NORTHRIDGE, Calif.—UC San Diego baseball took the series finale at CSUN, 9-2, on Sunday afternoon at Matador Field. The Tritons (28-21, 15-12 Big West) earned their sixth Big West series win of the season, taking two of the three games with the Matadors (29-19, 15-9 Big West).
 
Starter Matthew Dalquist (6-2) had another strong outing on the mound, pitching 6.0 innings and allowing two runs on four hits with one walk and six strikeouts. Izaak Martinez earned his ninth save of the season, pitching the final 3.0 innings and allowing two hits with no walks and two strikeouts. After giving up two runs in the first, Dalquist, Martinez and the Tritons kept the Matadors off the board for the remainder of the contest.
 
Four Tritons tallied two hits in the contest and three recorded two RBI. Andy Ambriz finished 2-for-3 with two walks, a home run, two RBI and three runs scored, while Doyle Kane went 2-for-4 with a home run, two RBI and a run scored and Anthony Potestio finished 2-for-5 with a double, two RBI and two runs scored.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
It was another productive first inning for the Tritons, scoring four runs on three hits and one error for the early lead, 4-0. Gonzalez got the scoring started with an RBI double down the left field line, followed by an RBI single up the middle by Ambriz. Kane then sent a ball over the left field wall for a two-run homer to cap the inning.
 
The Matadors got a pair of runs back in the bottom of the inning with a two-run homer to make it, 4-2. After CSUN's offense in the first, Dalquist retired 17 of the next 20 batters faced through six innings—including retiring the side in the second and the fourth. 
 
UC San Diego added one run in the third, fourth, seventh, eighth and ninth innings to add to its lead throughout the contest. Ambriz knocked a solo home run to left in the third inning and Potestio followed in the fourth with an RBI single.  
 
The Tritons put runners on the corners with one out but a play at home and a play at third kept UC San Diego off the board in the fifth. In the top of the seventh, the Tritons cashed in on another rally with an RBI single by Rosengard to make it 7-2.
 
Potestio followed in the eighth with his second RBI of the day, a double to right center, to build an 8-2 lead. The Tritons rallied one more time in the top of the ninth, getting runners on the corners with no outs. Noah Sudyka grounded into a double play, but a run scored to make it 9-2.
 
Martinez faced two batters over the minimum in his three innings of work. A Matador reached base on a wild pitch after he secured a strikeout to begin the ninth, but Martinez forced three routine fly-outs to close out the contest and secure the save.
 
QUOTABLE
"Really proud of our guys and happy with the way they have continued to compete in the middle of a lot of adversity," said UC San Diego head coach Eric Newman. "This was a tough series against a good team on the road and it took our best to come out with a series win.
 
"This weekend was great to see some newer faces like Andy Ambriz and Anthony Potestio really contribute in big ways. We continue to get strong leadership from our older guys and it's exciting for me to see the continued competitive spirit of this group."
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Emiliano Gonzalez tallied seven RBI in the weekend series and drove in at least one run in the first inning of all three contests.
• Izaak Martinez leads the Big West after earning his ninth save in the contest.
• Matthew Dalquist ranks eighth in the conference with six wins on the year.
• Doyle Kane knocked his first home run of the season—second as a Triton—and Andy Ambriz recorded his second homer of the year.
• Andy Ambriz, Nick Costello, Doyle Kane and Anthony Potestio all recorded two hits in the contest.
• Andy Ambriz (1st of the season), Anthony Potestio (9th) and Doyle Kane (11th) had multi-RBI performances.
• UC San Diego moved 7-6 in the all-time series with CSUN and 2-1 in the weekend series. 

UP NEXT
UC San Diego will wrap up the 2024 season with a midweek game on Tuesday at San Diego State before returning to Triton Ballpark for a three-game series with Cal Poly beginning Friday. Tuesday's game will be streamed on the Mountain West Network and the weekend series will be broadcast on ESPN+ with live statistics available for all games 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.