SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – UC Santa Barbara scored in three of the first four innings to establish an early edge, before riding a dominant pitching performance to a 7-3 opening-game victory over Missouri State Friday afternoon in the first contest of a three-game series at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium.

Tommy Jew went 3-for-3 with three runs batted-in to lead the No. 28 Gauchos' 10-hit attack, while Ben Brecht and Michael McGreevy combined to strikeout 16 MSU hitters. UCSB scored four times in the bottom of the third inning to snap a 1-1 deadlock, as the Gauchos answered the Bears' equalizing rally in the top half of the inning with a pair of RBI doubles and a two-run home run by Armani Smith to build a four-run lead.

Brecht (4-0) earned the win after limiting the Bears to three runs on five hits, while striking out 10 batters in his 5.1 innings pitched. McGreevy was equally as effective, allowing just one MSU baserunner, while fanning six hitters in his 3 1/3 innings of relief to lock up his fourth save of the season.

UCSB (15-3) wasted little time in seizing the upper hand, putting its first four batters of the game on base against Bears right-hander Logan Thomazin. After Tevin Mitchell drew a walk to lead off the inning, Eric Yang's soft liner fell in for a base hit, starting a string of three-consecutive singles that ultimately handed the home club a 1-0 advantage.

But Thomazin (1-3) avoided further damage thanks to a strikeout and a rather unconventional double play. After Thomazin fanned Marcos Castanon for the first out of the inning, Smith lined a pitch deep into the gap in right-center, only to watch Dakota Kotowski chase it down, then weel and fire back to the infield, where Mason Hull's relay to first completed the 9-4-3 twin-killing.

Brecht cruised through the first two innings, retiring all six Bears he faced, including four via strikeouts. But Joey Polak's leadoff double to deep center field sparked the MSU offense in the third, as four of the first five hitters in the inning would reach base safely. Ben Whetstone coaxed ball four from Brecht on a full-count offering and John Privitera dropped a short fly ball into the sun field in right to load the bases.  

Next, Logan Geha absorbed a Brecht pitch to force home the tying run, but Gauchos left-hander rebounded to log back-to-back strikeouts—his sixth and seventh of the afternoon—to squash the MSU rally and keep it a 1-1 contest.

Brecht followed with two more scoreless innings over which he retired eight of 10 MSU hitters, while the UCSB offense built a five-run advantage. The Gauchos' key rally started with a hit batsman, as Thomazin grazed Mitchell with a high offering, before a one-out double by Jew chased the UCSB leadoff man all the way home with the go-ahead run. A fly ball to center netted the second out, but Christian Kirtley promptly doubled home another run, and Smith launched a two-run blast to left to stretch the margin to four runs.

MSU (5-14) would pull to within three runs on back-to-back solo shots from Drew Millas and Kotowski to start the sixth, but Brecht once again had an answer with his ninth and 10th strikeouts of the game. McGreevy picked up right where the UCSB starter left off, setting down the first seven MSU hitters he faced before Sam Faith led off the ninth with a pinch single.

The Gauchos would tack on a single tally on a Jew sac fly in the sixth, before Thomas Rowan's base hit plated another run in the eighth.

Thomazin suffered the loss after surrendering five runs on seven hits in his 3.0 innings of work. Fellow freshman Hayden Juenger turned in a strong relief appearance, holding the Gauchos to a pair of runs on just three hits, while striking out six in his 5.0 frames to complete the contest.

Polak paced the MSU offense with a 2-for-4 afternoon.

The Bears and Gauchos continue their series Saturday with a 4 p.m. (CDT) contest, then conclude the weekend with a 1:30 p.m. game Sunday.