LONG BEACH, Calif. - UC Riverside made the hour-long drive west on Friday night to visit Long Beach State in the first of a three-game series with the Dirtbags, falling 4-3 inside the confines of Bohl Diamond at Blair Field.

Jacob Shanks returned to his leadoff spot for the second straight game after starting the first eight games of 2022 in the role. Shanks sent the second pitch of the game into center field for a ground rule double, and after failing to come home in the first, redeemed himself an inning later with an RBI walk for UCR's first run.

Jacob Badawi knocked in his sixth and seventh RBIs in his last seven games with a bases-loaded single to left field in the sixth that scored Nathan Webb and Andrez Melendrez, giving UCR the 3-2 lead. Melendrez started at second for the ninth straight contest in place of Long Beach transfer Sean McLeod and went 1 for 3 on the night with a run. 

Tyler Frazier started his third straight Big West series opener on Friday, going 5.0 innings with a pair of strikeouts before coming out for Sergio Ramirez. Long Beach State tied the game at three in the sixth before walking in the game-winning run in the ninth. 

UCR and the Beach will pick up the series on Saturday with a 3 p.m. first pitch.