RIVERSIDE, Calif. (Interstat) — The 21st-ranked California Baptist Lancers showcased their potent offense and received a dominant starting pitching performance to overwhelm the UC Riverside Highlanders 12-1 in a nonconference baseball game Tuesday night at Riverside Sports Complex.

The Lancers (21-5) scored in five different innings, piling up 15 hits, while starter Michael Malki silenced the Highlanders’ bats over five masterful innings to secure the lopsided victory. UC Riverside fell to 7-17.

Malki, named the top star for California Baptist, set the tone early. After his team staked him to a lead, the right-hander was in complete command, allowing just one hit and no runs while striking out five. He faced only one batter over the minimum, effectively neutralizing the Highlanders and providing stability that his bullpen would later extend.

The most important sequence of the game came in the bottom of the seventh inning, where the Lancers broke the game open with a five-run outburst to turn a comfortable lead into a rout. Leading 7-0, California Baptist sent 10 men to the plate. The inning featured an RBI sacrifice fly by Matt Chavez, a run-scoring single from Chris Ramirez and a pivotal two-run double by designated hitter Cole Hansen, who finished 3 for 5 with three RBIs. Bryce McFeely capped the rally with another RBI double, pushing the lead to 12-0 and emphatically erasing any doubt about the outcome.

UC Riverside avoided the shutout in the top of the ninth when third baseman Lucas Bonham launched a solo home run to left-center field off reliever Kody Smathers. It was one of Bonham’s two hits on the night, accounting for the Highlanders’ only run. UC Riverside managed just five hits total against five Lancers pitchers.

The Lancers’ offense was relentless from the start, scoring two in the first inning on RBI hits from Hansen and Diesel Toth. They added single runs in the second and fifth, then two more in the fourth on a two-run single by Ben Castelli, who drove in three runs overall. Toth was perfect at the plate, going 3 for 3 with a walk, a double, an RBI and two runs scored.

Beyond Malki, the California Baptist bullpen was sharp. Luis Becerra and Sam Burgess each threw a scoreless inning before Smathers allowed the lone run in the final two frames. For UC Riverside, relievers Joshua Martinez and Matt Hudson provided brief bright spots, combining for 2 2/3 hitless innings with four strikeouts, but the early deficit was too large to overcome.

The game was a stark contrast to the teams’ previous meeting on March 3, a 5-3 California Baptist win. It also far exceeded the pregame projection from Interstat, which had forecast a 7-4 Lancers victory and gave them an 83% probability to win.

California Baptist, winners of eight of its last nine, now heads east for a three-game series at Saint John’s beginning Friday. UC Riverside, which has lost four of its last five, opens a home series against Cal Poly on Friday.