FULLERTON, Calif. – UC Riverside finished off a three-game series at Cal State Fullerton with Saturday's doubleheader at Anderson Family Field, dropping game one, 8-0 in five innings and game two 5-4 in eight innings.  

Game one began as a pitcher's duel with both defenses stepping up big in their respective turns at the plate. Fullerton's offense came through in the bottom of the second before Jantzen Owen caught a runner stealing. UCR held the Titans to a single run while leaving two runners on base.

Megan Casper went 4.1 innings in game one with a season-high three strikeouts, including two that left Fullerton with two runners stranded in the second inning. 

Haylee Kela turned a seven-pitch at-bat into a single up the middle in the top of the fourth for UC Riverside's first hit of the afternoon, extending her hit streak to five games. Kela later tied a season high with a six-game streak after a single in the third inning of game two. 

Cal State Fullerton broke the game open in the fifth inning before finishing off the run-rule victory. 

Gigi Araki opened game two with a quick two-run RBI double in the first inning before Fullerton pulled ahead with three runs in the bottom of the frame.

UC Riverside caught a break in the fourth inning, capitalizing on a pair of fielding miscues to tie the game with Araki and Kat Montuya scoring unearned. 

UCR and the Titans carried their battle into what turned into an extra inning pitcher's duel with both teams' aces in the circle, before Fullerton walked it off with a solo home run in the eighth inning. 

UC Riverside begins a six-game homestand next weekend, starting with a three-game set with UC Davis on April 8 at Amy S. Harrison Field. All three contests against the Aggies will be broadcast on ESPN+.