big 6-2 win over then-10th-ranked preseason California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) favorite Cal Poly Pomona on Sunday. That last result snapped a five-game losing streak for UCSD against CPP dating back to the 2015 series opener between the CCAA rivals. The meetings with the Coyotes and Broncos were of the non-conference variety. Jack Larsen powered three home runs deep to right field and knocked in 10 runs over the six games, while Tyler Plantier continued his hot start to his sophomore campaign, going 10-for-21 (.476) with a double, home run and six RBI.
LARSEN LOOMING LARGE EARLY
Jack Larsen is off to a great start to his junior season. The outfielder has started all eight games and is hitting .290 with a team-best 11 runs batted in. He has smacked three long home runs, all to right, adding a double and a triple for a team-best .677 slugging percentage. Larsen also paces the Tritons with eight runs scored. In the CCAA, he is in a three-way tie atop the RBI chart, a four-way tie for second in homers, and fourth in slugging.
THE WIZARD OF LA JOLLA
Tyler Howsley has been simply magical with the glove in 2016. The junior shortstop earned All-CCAA honorable mention for the first time a year ago, and has yet to commit an error defensively this season, over 43 chances. Howsley and Jack Larsen, teammates throughout their days at Mission Viejo's Capistrano Valley High School and even beyond, are the only two Tritons to have started each of the first eight games. In fact, Howsley has drawn 65 consecutive starts, all at shortstop, going back to the 2015 opener.
PLANT GROWING
Tyler Plantier has been dialed in early in his sophomore season, batting a team-best .440 (11-for-25) through eight games, with several hard-hit balls also falling into opposing gloves. His first home run of 2016, the first of his career at Triton Ballpark after one long ball on the road as a rookie, was a game-tying, two-run shot hammered out to left against UT-Permian Basin on Feb. 11. The Poway product is second on the team with seven RBI.
#FRESHMANINVASION
During UCSD's six-game weekend this past week, four were started on the mound by true freshmen. That group was made up of a pair of right-handers in Kyle Mora and Kyle Lucke, and two left-handers in Brent Bell and Preston Mott, with Mott taking the ball against 10th-ranked defending conference and region champion Cal Poly Pomona, and tossing five shutout frames. The quartet combined to allow just three earned runs over 19.0 innings pitched, for a 1.42 ERA. UCSD won all four games, though Mora and Mott had to settle for no-decisions.
COMPLETE GAME FROM LEICHMAN
Senior right-hander Alon Leichman tossed the first complete game by a Triton pitcher in 2016, doing so in the seven-inning doubleheader nightcap against UT-Permian Basin on Feb. 12. The native of Israel allowed three runs, two of them earned, six hits and one walk in the 5-3 win, while striking out five to match his high in UCSD colors. It was in fact the first complete game by a Triton since the only one of the 2015 campaign, a nine-inning shutout by former ace Justin Donatella at Cal State East Bay last Feb. 27. The outing was also Leichman's longest for the program, having twice gone 6.0 frames last year.
DEBUT DETAILS
Tritons to make their debut for the club so far this season have been junior transfers Vince Mori (Palomar College) and JD Hearn (UC Santa Barbara) as primary starters at second and third base, respectively, along with redshirt freshmen Erik Amundson, Cameron Kurz, Michael Palos and Zach Wallace, and true freshmen Brent Bell, Jonah Dipoto, Tyler Durna, Andres Kim, Kyle Lucke, Kyle Mora, Preston Mott and Tim Nelson ... Mori's first home run as a Triton was UCSD's first long ball of 2016, giving his side a 3-1 edge in the nightcap of the Opening Day doubleheader on Feb. 6 ... Kurz, out of Encinitas (La Costa Canyon HS), has started out the year in the closer role.
WALK-OFF WINNERS
Jack Larsen accounted for UCSD's first walk-off victory of 2016 in the Opening Day doubleheader nightcap on Feb. 6. His two-out RBI single through the right side, seen here, chased Steven Coe home from second in the 10th for the 4-3 Triton win. Coe was hit by a pitch to lead off and moved to second on Tyler Howsley's sacrifice. Larsen has two walk-off hits for his career, having produced a two-run single up the middle in the ninth inning against Cal State LA as a freshman in 2014 (4/4). Other current Tritons with walk-off hits are Justin Flatt (RBI single in 11th; 4/2/15 vs. CPP) and Gradeigh Sanchez (PH RBI single in ninth; 3/16/14 vs. CSUMB). Ironically, the final score of all four contests was 4-3.
