LONG BEACH, Calif.—UC San Diego baseball fell to Long Beach State, 10-1, on Saturday evening at Blair Field. The Tritons' (20-8, 7-4 Big West) were held to three hits to even the series, 1-1, with the Dirtbags (16-11-1, 5-6 Big West).
 
Nick Costello was responsible for the Tritons only run in the game—a leadoff home run—finishing the day 1-for-4. Bradlee Preap and Delshaun Lanier were credited with the other two hits in the contest.
 
Starter Zack Ernisse (1-1) pitched 4.0 innings, allowing five runs on six hits with two walks and two strikeouts. 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Both teams were slow to start the contest, with the first hit recorded in the bottom of the second.
 
The Tritons got their first opportunity in the top of the third, getting runners on the corners with one out. UC San Diego was unable to cash in, but the Tritons retired LBSU in order in the bottom of the inning to keep the game scoreless through three innings. 
 
Long Beach State broke through in the bottom of the fourth, scoring five runs on five hits and one error to build a comfortable 5-0 lead. The Dirtbags added to their lead with another run in the bottom of the fifth to make it 6-0.
 
Costello hit a leadoff home run in the top of the sixth and Preap reached with a two-out single but the Tritons were only able to come away with one run in the inning. LBSU answered with a solo homer of its own in the bottom of the inning to make it 7-1. 
 
UC San Diego got runners on the corners again in the top of the seventh with one out, but a strikeout/caught stealing double play ended the threat without a run. Long Beach State added another run in the bottom of the inning to lead, 8-1, after seven innings.
 
The Dirtbags added two more runs in the bottom of the eighth with a two-run home run to lead, 10-1.
 
The Tritons loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the ninth, but once again UC San Diego was unable to capitalize on the opportunity and LBSU evened the series, 1-1.
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Nick Costello hit his sixth home run of the season and currently ranks third in the conference.
• The nine runs marks the Tritons largest margin in a loss this season, with six of their eight losses coming by two runs or fewer.
• UC San Diego moved to 7-5 in the all-time series against Long Beach State and 1-1 in the weekend series.

UP NEXT
The Tritons will wrap up the series with Long Beach State on Sunday at 1 p.m. The game will not be streamed but 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 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.