UCSB Baseball’s bid at a Big West Championship came to an end with a 7-0 loss to UC San Diego on Saturday at Anteater Ballpark in Irvine.
The Tritons will now take on Cal Poly in the Big West title game on Saturday at 6 p.m. UCSD will have to beat the Mustangs twice, with the if-necessary game scheduled for Sunday at 12 p.m.
With the Gauchos missing out on the automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament, they will now have to wait to learn their fate at the NCAA selection show on Monday. UCSB’s RPI (Ratings Percentage Index) currently sits at 35, giving them a strong chance at earning an at-large bid.
The Gauchos fell into a 5-0 hole in the bottom of the first as the Tritons took advantage of three free passes and a pair of UCSB errors to pull away while recording just one hit.
That score held until the bottom of the fourth when UCSD tacked on two more runs courtesy of a two-run single off the bat of sophomore Addison Klepsch to go up 7-0.
Meanwhile, the Gaucho offense struggled to get anything going against Triton right-handed sophomore Nathan Ries, who fired a complete game shutout.
Ries was dominant from start to finish, scattering four hits and two walks while striking out four in his nine innings of work. In fact, the second inning was the lone inning where UCSB had more than one baserunner.
The NCAA D1 selection show will air on ESPN2 at 9 a.m. PST, where the Gauchos are expected to earn a spot in the 64-team tournament by the majority of media outlets.