LENGTHY HOMESTAND
UCSD's current 13-game homestand, if completed without weather problems, would be its third-longest of the Division II era (since 2001), behind two other season-opening stretches of 18 over the entire month of February in the 2010 campaign that ended in Cary, N.C., and a 14-gamer in 2008. This would be the eighth homestand of double digits in the Tritons' Division II history. They previously had a trio of 12-gamers in 2004, 2005 and 2011 (season-opening), an 11-gamer to begin 2015, and a 10-gamer to end 2003.
THE NEW TRITON BALLPARK
Triton Ballpark on East Campus at UCSD was given a brand-new look outside the foul lines in 2015. Some of the main features of the extensive renovation 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. Perhaps most significant is the addition of the Marye Anne Fox Clubhouse down the right field line, which was introduced to the players on March 17. The official Triton Ballpark re-opening and clubhouse dedication took place on April 10. View photo galleries from the ballpark construction, Opening Day and dedication.
BACK-TO-BACK WEST REGION FINALISTS
UCSD finished in a tie for second in the CCAA with Cal State Monterey Bay in 2015 with a league record of 27-13, qualifying for a second consecutive CCAA Championship before advancing to the final round of the NCAA West Regional for the second year in succession as well. The fifth-seeded Tritons had a 36-21 overall record following a 7-4 loss to CCAA regular-season and tournament champion, top-seeded Cal Poly Pomona, in a riveting West Region final at Mt. SAC in Walnut.
ROSTER REVIEW
UCSD's 40-player 2016 roster features 17 letterwinners, five returning redshirts and 18 newcomers. The Tritons retained six out of nine regular position players and two of four starting pitchers. They lost ace Justin Donatella to professional baseball, and fellow starter Trevor Scott, second baseman Erik Lewis, first baseman Michael Mann, catchers Brian Choi and Brett Levy, and bullpen stalwarts Javier Carrillo, Jr., Dan Kolodin and Chad Rieser to graduation.
Troy Cruz (Chula Vista/Bonita Vista HS), a 2014 All-American and three-time All-CCAA selection, reprises his utility role. Senior Gradeigh Sanchez, juniors Jack Larsen, Brandon Shirley and Christian Leung, and redshirt sophomore Justin Flatt should divvy up a bulk of the outfield starts. Junior Tyler Howsley started all 57 games at shortstop a season ago. Redshirt sophomore Steven Coe (Valley Center/Valley Center HS) was the only one of four catchers on the roster with collegiate playing experience heading in. On the mound, senior right-hander Alon Leichman and Cruz made up half of UCSD's 2015 rotation, with the likes of redshirt sophomore John Erhardt and sophomore Jack Rupe, Jr. (San Marcos/Mission Hills HS) still among a stable of young arms.
SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN
UCSD's 2016 schedule consists of 50 regular-season games, including 31 at home within the friendlier-than-ever confines of Triton Ballpark. It all begins with a season-long 13-game homestand that runs through almost the entire month of February. The Tritons start league play with a split-venue, four-game set against Cal State San Bernardino in La Jolla on Friday night, Feb. 26. They face reigning conference and region champion and unanimous CCAA favorite Cal Poly Pomona in another split-venue, four-game series, March 19-21. UCSD then travels to Chico for the first time since 2013 to take on the archrival Wildcats of Chico State, picked to win the CCAA North, in a three-gamer March 25-26. The CCAA Championship will be held in the neutral-site city of Stockton for the fourth year in a row, returning to Banner Island Ballpark of the minor-league Stockton Ports after being contested at Klein Family Field on the campus of the University of the Pacific last May. The Tritons won their record sixth CCAA tourney title at Banner Island Ballpark when the event was last there in 2014.
RECORD-SETTING PITCHING IN 2015
A stellar 2015 season for the Triton pitching staff saw UCSD break program records for earned-run average (2.84), shutouts (13), strikeouts (469) and strikeouts per nine innings (8.72), while finishing second in ERA in the CCAA and sixth nationally in Division II. The shutout mark ranked third in the country. UCSD has placed among the top three in the CCAA in ERA in three of the past four years. Through eight games in 2016, the Tritons' ERA stands at 2.61, fifth in the league.
