DAVIS, Calif.—UC San Diego baseball allowed four runs in the bottom of the ninth to fall to UC Davis, 6-5, on Saturday afternoon at Dobbins Stadium to even series 1-1.
 
The Tritons (23-26, 12-11 Big West) were led offensively by Emiliano Gonzalez who finished 3-for-4 with a double, an RBI and a run scored and Luke Saunders who finished 3-for-5 with two doubles, an RBI and run scored. 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Tritons were first to get on the board, scoring on a double to left field by Luke Saunders to make it 1-0. UC San Diego added another run the following inning with an RBI single the center by Gonzalez.
 
Starting pitcher Austin Smith and reliever Izaak Martinez combined shutout the Aggies (5-28, 4-18 Big West) through the first 6.1 innings. UCD finally broke through in the bottom of the seventh, scoring on a sac-fly and an RBI single to tie the game, 2-2.
 
The Tritons answered the following inning, breaking the tie with an infield single by Matt Halbach to score Saunders from second. UC San Diego added to its lead with a two-RBI to left field by Ryan McNally to make it 5-2.
 
 In the bottom of the ninth, Aren Alvarez notched a strikeout to begin the inning but the runner reached on an error to put the leadoff man aboard. A sac-fly brought the first UCD run in two batters later and three consecutive RBI singles with two-outs secured the walk-off victory for the Aggies.
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Starting pitcher Austin Smith went 2.0 scoreless innings, allowing two hits with no walks and two strikeouts.
• Aren Alvarez (3-4) was credited with the loss, allowing four unearned runs on four hits and one error with two strikeouts.
• Izaak Martinez tied his season high with six strikeouts in 4.1 innings in relief, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks.
• Emiliano Gonzalez, Matt Halbach, Ryan McNally and Luke Saunders were credited with RBI for the Tritons.
• Emiliano Gonzalez and Luke Saunders turned in multi-hit performances.
• With the loss, UC San Diego falls to 4-2 in the all-time (D-I) series with UC Davis (8-16 all-time) and 1-1 in the weekend series.

 
UP NEXT
UC San Diego will look to take the series in the rubber match on Sunday against UC Davis. First pitch is scheduled for 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.