Junior second baseman Garrett was one of many Tritons that crossed the plate in a series against Cal State San Bernardino, as UCSD combined to score 35 runs in three wins to open the conference schedule. (Erik Jepsen/Guardian File)

Baseball — The No. 9 UCSD baseball team opened its
California Collegiate Athletic Association schedule with three straight wins
over Cal State San Bernardino before the finale of the four-game series was
rained out on Feb. 24.

The series started with the Tritons exploding for 13 runs to
open their conference schedule with a big win in front of a home crowd on Feb.
21. The teams then took a day off before UCSD traveled to San
Bernardino for a doubleheader on Feb. 22. The Triton offense
was clicking once again, as UCSD scored 22 runs in two more wins. The day’s
first game ended in a 10-5 UCSD victory and the second game lasted only seven
innings due to rain delays but saw the Tritons barely come away with a 12-11
win in the nightcap.

“It was great to start with three wins in conference; I
think it was more important to get the wins the way we did,” head coach Dan
O’Brien said. “Our guys showed a tremendous amount of character and
competitiveness and I was just very impressed with they way they handled
adversity throughout the weekend.”

While the Tritons didn’t get a chance to complete the
four-game sweep, they did showcase their offensive firepower in every game of
the series, totaling 35 runs in three games. In the 12-11 win, the Tritons
barely eked out a win after exploding for 10 runs in the third inning.

“As good as we swung the bats this weekend I think we can be
even better,” O’Brien said. “If our guys continue to focus on getting better
everyday and having quality at bats as the season goes on, we could have a
pretty phenomenal offense.”

Despite the offensive burst, UCSD nearly lost the game after
its normally reliable relief corps allowed six runs over 6.2 innings on top of
the five runs that junior starting pitcher Trevor Decker gave up in just a
third of the innings. Keith Noe was the first relief pitcher able to stifle the
Coyotes, as he pitched the final 4.1 innings, allowing only one run to earn the
win.

In the other two wins, the Tritons did not have to deal with
the Coyotes nipping at their heels as their offense put them out in front by
large margins early on. In the first game of the doubleheader on Feb. 22, UCSD
scored five runs each in the second and third innings and that was all the
Tritons needed as they cruised to a 10-5 win.

Once again, UCSD got a shaky performance from a starting
pitcher, but this time, the bullpen lived up to its early season expectations
and kept the Coyotes from clawing their way back into the game. Sophomore
right-hander Kirby St. John took the mound to replace freshman starter Guido
Knudson and turned in a brilliant performance to earn the win, pitching 3.2
innings of scoreless work in which he struck out eight Coyotes.

In the opener on Feb. 21, UCSD again used a big inning to
cruise to victory. This time it came in the seventh, when the Tritons, leading
6-5, put together a seven-run inning to jump out to a 13-5 lead they would not
relinquish.

Senior designated hitter Chris Franco led the Tritons
offensively, going 4-for-5 with a homer, three runs scored and three RBIs.
Junior third-baseman Justin Bono came in as a defensive replacement in the
sixth and hit a grand slam one inning later.

With the wins, the Tritons improve to 13-3 overall and 3-0
in their early conference schedule. Prior to the series, UCSD held the 16th
ranking in Division II but was bumped up to ninth after the impressive series
win.

“My stock answer is that [the rankings] don’t mean
anything,” O’Brien said. “But at the same time, we worked really hard to get
the program to this point. And so I’m very proud to get that respect from the
other coaches in the nation and I think our players should be very proud to put
themselves in this position. And I think it’s great for us to have that
bullseye on our back and to play the whole season under those circumstances.
It’s only going to make us better.”

UCSD will next host Cal Poly Pomona for two games on Feb. 28
and Feb. 29 before traveling to Pomona
for a doubleheader on March 1 in the start of twelve straight league games.

“There are no weekends off in our conference,” O’Brien said.
“Anybody in our conference on any given day can give you a heck of a game. But
if we just play our game and execute to our capabilities, I don’t think there’s
anybody we can’t beat on any given day.”