BAKERSFIELD, Calif.—UC San Diego baseball dropped a 4-3 decision to CSU Bakersfield on Friday evening in the series opener at Hardt Field.
 
 The Tritons (13-23, 4-9 Big West) were led by Marc Filia, who was credited with all three of UC San Diego's RBI, including a two-run homerun. Emiliano Gonzalez, Luke Saunders and Jalen Smith all tallied two hits in the contest. Ryan Forcucci and Izaak Martinez combined for 10 strikeouts and no walks, including three shutout innings for Martinez in relief.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Tritons got off to another hot start with back-to-back base hits to begin the game. Filia hit a ground ball to the shortstop, scoring Saunders on the fielder's choice and UC San Diego took an early 1-0 lead.
 
In the bottom of the first, the Roadrunners (answered with a hot start of their own, getting on the board with a two-run homer to take the lead, 2-1. CSUB added two more runs in the third with an RBI double and RBI single to earn a 4-1 advantage. 
 
UC San Diego got two runs back in the sixth with a two-run homerun by Filia to cut the deficit to one, 4-3. 
 
The Tritons saw their best opportunity to retake the lead in the seventh, loading the bases with one out. A fielder's choice play at the plate kept the tying run from scoring and a foul-out to the third baseman ended the inning and ultimately sealed the victory for CSUB.
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Starting pitcher Ryan Forcucci (0-4) pitched 5.0 innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on seven hits with five strikeouts and no walks.
• Izaak Martinez pitched 3.0 shutout innings in relief, allowing just two hits with five strikeouts and no walks.
• Marc Filia was credited with all three RBI in the contest for UC San Diego.
• Emiliano Gonzalez, Luke Saunders and Jalen Smith recorded multi-hit performances. 
• Austin Smith extended his 32-game streak of reaching base for the Tritons, reaching on a walk and a fielder's choice.
• The 4-3 decision marks the 10th one-run game of the season for the Tritons. UC San Diego is 3-7 in those games.
• With the loss, the Tritons fall to 1-4 in the all-time (DI) series against CSU Bakersfield and 0-1 in the weekend series.

 
UP NEXT
UC San Diego will face off in game two of the series against CSU Bakersfield on Saturday at 6 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and live statistics will be available via UCSDTritons.com.
 
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.