CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif.  – The second day of the Mary Nutter Classic was an afternoon double-header for UC San Diego. In the first game of the day, the Tritons dropped 3-4 to the California Baptist Lancers in eight innings. Bouncing back in the second game, UC San Diego topped Southern Utah 7-2 to split the day.
 
UC San Diego moves to 7-7 and finishes the Mary Nutter Classic with one more game on Sunday.
 
CALIFORNIA BAPTIST 4, UC SAN DIEGO 3 (8 INN.)
In the top of the second, California Baptist scored three times – including a pair of unearned runs – to take a 3-0 lead.
 
In the sixth, UC San Diego was able to get on the board when Morgan Eng put herself in scoring position by stealing second, then Marissa Hassis laced a two-out single through the right-side bringing Eng home.
 
Kelley Renner kicked off the bottom of the seventh with a single line drive back to the pitcher. She was able to advance to scoring position on a wild pitch. Sophia Real then singled out to right field, advancing Renner to third. With one out, Kelia Bosinger stepped up to the plate and went 10 pitches to walk, a Lancer passed ball allowed Real to advance to third and Renner came in for the run. The Tritons tying run came when Bobbi Aguirre singled to center field and brought Real home.
 
In the eighth, another Triton error allowed the Lancers to score one final run. UC San Diego was unable to respond in the bottom of the inning, falling to California Baptist.
 
UC SAN DIEGO 7, SOUTHERN UTAH 2
Taking an early lead, the Thunderbirds scored two runs in the first inning.
 
Sophia Real jump started the Triton offense in the bottom of the third with a bunt single to third base. Real was able to get to second on a ground out, then to third when Bobbi Aguirre laced a single through the right side. Isabel Lavrov plated Real and advanced Aguirre to third with a two bag RBI down the left field line. With two Tritons in scoring position, Marissa Hassis hit a two out single to left center plating both Aguirre and Lavrov for a 3-2 lead.
 
In the bottom of the fifth, Lavrov hit a single past the short stop to get on and then stole second. Designated player Clarissa Reynoso reached on a fielder's choice, then a Thunderbird error advanced Reynoso to second and allowed Lavrov to extend the Tritons' lead to 4-2.
 
The bottom of the sixth started with another Thunderbird error that allowed Alexa DeMarse to reach. Real walked, advancing DeMarse into scoring position at second. Keila Bosinger dropped a single to right center to plate DeMarse and move Real to second. Aguirre hit a sac bunt to bring Real home and Bosinger advanced to second and then to third on a wild pitch. On her fourth at bat, Lavrov made contact for the third time in the game to record her second RBI as Bosigner scored.
 
Southern Utah had no answer for Jada Cecil's pitching when she entered in the third. She faced 18 batters and recorded nine strikeouts, no hits, and no earned runs. Cecil is now 4-1 on the season.

TRITON TIDBITS

• After pitching in 11 games, freshman Jada Cecil has 51 strikeouts in her collegiate career.
• Junior Sophia Real has recorded eight hits so far in the Mary Nutter Classic and the highest batting avg. for the Tritons at .489.
• Freshman Alexa DeMarse recorded 10 putouts for the Tritons against Southern Utah.

UP NEXT
The Tritons finish the Mary Nutter Classic with a final game on Sunday, Feb. 27 against the Oregon State Beavers at 11:30 am.

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 has begun a new era 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 II and III 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 garnered 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 90 percent, the highest rate among public institutions in Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.