THE SCHEDULE
Games 6-9 - CCAA Openers
vs. San Francisco State (0-5, 0-0 CCAA)
Friday, Feb. 16 • 6 p.m.
Triton Ballpark • La Jolla
Live Video • Live Stats

Saturday, Feb. 17 • 1 p.m. (DH)
Triton Ballpark • La Jolla
Live Video • Live Stats G1 • Live Stats G2

Sunday, Feb. 18 • 12 p.m.
Triton Ballpark • La Jolla
Live Video • Live Stats

The seventh-ranked University of California San Diego baseball program opened the season 4-1 last week and heads right into the 44-game California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) schedule this weekend. The Tritons, favored for second in the preseason poll behind reigning regular-season and tournament champion Chico State, host San Francisco State (0-5) in a four-game set beginning in primetime on Friday, Feb. 16, at 6 p.m. The series at Triton Ballpark on East Campus in La Jolla continues with a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday, Feb. 17, with a Sunday getaway game at 12 p.m. Saturday's doubleheader nightcap will be the shortened seven innings, with about a 40-minute gap in between games. The Tritons are 3-1 at home so far in 2018.

ADMISSION POLICIES FOR TRITON BALLPARK
General admission tickets to all regular-season home dates at Triton Ballpark are $5, whether a single game or doubleheader. UC San Diego students are admitted FREE with valid identification. Dogs and other pets are not allowed, nor are coolers. Bullseye Kettle Corn is on site for all home contests.

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 adjacent to the aquatics facility (across freeway bridge), or in the opposite direction, further down Voigt Drive and well beyond the right field wall and trolley construction site.

LIVE COVERAGE
UC San Diego home games at Triton Ballpark feature live online video on UCSDtritons.tv. All broadcasts are in high definition, and can be viewed from smartphones and tablets. Viewing is subscription-based, though it is free from UCSD campus IP addresses. The single-day fee is $5.99 (24-hour window), meaning doubleheaders are two-for-one. The play-by-play commentary is again provided by local radio personality Ted Mendenhall (@TedMendenhall). Events are archived. 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 this year primarily by following Triton Baseball all season long at their own Twitter handle (@UCSDbsb), with Instagram stories at @ucsd_baseball. Fans are encouraged to also still follow @UCSDtritons. Finally, check out the CCAA live scoreboard here to keep up on results around the league.

PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
Subject to change.
Fri: RHP Mitch Hickey (1-0, 1.80 ERA) vs. RHP Matthew Hernandez (0-1, 6.00 ERA)
Sat: G1 LHP Preston Mott (0-0, 5.79 ERA) vs. TBA
Sat: G2 RHP Jack Rupe, Jr. (0-1, 10.38 ERA) vs. TBA
Sun: RHP Jonah Dipoto (1-0, 5.40 ERA) vs. TBA

#BIGWESTBOUND
On Nov. 27, UC San Diego was officially invited to become a member of the NCAA Division I Big West Conference. The Tritons will begin a four-year reclassification period starting in the fall of 2020. They will play a full Big West schedule that season and will be eligible for the NCAA Championship in men's volleyball, men's and women's water polo, and fencing. For the 2024-25 academic year, all sports will be eligible to compete in Big West and NCAA Division I championships. Read the full press release here.

RANKINGS REPORT
UC San Diego was at No. 7 in the preseason edition of Collegiate Baseball Newspaper's NCAA Division II top-40 poll (Dec. 20). The Tritons were No. 4 and No. 19 in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) and Perfect Game preseason polls, respectively. D2 Baseball News has yet to unveil its initial prognostication. Regionally speaking, UCSD is listed No. 1 in the West by the NCBWA, with six of eight first-place votes, and No. 2 by D2 Baseball News (Jan. 29).

