SAN DIEGO - Ryan McCarthy's two-run home run in the top of the seventh ignited a four run rally to lift Santa Clara baseball past UC San Diego 6-4 in the series opener on Thursday night.

Trailing 2-1 and with a runner on, McCarthy took an 0-2 offering from Noah Conlon over the right field wall at Triton Ballpark to give the Broncos a 3-2 lead.

Santa Clara (5-7) extended the lead to 5-2 pushing across two more runs in the inning on Michael O'Hara's RBI single and Jason Dicochea RBI grounder following a Dawson Brigman hit and a UCSD fielding error.

After UCSD (1-8) scored a run in the home half of the seventh to cut the lead to 5-3, the Broncos pushed the lead back up to three runs in a series of well executed plays in the eighth.  Eamonn Lance, who safely reached base in all five plate appearances, led the inning off with a single and moved to third on a perfectly carried out hit and run.  He then came home on Dawson Brigman's safety squeeze.

In the bottom of the eighth, Anthony Lucchetti hit a solo homer off Locke Bernhardt to get the Tritons to within two runs again but closer Travis Howard struck out a pair of Tritons with a runner at first to end the inning.

Howard then closed out the game with a 1-2-3 ninth to pick up his third save on the season.

Bernhardt got the win after throwing 2 1/3 innings and striking out five.  Conlon took the loss for the Tritons tossing the final five innings, giving up five runs (three earned).  

Both starting pitchers were effective as Russell Grant went five innings allowing two runs (one earned), both coming in the first inning.  After giving up an RBI double to Jackson Kritsch in the first, Grant did not give up a hit the rest of the way.

Meanwhile, freshman Nic Gregson went the first four innings conceding a run on four hits.

NOTES
• Austin Reyes hit his fourth sacrifice fly of the season.  Entering the game, he was tied for third nationally and first in conference in the category.  
• Eamonn Lance collected three hits on the evening and now has five in the last two games.  

NEXT UP
The Broncos and the Tritons play the second game of a four-game series on Friday.  First pitch is at 1 p.m.