BOX SCORE 1 | BOX SCORE 2 LA JOLLA, Calif. – Freshman Jeff Owen (Clovis, Calif./Clovis East HS) pitched a one-hit shutout and No. 29 Cal State Monterey Bay earned a split at UC San Diego on Saturday. The Otters dropped a heartbreaker first game, 4-3 before rebounding with a 9-0 victory in the nightcap.

"Owen threw an absolute gem when we needed it most," said CSUMB Head Coach Walt White. "He filled up the strike zone and we played a great defensive game. Offensively, we put together a big inning and continued to apply pressure as the game progressed." 
 
Junior shortstop Jason Merjano (San Ramon, Calif./Sierra College) led the Otters, going 4-for-8 with a single, a double, at triple and a home run on the day.  Junior first baseman Brian Haggett (Hollister, Calif./Sacramento State) homered for the first time this season, ending the day with three hits.
 
The finale of the four-game series will be on Sunday at 11 a.m. The Otters (13-8, 6-5 CCAA) will have junior Jonas Noack (San Diego, Calif./UOP) on the mound, facing UCSD's Greg Selarz.
 
 
Game 1: UCSD 4, CSUMB 3
 
The Otters put up two runs in the third inning. Merjano led off with a double and scored on Jeff Phillips' sacrifice fly.  Three consecutive CSUMB singles from Haggett, DeCastro and George earned another run.
 
UCSD's solo run in the fifth came off of Richard Seigel's two-out single.
 
The Tritons took their first lead of the game, scoring two runs in the sixth on three hits.
 
CSUMB rallied in the eighth to knot the game at 3-3 when George scored on Jesse Olson's fielder's choice. 
 
With two outs in the ninth, Spencer Frazier drove in Ryan O'Malley to clinch the 4-3 victory for UCSD.
 
Senior ace Aaron Appino (Rancho Cordova, Calif./Sacramento CC) gave up three runs in his six innings, striking out three and walking one. Junior Dylan Auker (San Jose, Calif./VCU) took the loss after throwing 2 1/3 innings in relief, surrendering one run on three hits.
 
Game 2: CSUMB 9, UCSD 0
 
Merjano drove in four runs, including a three-run homer as the Otters tallied six runs in the third. Haggett went 2-for-2 with a two-run home run in the breakout inning.
 
The Otters increased their NCAA lead in triples to 12 on Merjano's two-out RBI triple in the fourth and Chris Lopiccolo's leadoff triple the following inning. Lopiccolo crossed the plate on a wild pitch while DeCastro scored CSUMB's final run on sacrifice bunt by Ronnie Fhurong.
 
In a seven-inning complete game, Owen struck out seven batters and only relinquished one hit.