LA JOLLA, Calif. – The UC San Diego baseball will hit the road this weekend and face UC Riverside. The two squads have not faced each other since 2000.

DETAILS
Games 33-36
UC San Diego (10-22, 7-13 BW) vs UC Riverside (12-19, 10-14 BW)
Friday, April 30 at 6:00 pm
Saturday, May 1 at 12:00 pm (DH)
Sunday, May 2 at 1:00 pm
Riverside Sports Complex, Riverside, Calif.
Live Stats | Big West TV
 
PROBABLE STARTING ROTATION
Friday: UCSD RHP Cameron Leonard  vs UC Riverside RHP Zach Jacobs
Saturday game 1: UCSD RHP Noah Conlon vs UC Riverside RHP Tyler Frazier
Saturday game 2: UCSD RHP Aren Alvarez vs UC Riverside RHP Tucker Julian
Sunday: UCSD RHP Brandon Weed vs TBA

ATTENDING THE GAMES
Per current COVID-19 safety guidelines and protocols implemented by UC San Diego, spectators are not permitted to attend home games at Triton Ballpark at this time. Each active UC San Diego scholar-athlete is permitted to admit two guests per contest. Scholar-athlete guests must be pre-registered and follow all campus safety guidelines including – but not limited to – health screening surveys, wearing masks that cover nose and mouth at all times, and proper physical distancing. UC San Diego reserves the right to deny entry to, or remove, guests who are not in compliance, and may amend this policy at any time. Due to current campus policy, student-athlete guests for visiting teams are not permitted.

 
COVERING THE TRITONS
Media members wishing to cover a UC San Diego game in-person at Triton Ballpark this season must notify a member of the Athletics Communication staff no later than 24 hours before the first pitch. All media members will need to complete a UC San Diego symptom screening form on the day of game prior to arriving on campus.
 
Following the conclusion of home events, a video highlight melt and video postgame interviews will be made available for media members to download.

LAST TIME OUT
UC San Diego went 1-3 in their series against CSUB. The Tritons were competitive all weekend, with 9-7, 3-2 and 2-1 as the scores from their losses. As a whole, the pitching staff put out one of their best performances of the season and posted a 2.75 ERA for the series. Errors plagues the Tritons all weekend and proved to be the difference in their losses. The Tritons had seven errors against the Roadrunners including four in game one.
 
USE CREDIT UNION ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Blake Baumgartner was named the Triton Student-Athlete of the Week on April 19. Previously,  Michael Mitchell was named the Triton Student-Athlete of the Week on April 12, Ryan McNally was named Triton Student-Athlete of the Week on March 22 and Anthony Lucchetti earned the honor on March 1.
 
BIG WEST WEEKLY AWARDS
Senior Cameron Leonard became the first Triton to earn Big West weekly recognition when he was named the Big West Pitcher of the Week on March 15. The Triton ace pitched 5.1 scoreless innings and did not give up a walk or run in his first D1 win. He allowed two hits and his six strikeouts were one shy of his career high.
 
ALVAREZ STEPPING UP
Aren Alvarez had his best start of the season in a 7-1 win over the Roadrunners. He pitched a no-hitter up until the fifth inning and did not give up an earned run in 6.2 innings of work. Alvarez threw four strikes and only gave up one walk in his first collegiate victory.
 
PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE
The Tritons have shown good patience at the plate and have been walked 136 times. Michael Fuhrman has 17 walks to lead the Tritons. The Tritons were highly successful with this in 2020 and finished 3^rd in the nation in Division II with 146 walks.
 
FINDING A GROOVE AT THE PLATE
While Baumgartner struggled early in the season, he has started to find his grove at the plate in Big West action. He had an eleven-game hitting streak end on Sunday and is hitting .324 in conference action. Michael Fuhrman has also found a lot of success in conference games and has it for .317.
 
STRONG LONG BALL GAME
The Tritons' 24 home runs rank third in the Big West, only behind UC Santa Barbara and UC Irvine. Baumgartner leads the team with four and 12 total Tritons have hit the ball over the fence this season.
 
SCOUTING UC RIVERSIDE
The Highlanders are 12-19 overall and 10-14 in conference action. They are coming off a split series with Cal Poly. The Tritons last competed against UC Riverside in 2000, when they picked up their first ever win against the program. The Highlander offense is led by Ely Stuart who is hitting .374 and has 40 hits, 18 RBIs and 17 runs on the season. The Tritons will look to exploit a pitching staff that is last in the Big West with an ERA of 6.95.

