SAN DIEGO - UC Riverside picked up its three-game series with UC San Diego on Saturday afternoon at Triton Ballpark, falling 12-6 in game two. 

Andrez Melendrez lifted his on-base streak to seven games with a leadoff single to right in the third inning, and scored the tying run on an Andrew Rivas single to put UCR on the board. 

Anthony Mata enjoyed a 4-for-5 day in his hometown to go along with three runs. Mata singled up the middle in the third inning and moved over to second on a wild pitch before scoring the go-ahead run on a Dylan Orick single. Mata and Orick were two of eight batters UCR brought to the plate in the third. 

UCR left two runners on in the fourth inning before Mata up for it with a leadoff double in the fifth. A pair of Triton miscues moved Mata over to third, and he scored his second run of the day on an RBI groundout from Jacob Shanks. In all, Mata produced his second three-hit game in his last six outings.

UC Riverside threatened once more in the sixth with the bases loaded, but could not push another insurance run across. UC San Diego went ahead in the sixth and seventh innings on a combined seven runs, thanks to a pair of long balls in the seventh before tacking on more insurance in the late stages of the contest.

UCR and the Tritons will meet back at Triton Ballpark on Sunday for a 1:00 p.m. series finale on ESPN+.