La Jolla

One man died after falling from a cliff about 200 yards north of Scripps Pier, and a woman was in serious condition Monday after falling partway down while trying to reach him, police said.

Marisa-Ann Ortiz, 21, and Jeffrey Alan Sardina, 22, had spent Sunday evening on the UC San Diego campus with a friend, Scott Douglas Simon, and the three ended up at the cliffs about 12:30 a.m., campus police said.

Simon told campus police that, about 2:30 a.m., he tired and went to the car to sleep. He woke up about 4 a.m., just as Ortiz approached and said she could not find Sardina.

Simon and Ortiz searched the cliff for about 20 minutes, then returned to the car. About 6 a.m., they searched the area again and spotted Sardina’s body about 7 a.m.

Simon left to call the campus police, leaving Ortiz behind.

When rescue workers arrived about 8:15 a.m., they saw Sardina’s body, and Ortiz was found about 25 feet from the bottom of the 175-foot cliff.

Capt. Allan Macdonald of the San Diego Fire Department said firefighters rappelled the cliff to reach the woman.

Ortiz was taken by helicopter to Scripps Memorial Hospital, La Jolla. She was in the surgical intensive-care unit with a broken pelvis, internal injuries and cuts, a hospital spokeswoman said.

George Dickason, county deputy coroner, said Sardina lived at 3048 Renault St., San Diego. An autopsy is pending.