TRITON TIES 
Triton Assistant Coach Bryson LeBlanc was on the coaching staff for UC Riverside from 2011 to 2018. In 2017, he brought in a Nationally Ranked Recruiting Class for the first time since the program had been reinstated. LeBlanc helped coach 31 All-Big West honorees and 18 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft picks during his tenure at UCR.
 
ON THE MOVE
After 20 seasons playing as an NCAA Division II team, the entire athletics program has begun a four-year transition to NCAA Division I, culminating in full DI status as a member of the Big West Conference for the 2024-25 academic year. At that time, all sports will be eligible for conference and NCAA postseason play.
 
RECORD WATCH
Several Tritons will look to break into the career top ten or improve upon their standings in the record book. Here's a rundown:

• Blake Baumgartner is tied with Gary Fessia and Alex Eliopulos for seventh in career home runs with 25. He will need one more to tie Craig Birk for sixth.
• Baumgartner also has 104 career walks, which puts him in a tie for sixth all-time. 
• Aaron Kim has 19 career home runs and will need two more to crack the top ten.
• Brandon Stewart has 33 stolen bases and will need nine to crack the top ten. He had 14 in 2020.
• Michael Mitchell has been one of the best closers for the Tritons. With seven career saves, he will need three more to break into the top ten.

 
HITTING MILESTONES
Baumgartner reached 150 career hits against UCSB and currently has 160. Brandon Stewart will need two more hits to reach 100 career hits. The only other play on the Triton's current roster that has more than 100 hits is Jackson Kritsch, who previously played for SF State for four years.
 
100 STRIKEOUT CLUB
Brandon Weed is the only current Triton with over 100 career strikeouts, but other Tritons look to join the ranks this season. Luke Mattson currently sits at 99 while Cameron Leonard is at 95.
 
HISTORY OF SUCCESS
During UC San Diego's Division II era, the Tritons were consistently one of the top teams in the nation. In their 20 year history of Division II baseball, the Tritons played post season baseball 11 times and made the World Series five times. They were back-to-back-to-back NCAA West Regional Champions from 2017-19 and finished runner-up at the World Series in 2010 and 2017. 

TRITONS IN THE PROS
In the 2020 MLB draft, the Tritons were one of three Division II teams with a player drafted when Shay Whitcomb was selected by the Houston Astros in the fifth round and 160th. The Tritons have had 23 former players drafted by the MLB and five sign free agent contracts.
 
BIG WEST PRESEASON COACHES POLL
1.             UC Santa Barbara – 119 (10)
2.             Long Beach State – 96
3.             UC Irvine – 95
4.             Cal Poly – 94
5.             Cal State Fullerton – 78
6.             CSUN – 64 (1)
7.             Hawai'i – 61
8.             UC Davis – 39
9.             UC San Diego – 33
10.           UC Riverside – 29
11.           CSU Bakersfield – 18
      () First place votes
 
UC SAN DIEGO ON THE WORLDWIDE LEADER
Most UC San Diego home baseball, softball, men's and women's basketball games and men's and women's volleyball matches are broadcast live on ESPN3. For more information on where to watch UC San Diego baseball, visit UCSDTritons.com/live.
 
UC SAN DIEGO ATHLETICS LAUNCHES WEEKLY PODCAST
As part of UC San Diego's transition to Division I, the Athletics Department launched a weekly podcast, Tritoncast. Produced by UC San Diego Athletics Communications, Tritoncast features in-depth interviews with UC San Diego personalities including scholar-athletes, alums, coaches, and administrators. Triton fans will get an inside look at the UC San Diego Athletics Department as the program transitions to NCAA Division I and the Big West Conference. New episodes of Tritoncast are available each week on the most popular podcasting apps, including Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Audible, iHeartRadio, Pandora, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Vurbl. In addition, each episode can be heard and downloaded on UCSDTritons.com. For individual show information and listen links, follow Tritoncast on Twitter @Tritoncast.
 
FOLLOW ON SOCIAL
You can follow the Tritons on Facebook, Twitter and Instragram. The team's handle is UCSDbsb.
 
FOR THE YOUNGER CROWD
Got some young Triton fans in your family? If they are eighth grade or under, check out the Junior Triton Club. Membership includes a free t-shirt, admission to over 100 UC San Diego home athletic events, and much more!
 
GEAR
For the latest Triton apparel and accessories, visit the official team store of the Tritons here.
 
UP NEXT
The Tritons remain on the road and face Cal State Fullerton May 7-9. 

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 honors, while 38 have earned 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.