SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay baseball team erased a 6-1 deficit to pull off a comeback win over Cal State San Bernardino on Friday, taking the opener of the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) series by a final score of 9-7.

It's the first road win of the season for the Pioneers (6-5, 3-2 CCAA), who are making their first Southern California trip this year. The game was moved up to an 11:00 a.m. start today at Fiscalini Field as the teams attempted to get the game in before it started raining. 

The home team seemed to benefit as they jumped out to an early lead over the Pioneers. Joey Dice drove in Dakota Conners with a single in the top of the second to put CSUEB ahead 1-0, but then the Coyotes answered back with a run in the bottom of the inning, two more in the third, and three in the fourth.

San Bernardino tallied eight hits off East Bay starter Alex Vesia, and they took advantage of three Pioneer defensive errors to plate three unearned runs. Andrew Fernandez relieved Vesia with one out in the fourth, and by the time he escaped the inning, the Pioneers trailed by five.

However the momentum flipped after that, and inning by inning, East Bay chipped away. In the fifth, Paul Bryniarski led off with a single, moved around to third, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Kyosuke Ushimaru. The next inning, Conners laced a one-out double down the line and Adam Hollar followed with a single. With runners on first and third, Dice blasted a three-run homer to center field, and suddenly the Pioneers had life. 

Jacob Eder led off the top if the seventh with a walk, and then a one-out single by Dallas Dey put runners at the corners. Head coach Mike Cummins called for Raymond Jones off the bench, who came up with a pinch-hit RBI single to bring the Pioneers within one run at 7-6. 

In the eighth, CSUEB tied the game without the benefit of a hit. Dice and Steve Robinson both walked, and then Ushimaru was hit by a pitch to load the bases with two outs. Dey then drew a free pass to bring home the tying run.

In the ninth, singles by Conners and Hollar set the table with nobody out. Then a CSUSB error on a pick-off attempt allowed Conners to score the go-ahead run. Dice reached on another error to put runners at the corners, and then Robinson added to East Bay's lead with an RBI ground out.

While the Pioneer bats were slowly erasing their deficit, East Bay's bullpen came up with a clutch performance to hold San Bernardino in check. Ransome Alexander allowed one run in two innings of work following Fernandez, then he handed the ball to Nick Risucci for the seventh.

Risucci turned in the best outing of his career, dominating the final three frames. He struck out the side in order after the Pioneers got within one in the seventh, then pitched around an infield hit for another scoreless inning after East Bay tied it in the eighth. When the Pioneers scored in the ninth to take the lead, the senior right-hander calmly retired San Bernardino 1-2-3 in bottom of the inning pick up his first victory of the season. Risucci ended up striking out five Coyotes in three scoreless innings. 

Offensively, the Pioneers totaled 11 hits. Hollar and Dice both went 2-for-4, with the latter knocking in four runs to lead the team. Conners finished 3-for-5 with three runs scored, and Dey reached base three times as well, going 1-for-3 with two walks. 

The teams will hope the weather cooperates for the remainder of the weekend, as they're scheduled to continue the four-game series on Saturday with a doubleheader scheduled for 11 a.m.