BAKERSFIELD, Calif.—UC San Diego baseball earned a 6-3 victory over CSU Bakersfield to even the series 1-1 on Saturday evening at Hardt Field.
 
Zack Ernisse (2-1) was electric in relief for the Tritons (14-23, 5-9 Big West), pitching 7.0 shutout innings and allowing one hit while striking out a career-best nine Roadrunners (15-21, 8-6 Big West). Ryan McNally led the way offensively, finishing 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored, while four other Tritons tallied an RBI. 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
UC San Diego took the early lead in the top of the second, scoring on an RBI single and RBI double to earn the 2-0 advantage. 
 
The Roadrunners responded, scoring three runs in the bottom of the second and threatening for more with the bases loaded and no outs. Back-to-back strikeouts from Noah Conlon and Ryan Rissas and a groundout to Matt Halbach at first kept the deficit at one, 3-2.
 
The Tritons retook the lead in the sixth inning, scoring on an RBI single from Crew Robinson, a CSUB error and an RBI single by Luke Saunders. UC San Diego added an insurance run the following inning with an RBI single by McNally to take the 6-3 lead.
 
Ernisse came in from the bullpen in the bottom of the third and after allowing a two-out single, retired the next 16 batters in order. In the top of the ninth, Ernisse tallied his ninth strikeout to lead off the inning but the batter reached on a wild pitch to end the streak. He followed it up with another strikeout and back-to-back infield putouts to cap off his best performance of the season, earning the 6-3 victory.
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Starting pitcher Noah Conlon went 1.1 innings, allowing three runs on four hits with two walks and two strikeouts.
• Zack Ernisse (2-1) recorded season highs in innings pitched (7.0) and strikeouts (9), while allowing one hit, no runs and no walks for the win.
• Matt Halbach, Ryan McNally, Crew Robinson, Luke Saunders and Noah Sudyka were credited with RBI in the contest.
• Emiliano Gonzalez and Ryan McNally recorded multi-hit performances. 
• Austin Smith extended his 33-game streak of reaching base for the Tritons, reaching on a single.
• With the win, the Tritons improve to 2-4 in the all-time (DI) series against CSU Bakersfield and even the weekend series 1-1.

UP NEXT
UC San Diego will take on CSU Bakersfield in the rubber match on Sunday at 1 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.