RIVERSIDE, Calif.—UC San Diego baseball clinched a share of the 2023 Big West Baseball Championship on Sunday, defeating UC Riverside, 7-4. With the win, the Tritons (34-18, 21-9 Big West) ensure at least a share of the conference title in their third season of Division I competition. 
 
The Tritons swept the Highlanders (11-38, 5-22 Big West) for their sixth Big West series sweep and seventh of the season, moving to 12-15 (9-2 in D-I) in the all-time series with UCR.
 
In his final game as a Triton, redshirt senior Michael Fuhrman finished 3-for-4 with three RBI, two runs scored and two stolen bases. Doyle Kane went 3-for-5 with two doubles and two runs scored, while senior Crew Robinson capped a noteworthy series performance with a 2-for-4 day, including two doubles, an RBI and a run scored.
 
Senior Aren Alvarez (4-2) earned the win, pitching the sixth inning and allowing a run on two hits with two strikeouts. Izaak Martinez earned his ninth save of the season, closing out the final three innings and allowing one run on five hits with two strikeouts.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
UC Riverside was first to strike, scoring a run in the bottom of the first to lead 1-0. Starter Nic Gregson faced two batters over the minimum through the next four innings, including retiring the Highlanders in order the second and the fifth.
 
The Tritons had a runner in scoring position in the first and the third innings but came up empty both times. UC San Diego finally broke through in the fourth, scoring on an infield single by Fuhrman to tie the game 1-1 and the Tritons took the lead on another infield single by Emiliano Gonzalez to make it 2-1.
 
In the top of the sixth, the Tritons added to their lead, 3-1, on an RBI double by Robinson. UCR answered in the bottom of the inning, scoring two runs on three hits to tie the game 3-3.
 
UC San Diego pulled in front once again in the top of the seventh, scoring three runs on three hits and a UCR error. Kane advanced two runners into scoring position on a single through the left side and the left fielder bobbled the ball allowing a run to score on the error. Fuhrman brought in two more runs on a single to center field to make it 6-3.
 
The Tritons added one more run in the top of the eighth on an RBI double to right center by Noah Sudyka. UC Riverside answered with a run of their own in the bottom of the inning to make it 7-4.
 
The Highlanders brought the tying run to the plate in the bottom of the ninth, advancing two runners into scoring position with one out. Martinez secured a strikeout and forced a fly ball to Fuhrman in right field for the final out of the contest to secure the conference title.
 
QUOTABLE
"Really proud of this group, to accomplish what they did this year," said head coach Eric Newman. "To have this kind of a season is incredible for our program. Coming back from last year, regrouping and putting in the work. There were some ups and downs but we ended the season playing some really good baseball.
 
"It's all credit to these players. We've got some really good players on this team who bought into what we preached all year and did what we asked of them.
 
"We got two really great starts from Ryan Forcucci and Michael Mitchell this weekend and of course Izaak Martinez did his thing. Crew Robinson was a standout as well with the five doubles, he really made a statement in his final series."

TRITON TIDBITS

• It is the first Big West championship for UC San Diego across all Division I programs, in their third season of conference membership.
  • The Tritons are currently in year three of their four-year D-I reclassification period and are not eligible for postseason competition.
• The combination of Nic Gregson, Aren Alvarez and Izaak Martinez did not allow a walk in the contest while collecting seven strikeouts.
• Izaak Martinez earned his ninth save of the season and third of the series. It is the second time this season Martinez recorded a save in all three games of a weekend series. He now ranks second in the Big West.
• Seniors playing in the final game combined to go 6-for-13 with five RBI and three runs scored.

UP NEXT
While the Tritons have concluded their 2023 season, all other Big West teams will compete next weekend in the final week of the season. Currently UC San Diego is tied with both UC Santa Barbara and Cal State Fullerton with nine conference losses. Should the two teams drop one of their next three games, the Tritons would be the outright Big West champions. UCSB will travel to Hawai'i, while CSF will be on the road at Cal Poly.
 
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 began a new era in 2020 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 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.