LA JOLLA, Calif. — The 2026 softball season started off with a bang on Thursday evening as UC San Diego defeated Wagner 11-3 at Triton Softball Field. The game ended in the fifth inning thanks to the run rule.
 
Thursday night's contest was also the Tritons' first in their own La Jolla Invitational. The 10-game event runs through Saturday, with UC San Diego slated to play four more games, two each on Friday and Saturday.
 
The Tritons collected 11 hits, including a home run, while limiting Wagner to just three hits. Haley Garcia scored three runs and added a triple in her four plate appearances. Marley Espiau recorded two hits, including a triple, and drove in two runs, while also scoring twice. Alyssa Doucette tallied three hits, including a double and a home run, and led the team with four RBIs.
 
Lauren Rozell was the Tritons' starting pitcher, pitching three innings to earn the win. She gave up three runs, but only one was earned, and allowed just one hit. Callie Howard pitched two innings in relief with three strikeouts and no runs allowed.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Wagner took an early lead in the first inning with three runs on just one hit, capitalizing on a fielding error and four walks. UC San Diego then pulled one back in the bottom of the inning with Haley Garcia opening with a triple, followed by an RBI single from Maalia Cherry.
 
The Tritons seized control in the second inning with a five-run surge. Elise Nishimura was hit by a pitch and advanced on a sacrifice bunt. Samantha Womack and Marley Espiau both delivered RBI hits, with Espiau's triple driving in Womack. Lily Hermosillo's bunt single added another run, and Alyssa Doucette capped the inning with a two-RBI single, putting the Tritons ahead 6-3.
 
In the third inning, the Tritons extended their lead to 7-3 as Espiau singled in Nishimura. The fourth inning featured a solo home run by Doucette, increasing the lead to 8-3.
 
The fifth inning saw the Tritons add three more runs. After Espiau was hit by a pitch and later advanced to second, Garcia reached on an error, allowing Espiau to score. Another error by the Seahawks resulted in another run before Doucette doubled to bring in the final runner of the evening, concluding the game at 11-3.
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Five scholar-athletes made their first-ever appearance for the Tritons: Tyla Arbuckle, Maalia Cherry, Alyssa Doucette, Marley Espiau and Callie Howard. Doucette and Howard made their UC San Diego debuts.
• Eight of the 10 Triton starters are returners from last year's team that qualified for The Big West Championship in their first season eligible to do so.
• The Tritons saw eight of their nine hitting starters get a hit.
• The fifth annual La Jolla Invitational saw Saint Louis outlast Montana, 11-9, in Thursday's opener.

UP NEXT
The La Jolla Invitational continues on Friday with four games. The Tritons will be in the final two games of the day, playing Wagner again at 4:30 p.m. before playing Saint Louis at 7:00 p.m. Admission at Triton Softball Field is free, but note that parking permits are required 24/7 on the UC San Diego campus.
 
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 in NCAA Division I. The 24-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 84 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 NCAA Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.