STRONG FIELDING
UCSD continues a tradition of being strong defensively. The Tritons posted a .970 (1453-577-63) fielding percentage a season ago, rallying after a slow start to rank second in the CCAA, just behind Cal Poly Pomona (.971), and 21st in Division II. They have been in the top 30 nationally and top three in the conference in fielding for each of the past six seasons. In 2014, UCSD was second in the CCAA (behind Chico State) with a .974 clip, and fifth in the country. In 2013, the Tritons were second in the league behind Chico State and 11th nationally (.972). They were 29th in Division II in 2012 (.966) and third in the conference. UCSD led the nation with a Division II- and school-record mark of .984 (1611-673-38) in 2010 and was fifth in 2011 (.972), pacing the CCAA both years. No program in the country has even fielded at a .980 rate since 2010. Through eight games in 2016, the Tritons' fielding percentage is .962 (207-95-12), fifth in the CCAA.
TRITON NOTES
UCSD is 3-0 in one-run games in 2016 ... Prior to Feb. 14 (6-2 vs. No. 10 Cal Poly Pomona), the Tritons' previous victory over a top-10-ranked Division II opponent was May 10, 2014, over No. 9 Chico State (10-7) in the final of the CCAA Championship in Stockton ... The Tritons are 4-1 in season openers under Eric Newman and 13-3 since moving to Division II status for 2001 ... UCSD is 3-1 in CCAA openers with Newman in charge, with three straight wins after a 4-1 loss to Chico State in La Jolla on Feb. 17, 2012 ... The Tritons are 8-7 in CCAA openers all-time (since 2001), and 8-1 with six splits in sets to begin the league season ... Jack Larsen (first team), Troy Cruz (second) and Gradeigh Sanchez (second) were each named on Jan. 25 to NCBWA Preseason All-West Region teams ... UCSD was picked to place second overall and in the South in the 2016 CCAA race by the league's head coaches, as announced on Jan. 28, with reigning regular-season, tournament and West Region champion Cal Poly Pomona the unanimous favorite.
CCAA FORMAT CHANGES
There are several significant changes to the CCAA baseball landscape in 2016. Cal State San Marcos has joined the conference as a 13th member. The addition of the crosstown foe Cougars means 12 league teams in baseball, as Humboldt State does not sponsor the sport. With an even geographical balance of six programs in the north and six in the south, the CCAA has gone to a divisional alignment. As such, the 38-game league slate, down from 40 in 2015, consists of a four-game series within the division, and three-gamers across divisions. That is a departure from all four-game matchups in recent seasons. There is also a change to the CCAA Championship. The conference champion and automatic qualifier into the NCAA Championship will still come from that tournament, and it remains a double-elimination event. It has expanded, however, from four teams to six, with the top three squads in both the North and South divisions gaining the right to participate.
ROSTER NOTES
UCSD returns five all-conference performers from a year ago in senior All-American and three-time All-CCAA selection Troy Cruz (second team), junior Jack Larsen (first), senior Gradeigh Sanchez (first), redshirt sophomore Justin Flatt (honorable mention) and junior Tyler Howsley (HM) ... Cruz, Larsen and Sanchez also picked up All-West Region accolades in 2015 ... Howsley, Larsen and Sanchez played together at Mission Viejo's Capistrano Valley High School ... All but three players on the 40-man 2016 roster, senior pitcher Alon Leichman (Kibbutz Gezer, Israel), redshirt sophomore Tim White (Stratford, CT) and freshman Nick Balley (Austin, TX), are California natives ... Besides Cruz (Chula Vista/Bonita Vista HS), the six other San Diego products are redshirt sophomore Steven Coe (Valley Center/Valley Center HS), sophomores Tyler Plantier (Poway/Del Norte HS) and Jack Rupe, Jr. (San Marcos/Mission Hills HS), redshirt freshman Cameron Kurz (Encinitas/La Costa Canyon HS), and newcomers Vince Mori (Oceanside/Palomar College/Westview HS) and Griffen Case (Poway/Cathedral Catholic 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 ... Freshman right-hander Jonah Dipoto is the son of Jerry Dipoto, who pitched eight seasons for three organizations, and is the general manager of the Seattle Mariners ... True freshmen Tyler Durna and Tim Nelson were teammates at Chino Hills' Ayala High School.