QUICK STATS

LAST TIME OUT
UC San Diego went 4-1 during its opening week of play, to wrap up the non-conference portion of its schedule. The Tritons surrendered the first run in all five contests, but rallied to win four. After a 5-3 victory at Concordia Irvine for starters, UCSD fell flat in an 11-1 loss to No. 4 Colorado Mesa in its home opener on Friday afternoon, Feb. 9. The Tritons then responded emphatically, however, with final scores of 10-3 and 14-2 against Concordia, bookended around a 12-3 rout of Mesa. Alex Eliopulos and Tyler Durna knocked in 12 and 10 runs, respectively, over the five games, with Eliopulos providing three long home runs, including a grand slam to cap the scoring on Sunday afternoon against Mesa. All six Triton home runs as a team were to right field. They totaled 36 runs on 33 hits in the three wins after the Friday disappointment. Junior right-hander Jonah Dipoto drew his first start since May 11, 2016, in Sunday's meeting with Mesa, and after allowing three runs in two innings, settled in to post three big zeroes and ultimately earn the winning decision.

DURNA NAMED CCAA PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Junior first baseman Tyler Durna on Tuesday was named the CCAA Player of the Week for the third time in his career. Durna hit .524 (11-21) and slugged .810 (2B, 3B, HR, 17 TB) with a .615 on-base percentage, all team bests, producing 11 hits, seven runs and 10 RBI. He walked five times without a single strikeout, and handled all 39 defensive chances cleanly. Durna reached base at least twice in each game.

POWER SURGE
UC San Diego's power surge from last season appears so far in this young 2018 campaign, to have carried over. The Tritons blasted six home runs in their first five games last week, all to right field, with a league-best (tied) three by redshirt junior third baseman Alex Eliopulos, the most recent one his first grand slam in a UCSD jersey. UC San Diego led the CCAA with 53 home runs last season, including 11 in a four-game series against Cal State San Bernardino to wrap up the regular season, and 11 more in six contests at the CCAA Championship. The Tritons topped the league thanks to a late-season outburst that saw them hit at least one long ball in a Division II-era (since 2001) program-record 11 consecutive games (May 4-18), with multiple blasts in eight of them, and 26 in all over the last 20 contests. It was the most home runs by a UCSD squad since the Tritons had 60 in 2010. The 53 were more than what UCSD managed in the previous three years combined (41), and is the fourth-largest single-season total in the program's D-II history.

LAST SEASON
UC San Diego wound up second in the CCAA South in 2017 behind Cal Poly Pomona (27-11) for the second year in a row, with a league record of 24-13, qualifying for a fourth consecutive CCAA Championship. That's when the Tritons caught fire, winning three straight elimination games at the CCAA Championship in Stockton before dropping a winner-take-all final to rival Chico State, and then sweeping through the NCAA West Regional with two victories each against higher seeds Dixie State and host Azusa Pacific. In its first return to the NCAA Championship since 2010, UC San Diego dropped a heartbreaker in its opener, only to take four more elimination games within a five-day span, and make it to the final round. Needing to beat West Chester of Pennsylvania twice on that final day of the season on June 4, the Tritons fell by a score of 5-2 in the initial meeting. Their final overall record stood at 44-19, marking the second-most wins in program history.

BANNER YEAR
Last year, the Tritons were NCAA Division II West Region champions for the first time under head coach Eric Newman and third since moving up to Division II for the 2001 season. They were previously crowned in back-to-back years in 2009 and 2010, finishing as national runners-up in the latter season, as well as in 2017. UC San Diego also won a pair of West titles in Division III, in 1987 and 1994.

2018 SYNOPSIS
UC San Diego head coach Eric Newman, the 2017 American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA)/Diamond NCAA Division II West Region Coach of the Year, has 19 returners and 16 newcomers to form a 35-player roster for 2018, after last season's edition posted a 44-19 overall record and secured the program's first regional crown since 2010. It marked UCSD's second-best win total all-time, as Newman's club went 12-4 in postseason play, including 7-2 in elimination games.

