HAYWARD, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay baseball team exploded for 21 runs in the first game of Sunday's doubleheader to secure a 21-10 victory over No. 17 UC San Diego. The Tritons came back to capture the nightcap by a score of 10-2 to close out the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) series.

For the weekend, UCSD (13-7, 9-3 CCAA) won three out of four games, out-scoring the Pioneers 32-24 overall. East Bay is 4-8 for the season with a 1-7 record in conference play after splitting Sunday's twinbill. 

Game 1 - CSUEB 21, UCSD 10

The Pioneers had their biggest offensive outburst of the season in the morning game. Their 21 runs came on just 11 hits, as they took advantage of 11 defensive errors by the Tritons.

After freshman left-hander Alex Vesia held UCSD scoreless through the first two frames, CSUEB got on the board in the bottom of the second inning with three runs. The Tritons made two errors to open the inning, and then Marcus Williams drew an eight-pitch walk to load the bases. Senior Ryan Kochan had the big hit in the inning, lining an opposite field single over the first baseman's head to plate two runs.

The third inning was a bit of a nightmare for the visiting squad, as the Pioneers sent 12 runners to the plate and scored nine runs. The rally consisted of two hits, two walks, and six Triton errors. Junior Rudy Navarro capped it with a line drive three-run homer into the trees in left, his first of the season. 

Triton starter Trevor Scott made it through 2.1 innings before UCSD went to the bullpen. The left-hander was charged with 10 runs, but none of them were earned. 

East Bay's lead was never really in jeopardy after taking the 12-0 lead, but both teams still had a great deal of offense in them. The Tritons answered back with three runs in the fourth, chasing Vesia from the game. They ended up hitting three home runs in the game, tacking on two runs in the sixth, three in the seventh, one in the eighth, and one in the ninth. 

Fortunately, the Pioneer bats were up to the task. They scored twice more in the bottom of the fifth, taking advantage of two more UC San Diego errors. The next inning, two singles and another error loaded the bases for East Bay with one out. After Ryan Kochan drew an RBI walk, Chris Porter belted a grand slam to deep left field to give the home team a 19-5 lead.

It was the third homer of the season for the Pioneer catcher, who leads the team with 12 RBI, 19 total bases, and a .679 slugging percentage.

Porter knocked in another run in the eighth, hooking a double into the left field corner to plate Ryan Wheat. Three batters later, senior Devin Higgins plated East Bay's 21st run of the game with a line drive single to right.

Senior right-hander Julian Garcia earned his first victory of the season in relief. He allowed two runs on three hits and struck out two Tritons in three innings of work. Michael Frantz tossed the seventh inning for the Pioneers, and Jason Fletcher pitched the final two frames to close out the game.

Porter finished 2-for-3 with a walk, six RBI, and three runs scored. Kochan posted a similar line, going 2-for-3 with a walk, three runs, and three RBI.

Junior Rob Link went 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored. Navarro and freshman Dakota Conners were both on base twice with a hit and a walk, and both scored two runs. Marcus Williams's line was a microcosm of the game, as he knocked in a run and came across home plate three times without getting a hit.

Game 2 - UCSD 10, CSUEB 2

Cal State East Bay's offense couldn't carry over its momentum to the second game -- a scheduled seven-inning contest -- as the team struggled to mount a rally against UCSD starter Troy Cruz. The junior right-hander picked up the win, allowing one run in five innings. 

The Tritons scored two runs in the second inning and three more in the third against Pioneer left-hander Angel Lara before head coach Bob Ralston turned to the bullpen. 

Freshman Andrew Fernandez came in to relieve Lara, but struggled with control, issuing six walks in 3.1 innings of work. Junior Cole Compton worked a third of an inning in relief of Fernandez, and Williams gave up a run on three hits in the seventh. The Triton hitters kept the pressure on, totaling 13 hits and drawing eight free passes in game two against the Pioneer hurlers. 

The Pioneer hitters did manage to get 10 hits in the game, but they left eight runners on base. The team squandered scoring chances in both the fourth and fifth innings, leaving a pair of runners on base in both frames when the deficit was just five. 

East Bay's only runs of the game came on two solo homers. Kochan cranked his second dinger of the season to end the shutout in the fifth inning. In the sixth, Link blasted his first career home run into left-center on a 3-2 pitch. The junior outfielder led the squad with a .364 batting average in the four-game series.

The first three hitters in the CSUEB lineup -- Myles Babitt, Conners, and Navarro -- all finished 2-for-4 in the second game. Junior catcher Wyatt Foreman went 1-for-3 with a double, his first extra-base hit as a Pioneer.

East Bay continues its CCAA schedule next weekend with four games against Bay Area rival San Francisco State. The series opens at home with a 2 p.m. game on Friday, Mar. 6 at Pioneer Field.