RIVERSIDE, Calif. (Interstat) — A surging California Baptist squad will look to continue its dominant season when it hosts crosstown foe UC Riverside in a non-conference baseball game Tuesday at Riverside Sports Complex.

The Lancers (20-5) enter with one of the nation’s top records and are coming off a series sweep of Evansville, capped by a 9-1 win Sunday. The Highlanders (7-16) seek consistency after dropping two of three at UC San Diego over the weekend, including a 14-10 loss Sunday.

California Baptist, which boasts a .800 winning percentage, defeated UC Riverside 5-3 on March 3 in the teams’ most recent meeting. Interstat’s game simulator projects a 7-4 Lancers victory, with its ELO system giving California Baptist an 83% probability to win.

A key matchup will feature UC Riverside outfielder Robert Pitts against the Lancers’ pitching staff. Pitts is coming off a powerful performance Sunday, going 2 for 5 with a home run and four RBIs. Over his last 10 games, he has three homers and 11 RBIs.

California Baptist is expected to start right-hander Bryan Peck, who has been stellar in recent outings. Peck (2-0, 3.86 ERA) tossed six scoreless innings with eight strikeouts in Sunday’s win over Evansville. In a start against San Francisco on Feb. 27, he threw five hitless innings with 10 strikeouts.

The Lancers’ offense is averaging over eight runs per game during their current 8-2 stretch. UC Riverside’s pitching staff, which has a team ERA over 6.00, will be challenged to contain a deep California Baptist lineup.

First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. PDT under partly cloudy skies with a game-time temperature near 79 degrees.

Following Tuesday’s contest, California Baptist travels to face Saint John’s for a three-game series beginning Friday. UC Riverside opens a three-game home series against Cal Poly on Friday.