The Tritons are led by junior first baseman Tyler Durna, who produced the opposite of a sophomore slump and took a star turn a year ago, with his team-best .363 batting average, dazzling defense, a memorable 28-game hitting streak, and a stretch of 41 straight contests in which he reached base safely. Redshirt junior Alex Eliopulos, a La Jolla native (La Jolla HS) and second-year transfer from San Diego Mesa College, should be across the diamond from Durna again at third base. Jack Rupe, Jr. (San Marcos/Mission Hills HS), is a fourth-year senior right-hander, and Preston Mott a junior left-hander who was the Opening Day mound starter in 2017.

Among the prized incoming contingent are a pair of notable transfers from Pac-12 Conference powerhouses in redshirt junior power-hitting outfielder Zander Clarke from UCLA and senior right-handed starting pitcher Mitch Hickey out of Oregon State. Clarke, who bats from the right side, slammed 15 total home runs over an incredible summer as the Great West League (GWL) Player of the Year with the Portland Pickles, adding a second straight GWL All-Star Game appearance and in fact, GWL All-Star Game Most Valuable Player distinction as well. All of that netted the Newbury Park native an outfield spot on the 2017 Perfect Game/Rawlings Summer Collegiate All-America First Team. Hickey was one of 13 arms who saw action for Oregon State during a historic 2017 campaign that finished at 56-6 at the College World Series. That staff completed the year with a 1.93 team ERA. Hickey, a product of Morgan Hill in Northern California, compiled a 4.91 ERA over seven relief appearances, with one save.

Not to be outshone is an exciting crop of true freshmen, highlighted by the likes of right-handers Noah Conlon and Cameron Leonard, and shortstop Shay Whitcomb. In late September, Whitcomb and Conlon made Perfect Game's Top NCAA Division II Freshmen list at No. 7 and No. 8, respectively, among 34 total prospects recognized. UC San Diego was one of four programs with multiple freshmen honored, but the lone one from the West Region, and the only one nationally with two in the top 10.

SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN
UC San Diego's 2018 schedule consists of 49 regular-season games, including 26 at home. Having contested four of just five non-conference dates in La Jolla, including two top-10 matchups with No. 4 Colorado Mesa, the Tritons dive right into league play with a four-game home set against San Francisco State this Friday night, Feb. 16. UCSD hosts 2015 and 2016 West Region champion Cal Poly Pomona, March 1-2, with a doubleheader in Pomona on March 3 to wrap up that series. The Tritons travel north for a four-gamer at two-time reigning CCAA tournament champion, 2017 CCAA regular-season champion and league favorite Chico State, April 6-8. The CCAA Championship will be held in the neutral-site city of Stockton for the sixth year in a row, returning to Banner Island Ballpark of the minor-league Stockton Ports, May 9-12. UCSD has earned four successive trips.

DURNA LOCKED IN
Tyler Durna finished fifth in the league with his team-best .363 batting average as a sophomore a year ago. He started each of the last 54 games at first base, reached safely in all but one, and had a hit in all but eight of them, including a 28-game streak from March 4-April 29 that was a record for UCSD's Division II era (since 2001), and likely a program standard. It is tied for the third-longest hit streak in the CCAA's unofficial record book. Durna had multiple hits in 16 of those 28 contests. He was fourth in the CCAA in on-base percentage (.469).

PRIME PITCHING
The UC San Diego pitching staff finished with a 3.67 ERA a season ago, 24th in the nation, fourth in the West Region and third in the CCAA. The Tritons have thus placed among the top three in the CCAA in ERA in five of the past six years. The UCSD staff in fact threw the most total innings in all of Division II in 2017, at 557.1, with fellow national semifinalist St. Thomas Aquinas closest at 530.1.