HEAD COACH ERIC NEWMAN
Eric Newman is in his fifth season as the UCSD head coach. The 2012 CCAA Coach of the Year has a 140-86 record (99-57 CCAA) in charge of the Tritons and 235-158 overall in his seven-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 in May of 2014 in Stockton, to again nab the CCAA's automatic bid into the NCAA Championship. With UCSD earning the region's top seed, Triton Ballpark played host to the 2014 NCAA West Regional. Newman has led the Tritons to three CCAA banners and three NCAA postseason berths in his four years, including back-to-back appearances in West Region finals, as well as four plus-.500 and three 30-win campaigns. He previously went 95-72 in three seasons at the helm of Dallas Baptist University from 2005-07. Newman was the fifth-round draft choice of the San Diego Padres out of Texas Tech in 1994, pitching professionally for eight years with four different organizations.
TRITON STAFF
Eric Newman promoted Rob Avila to associate head coach this past off-season, with the Tritons' pitching guru also now in his fifth year at UCSD. J.T. Bloodworth is in his fourth season in the Triton dugout, now in his second year as the program's recruiting coordinator. Newman added Jeff Calhoon and former Triton Tony York to his staff. Calhoon spent the last two years at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, having completed his playing career as the starting catcher at New York's Niagara University. York was a relief pitcher at UCSD from 2011-12, compiling 10 saves. Calhoon coaches third base, while York has taken over in the first-base box.
ABOUT THE EAGLES
Concordia (3-5) is a member of the Pacific West Conference. It is in the second year of its three-year transition into Division II, and thus ineligible for the NCAA Championship. The Eagles are 3-1 at home and 0-4 outside of Irvine. They opened their season by dropping a four-game set, 3-1, against UCSD's CCAA rival, Cal Poly Pomona. CUI's lone victory that first weekend came in walk-off fashion, 4-3, with a four-run ninth in the first game of the home doubleheader. Brett Barker's two-out, two-run shot was the capper. The Eagles then swept a twin bill over Cal State San Marcos in Irvine last Friday, before getting swept in San Marcos the next day to split that series. Joe Turgeon is in his first season as the Eagles' head coach. He has just 28 players to work with on the 2016 roster.
SERIES HISTORY
UCSD leads the all-time series, 26-9-1, and has won four straight. The Tritons are 6-2 against the Eagles since moving up to Division II for the 2001 season. The teams last faced off over a decade ago, on Feb. 11, 2004, with the Tritons taking a 7-4 victory in La Jolla. They actually contested a home-and-home set early that season, with UCSD also winning 11-4 in Irvine one week prior on Feb. 4. The Tritons swept the two-game series in 2003 as well, with scores of 13-6 in Irvine and then 8-1 at home. The 2002 series saw a doubleheader split in La Jolla, with UCSD winning 11-5 before dropping the seven-inning nightcap, 2-1. A twin bill in Irvine in 2001 ended in another split, UCSD taking the opener, 8-3, and CUI returning the favor, 6-4. Both games were seven innings.
GEAR UP
For the latest in Triton athletic gear, make sure to visit ucsdtritonsgear.com. Run by UCSD Athletics' online partner, Advanced-Online, the site provides an on-demand option for Triton athletic apparel and merchandise. Fans have access to over 600 products that can be processed and shipped within 24 hours.
FOR THE YOUNGER CROWD
Got some young Triton fans in your family? If they are in eighth grade or under, check out the Junior Triton Club. Membership includes a free t-shirt, admission to over 100 UCSD home athletic events, and much more!
SOCIAL MEDIA (#TritonsRising)
UCSD Athletics on Facebook (UCSDtritons)
UCSD Athletics on Instagram (@UCSDtritons)
UCSD Athletics on Twitter (@UCSDtritons)
UCSD Athletics on YouTube (UCSDathletics)
Triton Baseball on Facebook (Tritonsbaseball)
Triton Baseball on Instagram (@ucsdbaseball)
Triton Baseball on Twitter (@UCSDbsb)
Coach Newman on Twitter (@CoachEricNewman)
Coach Avila on Twitter (@CoachAvi)
Coach Bloodworth on Twitter (@CoachBlood_)
Coach Calhoon Twitter (@CoachCalhoon)
UP NEXT
UCSD concludes a season-long 13-game homestand next week, while opening the CCAA portion of its 2016 schedule. The Tritons take on Cal State San Bernardino in a four-game, split-venue series, beginning Friday night, Feb. 26, at 6 p.m. inside Triton Ballpark. The division rivals contest a doubleheader at Fiscalini Field in San Bernardino on Saturday, Feb. 27, before returning to La Jolla for a 1 p.m. finale on Sunday, Feb. 28.
#TritonsRising
