LA JOLLA, Calif.—UC San Diego baseball dropped a 9-5 decision to Hawai'i in game two of the weekend series on Saturday afternoon at Triton Ballpark. With the loss, the Tritons dropped to 0-2 in the weekend series.
The Tritons (23-29, 12-14 Big West) were led by
Marc Filia who finished 1-for-4 with two RBI,
Noah Sudyka who went 2-for-4 with a run scored and
Matt Halbach who finished 2-for-5 with an RBI.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Rainbow Warriors (26-21, 17-9 Big West) struck first, scoring with a two-run homerun in the top of the second. The Tritons answered immediately in the bottom of the inning, scoring on a ground-out by Halbach and a sac-fly by
Luke Saunders to tie the game 2-2.
Hawai'i did most of its damage in the top of the fourth, hanging five runs on the board—all earned—to take a commanding 7-2 lead.
UC San Diego threatened in the bottom of the fourth, loading the bases with one out but back-to-back fly-outs to left field ended the inning without a run. UH tacked on two more runs, scoring one in the fifth and one in the sixth to extend the lead, 9-2.
The Tritons got their second bases-loaded chance in the bottom of the seventh with no outs. A sac-fly by Filia and a ground-out to first by A. Smith brought in a pair of runs and the Tritons loaded the bases again with a Fuhrman walk but were unable to cut into the deficit further, ending the inning with a strikeout to make it 9-4.
UC San Diego rallied one more time in the eighth after two hit batters put the Tritons in scoring position for the second consecutive inning. Filia cashed in with a single through the left side but another strikeout ended the inning with the score, 9-5.
The Tritons were retired in order in the final frame and UH secured the series with the 9-5 victory.
TRITON TIDBITS
- Starting pitcher Zack Ernisse (3-3) went 3.0 innings, allowing six runs on 11 hits with three walks and one strikeout.
- Marc Filia, Matt Halbach, Luke Saunders and Austin Smith were credited with RBI in the contest.
- Matt Halbach, Jalen Smith and Noah Sudyka turned in multi-hit performances.
- The Tritons stranded 11 runners on base—compared to 10 for Hawaii—and left the bases loaded twice.
- With the loss, UC San Diego falls to 3-3 in the all-time series with Hawai'i and 0-2 in the weekend series.
UP NEXT
UC San Diego will wrap up the series with Hawai'i on Sunday in the final game of the season in Triton Ballpark. The Tritons will celebrate their four graduating seniors
Noah Conlon,
Blake FitzGerald,
Anthony Lucchetti and
Ryan McNally prior to first pitch at 1 p.m. PT. 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.