STRONG FIELDING
UCSD continues a tradition of being strong defensively. The Tritons posted a .974 fielding percentage in 2017, ninth nationally and second in both the West and CCAA behind Chico State's leading .983. UCSD had finished at .970 for two straight years in 2015 and 2016, leading the CCAA and ranking 20th in Division II in the latter. The Tritons were second in the CCAA, behind only Cal Poly Pomona (.971), and 21st in Division II, in 2015. UCSD has been in the top 30 nationally and top three in the conference in fielding for each of the past eight seasons. The Tritons were also second in the CCAA (behind Chico State) in 2014 with a .974 clip, and fifth in the country. In 2013, they 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. Only one program in the country has even fielded at a .980 rate since 2010, and that was Chico State a year ago, falling just short of the Tritons' D-II standard.

TRITON NOTES
UCSD is 6-1 in season openers under Eric Newman and 15-3 since moving to Division II status for 2001 ... UCSD is 5-1 in CCAA openers with Newman in charge, with five straight wins after a 4-1 loss to Chico State in La Jolla on Feb. 17, 2012 ... The Tritons are 10-7 in CCAA openers all-time (since 2001), and 10-1 with six splits in sets to begin the league season ... UCSD was picked to place second in the 2018 CCAA race by the league's head coaches, as announced on Jan. 29, with defending CCAA regular-season and tournament champion Chico State the favorite for the sixth time in seven years.

CCAA FORMAT
The CCAA baseball landscape has changed again, and after having two six-team divisions, North and South, the past two seasons, there are no divisions in 2018. The top six teams, by straight winning percentage, in the final standings, will qualify for the 2018 CCAA Championship. Third-year member and city rival Cal State San Marcos is eligible for the postseason for the first time. The CCAA has also gone away from a 38-game league slate, with four-game sets within the division and three-gamers against the opposite division. Each team will now play a four-game series with the other 11 squads, for a 44-game schedule. UC San Diego will be either entirely at home or away against the six northern teams, and face split-venue sets with the southern ones. The automatic qualifier into the NCAA West Regional is still the winner of the CCAA tournament, which remains a four-day, double-elimination event.

ROSTER NOTES
UCSD returns two all-conference performers from 2017 in All-CCAA First Team first baseman Tyler Durna and Alex Eliopulos, who earned honorable mention ... Durna was also a unanimous All-West Region selection by ABCA/Rawlings (First Team), the NCBWA (First) and D2CCA (Second) ... Eliopulos represented the Tritons on the NCBWA's preseason All-West Region Second Team ... All but five players on the 35-man 2018 roster, senior Jesse Moore (Port Orchard, WA) and newcomers Warren King (Bainbridge Island, WA), Garett Lake (Henderson, NV), Nick Senicka (Oak Brook, IL) and Tom Simpson (Port Orchard, WA), are California natives ... There are four San Diego products in senior Jack Rupe, Jr. (San Marcos/Mission Hills HS), redshirt juniors Eliopulos (La Jolla/San Diego Mesa College/La Jolla HS) and Cameron Kurz (Encinitas/La Costa Canyon HS), and freshman Evan Ianniciello (San Marcos/San Marcos HS) ... Junior right-hander Jonah Dipoto is the son of Jerry Dipoto, who pitched eight seasons for three Major League Baseball organizations, and is the general manager of the Seattle Mariners ... Redshirt sophomore utility Keenan Brigman (San Jose/UOP) is the younger brother of former University of San Diego shortstop and current Seattle Mariners top-30 prospect (No. 28) Bryson Brigman, a third-round selection in the 2016 MLB First-Year Player Draft ... True freshman right-hander Noah Conlon is the younger brother of PJ Conlon, a former left-handed ace for the University of San Diego who is currently the No. 23 prospect in the New York Mets organization.

