LA JOLLA, Calif.—UC San Diego baseball defeated No. 12 UC Irvine, 15-4, on Friday evening in Triton Ballpark. The Tritons (22-10, 9-4 Big West) earned their fourth victory over a nationally ranked opponent in the Division I era, with the Anteaters (24-6, 10-3 Big West) marking the highest ranked opponent UC San Diego has defeated in four seasons.
 
Nick Costello matched the Tritons' Division I single game record with five hits in the contest, finishing the night 5-for-6 with four RBI, four runs, two home runs and a double—he finished a triple shy of the cycle in the contest. Patrick Hackworth went 4-for-5 with two doubles, an RBI and two runs scored, while Benjamin Rosengard finished 3-for-5 with a triple, three RBI and two runs scored. Michael Crossland also finished the night 3-for-5.
 
Starter Anthony Eyanson (5-1) earned the win, pitching 6.0 innings and allowing one run on two hits with three walks and six strikeouts. Three other Tritons pitched an inning apiece in the contest.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
UC Irvine took the lead in the first, scoring on an RBI ground-out to make it 1-0. After allowing two walks to start the contest, Eyanson retired the next three Anteaters in order to hold UCI to just one run. 
 
The Tritons got started in a big way by batting around in the bottom of the first and scoring five runs on four hits and two errors to take the lead, 5-1. Rosengard singled to right field but the ball went under the fielder's glove and allowed Costello to score from first and advance Rosengard to third. An RBI single by Bradlee Preap and an RBI double by Hackworth continued the early rally to make it 3-1. Doyle Kane brought in another run with an RBI ground-out and Brock Kleszcz reached on a UCI throwing error to bring in the fifth run of the inning.
 
Costello began the bottom of the second with a leadoff home run—his first of the evening—and Gonzalez joined him with a two-run homer of his own to make it 8-1.
 
Eyanson continued to shut down the Big West's top offense, retiring the Anteaters in order in both the second and third innings. Dating back to the first inning, Eyanson retired 11 batters in a row into the fourth inning before allowing his first hit of the contest.
 
UC San Diego did not let up offensively, adding two more runs on a triple to center field for Rosengard in the third to make it 10-1. The Tritons added four more runs in the fourth after loading the bases with one out. Hackworth scored on a passed ball and Costello cleared the bases with his second home run of the contest to make it 14-1.
 
Eyanson allowed just one base runner in both the fifth and sixth innings to cap his second consecutive one-run outing. 
 
The Tritons advanced two runners into scoring position with two outs, but were held off board in the fifth. In the bottom of the sixth, Crossland singled to bring in Costello from second to add to UC San Diego's lead, 15-1. 
 
Donovan Chriss retired UC Irvine in order once again in the seventh, before Xavier Franco took over in the eighth. The Anteaters were finally able to break through for three runs on three hits in the inning, but Franco secured a three-pitch strikeout to leave the bases loaded and squash the comeback. Devon King came out of the bullpen for the Tritons in the ninth retiring the first two batters he faced. After allowing a two-out walk he secured the final strikeout for the victory.
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Nick Costello's five hits matched UC San Diego's Division I record for hits in a single game. (Emiliano Gonzalez vs Northern Colorado, March 10, 2023)
• With his two home runs in the contest, Costello now leads the Tritons with eight total homers this season which ranks third in the Big West.
  • It is the second straight series a Triton has hit two home runs in a single game. Brock Kleszcz had two HR at Long Beach State (Apr. 5).
• Anthony Eyanson lowered his ERA to 2.56 with the one-run outing and now ranks third in the Big West. 
• UC San Diego's 17 hits matches the most the Tritons have recorded in a single game this season (17 vs Stephen F. Austin, March 2).
• With the win, the Tritons moved to 4-9 in the all-time series with UC Irvine and 4-7 in Division I.

 
UP NEXT
UC San Diego will continue the series with No. 12 UC Irvine on Saturday at 1 p.m. The game was originally scheduled for 2 p.m. but was moved up due to possible inclement weather. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ with live statistics 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 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.