LA JOLLA, Calif. – The UC San Diego baseball team fell to University of San Diego 15-10 in game two of a four game series. The Tritons were able to keep up offensively with 14 hits on the day but the defense was not able to give them the support they needed.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Toreros took a 1-0 lead off a sacrifice fly in the first inning. In the bottom of the first, the Toreros loaded the bases with two outs. The Tritons looked to capitalize but Paul Gozzo struck out.
 
USD increased the lead to 6-0 in the second inning. The Tritons got on the board with an RBI single from Brandon Stewart who later scored as well, cutting the deficit to 6-2.
 
The Toreros would continue to tack on runs in the third and increased their lead to 10-2. In the bottom of the inning, Noah Sudyka sparked a three-run rally with a sharp double down the left field line.
 
Not backing down, the Tritons fought back from a 13-7 deficit in the sixth inning. Jackson Kritsch added a run and Sudyka hit his first career triple to bring in a pair of runners to cut into the Toreros' lead to 13-10. The Toreros limited the Tritons to one hit in the final three innings to hold on for the win.

FROM THE COACH
"It was a much better effort. We still left too many plays out there but I liked the effort, we competed really hard. The determination was there which is what we talked about today. We've just got to turn it around by staying determined and keep fighting," stated Head Coach Eric Newman. "We're still finding a lot about our team. I was happy with the way Nic Gregson went out there and competed for us. Desmond Cabanilla threw the ball well for us. We got some big outs from some freshmen when we had some momentum going. We made them squirm a little bit even with a big lead, we kept coming. And that's all I asked the guys to do after yesterday. I liked the way we responded today. We would have obviously liked to get a win scoring 10 runs. But that's something we have to work on and get through on the other side of the mound."
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• The Triton bullpen allowed six hits and three earned runs over seven innings.
• Gozzo went 3-for-5 from the plate with three RBIs. He also added two runs.
• The Tritons recorded two double plays, the most in a single game this season.
• Jackson Kritsch made his first start at second base and went 2-for-5 with a double.
• Blake Baumgartner had a team high 10 putouts.

UP NEXT
The Tritons hit the road tomorrow to face the Toreros in a 1:00 p.m. game.

About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions III and II and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America accolades, while 37 have received prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.
 
Return To Sport… Safely
In order for UC San Diego scholar-athletes to be permitted to return to training and competition safely and within federal, state, local and university guidelines, the athletic department implemented a number of measures designed to complement and enhance the university's highly-successful Return To Learn program.  Notable actions include being physically distanced when practical, including during out-of-season training sessions; wearing masks, except when undergoing physically strenuous exercise; and maintaining proper hygiene.  Athletes, coaches and staff are testing at a higher frequency than the campus population, teams adhere to CDC, NCAA and Big West Conference guidelines and department officials participate in regular meetings with conference and university-affiliated physicians and the UC San Diego emergency operations staff.