DEBUT DETAILS
Over the first week of UC San Diego's season, redshirt freshman Antonio Barrios, Blake Baumgartner, Aaron Kim, Kyle Selor and Brandon Stewart, and true freshmen Noah Conlon, Garett Lake, Cameron Leonard and Shay Whitcomb, all earned their college debuts. Transfers Justin Beck, Zander Clarke, Mitch Hickey, Rj Prince, Mark Quinby, Christopher Schasteen and Tom Simpson made their first appearances as Tritons.

HEAD COACH ERIC NEWMAN
Eric Newman is in his seventh season as the UC San Diego head coach. The 2017 ABCA/Diamond Division II West Region Coach of the Year and 2012 CCAA Coach of the Year has a 212-126 record (143-87 CCAA) in charge of the Tritons and 307-198 overall in his nine-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. After reaching the finals of the West Regional in both 2014 and 2015, UCSD won its first West crown since 2010 last week in Azusa. Newman has led the Tritons to three CCAA banners, four NCAA postseason berths and one regional championship in his six years, as well as six plus-.500 and five 30-win campaigns. Last year's was his first 40-win squad. He earned win No. 200 in charge of UCSD against Chico State, 13-4, on the final day of the 2017 CCAA Championship on May 13. Newman won his 100th CCAA contest at home against Cal State San Bernardino, 9-4, on Feb. 26, 2016. 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 has Justin James back on his staff for a second year as the pitching coach, and J.T. Bloodworth for a sixth season in the UC San Diego dugout, now in his fourth year as the Tritons' recruiting coordinator. Jeff Calhoon is in his third go-around with Newman, who has also retained two former star right-handed Triton pitchers and Chula Vista natives who graduated in 2017 in Troy Cruz and Adrian Orozco. Bloodworth coaches third base and Calhoon is again at first base.

ABOUT THE GATORS
San Francisco State (0-5, 0-0 CCAA) heads to La Jolla winless after dropping a narrow 2-1 home decision to Academy of Art in 10 innings on Tuesday afternoon. The Gators were previously swept at home in a four-game series by No. 25 Azusa Pacific, Feb. 1-3. Scores were 7-3, 11-3, 4-0 and 11-4. Sophomore shortstop Jackson Kritsch is batting a team-best .550 (11-20). Friday will mark SF State's first road action of 2018. Tony Schifano is in his third season in charge.

SERIES HISTORY
UCSD is 47-17 against SF State since joining the CCAA for the 2001 season, and 30-8 over the past 38 meetings. This includes a 23-8 mark in San Francisco and a 24-9 record in La Jolla, with four-game sweeps in 2007 and 2009, and three-game sweeps in each of the past two years. The Tritons have thus won six straight, and nine of 10 the last three seasons, averaging just 2.9 runs allowed per game over those 10. The teams split their four games in San Francisco in April of 2014, as well as at Triton Ballpark in 2013. UCSD won the series, 3-1, in the Bay Area in 2012 and at home in 2015. The only time that SF State has bested the Tritons in a series was in UCSD's first year in the league, 2001, sweeping a shortened two-game set in La Jolla.

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 included 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 Marye Anne Fox Clubhouse down the right field line, which was introduced to the players on March 17, 2015. The official Triton Ballpark re-opening and clubhouse dedication took place on April 10, 2015. View photo galleries from the ballpark construction, Opening Day and dedication.

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 (#BigWestBound)
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 (@ucsd_baseball)
Triton Baseball on Twitter (@UCSDbsb)
Coach Newman on Twitter (@CoachEricNewman)
Coach James on Twitter (@CoachJames_3)
Coach Bloodworth on Twitter (@CoachBlood_)
Coach Calhoon on Twitter (@CoachCalhoon)
Coach Cruz on Twitter (@TroyCaseyCruz)
Coach Orozco on Twitter (@AdOrozco13)

UP NEXT
UC San Diego contests a four-game, split-venue CCAA series with Cal State Dominguez Hills beginning with single meetings in La Jolla on Thursday, Feb. 22, at 6 p.m., and Friday, Feb. 23, at 4 p.m.

#BigWestBound