LA JOLLA, Calif. – Missed opportunities defined the day for the Western Oregon baseball team, as the Wolves dropped both games of Thursday's doubleheader to UC San Diego, 5-0 and 9-3. The Wolves (1-3) left a combined 15 runners on base in the pair of losses.
 
WOU and UCSD (8-2) worked through two and a half scoreless frames despite the Wolves getting Justin Wakem to third base with one out in the top of third. The Tritons scored two runs on three hits in the bottom of the inning and two more on a home run in the fifth. UCSD grabbed an insurance run in the eighth to take a 5-0 lead.
 
Brady Miller (0-1) was tagged with the loss, allowing three earned runs on six hits with five strikeouts in 5.0 innings of work. Justin Wakem had two of the five hits for WOU in the opener.
 
UCSD jumped out a 1-0 lead in the second inning with a bases loaded walk after the leadoff batter reached on an error. The Wolves tied the game in the next half inning on a RBI single from Joey Crunkilton, scoring Forrest Garcia.
 
The Tritons added three runs on four hits in the third and three more runs on four hits in the fourth before Jacob Martinez lifted a sacrifice fly with one out in the fifth inning to score Garcia for a second time. WOU plated their final run in the eighth inning during a two-out rally. Spencer Bennion singled to keep the inning alive advancing Nyles Nygaard to third. Wakem singled up the middle to get Nygarrd in pulling WOU within five, 8-3.
 
UCSD capped the scoring for the night with a solo home run in the bottom of the eight.
 
Elias Bedolla (0-2) got the loss, allowing three runs on two hits, being chased in the third inning. Of the nine overall Western Oregon hits, Wakem again led the club with three hits while Crunkilton had a two-hit night.
 
The remainder of the series at UCSD will be determined after a rain storm in California, expected to drop over an inch of rain, passes. Stay tuned to WOUWolves.com and Western Oregon Athletics on social media for schedule updates.