Game 1 Box

Game 2 Box

LA JOLLA -- Cal State L.A.'s baseball team made sure a big day of offense didn't completely go to waste.

After dropping the opener of a California Collegiate Athletic Association doubleheader despite collecting 18 hits, the Golden Eagles shut down UC San Diego's offense to win the nightcap, 3-1. Cal State L.A. (20-12, 15-9 CCAA) took three games in the four-game series against the two-time defending conference champions.

The Golden Eagles lost the opener, 11-8, in a game that featured 30 hits, six errors and 21 runners left on base. Cal State L.A. had 18 hits, but committed four errors that helped UC San Diego (21-10, 14-9 CCAA) score five unearned runs.

In the nightcap, Gabriel Asakura rolled through another potent lineup, this time limiting UC San Diego to just four hits and one run over six innings and improving to 5-0 on the season. Jacob Valenzuela worked a scoreless seventh inning to post his second save of the series and his third of the season.

The Golden Eagles scored once in the fourth to break a scoreless tie and then put the game out of reach with two runs in the fifth. Brian Moon delivered a two-out single to drive in Cliff Quick to snap the scoreless tie in the fourth, Joe Park doubled in a run in the fifth to make it 2-0 and he later scored on an UC San Diego error to make it 3-0.

That was plenty of run support for Asakura, who walked three and struck out five in his six-inning stint. Kellen Lee's sacrifice fly got the Tritons on the board in the sixth, but Asakura retired the final two batters of the inning to end his outing.

Valenzuela worked around a one-out walk and an infield single for his save. He struck out Aaron Bauman for the second out and the game ended when Kyle Saul was thrown out trying to steal third.

Cal State L.A. wound up with 27 hits in the doubleheader, while UC San Diego had 17.

The Golden Eagles got home runs from Chad Nacapoy and Brian Moon to highlight their offensive attack in the opener. The Golden Eagles took a 3-2 lead in the third inning when Nacapoy scored on an error, David Compton singled in a run and Chris Matzner drove in a run with a nicely-executed squeeze bunt.

The Tritons, though, rebounded with four runs in the bottom of the inning and led the rest of the way. Nacapoy hit a solo home run in the fourth and Moon hit one in the seventh, but UC San Diego still led 11-5 entering the eighth.

The Golden Eagles didn't go quietly. Brian Compton and Moon singled in runs in the eighth to make it 11-7 and Michael Vinyard doubled and scored on a fielder's choice by Nacapoy to make it 11-8 in the ninth. Cal State L.A. got the tying run to the plate with only one out, but the game ended on a double play.

Quick and Moon had three hits each for Cal State L.A., while Park, Nacapoy, #Brian Compton and Brett Whalen# had two hits each.

Cal State L.A. will return to action next Friday with the opener of a four-game conference series against Cal State Monterey Bay.