WAC TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES
Bakersfield (14-19, 7-5 WAC)
Bakersfield went 3-0 last week, sweeping Chicago State in a three-game WAC series ... the ‘Runners won the series by scores of 6-4, 16-7 and 11-0 ... redshirt senior Allen Gwynn reset his career high for most hits in a game (3) and RBI (3) in a game in the Apr. 12 16-7 victory over Chicago State ... Gwynn again posted three RBI’s against the Cougars in the 11-0 victory on Apr. 13 ... junior James Barragan tied his career high with seven strikeouts in the Apr. 12 victory ... Barragan threw the first five innings before giving way to freshman Steven Gee who recorded the save by pitching the final four innings ... it was Gee’s first save of his career ... redshirt sophomore Austin Davis reset his career high with nine strikeouts in the 11-0 victory over Chicago State Apr. 13 ... Davis allowed three hits and walked two in his first career shutout and second career complete game.
Chicago State (10-21, 0-9 WAC)
Chicago State went 1-4 last week ... the Cougars opened the week with a 6-1 setback to Notre Dame ... the team then rebounded to defeat UIC 8-7 ... the Cougars then went 0-3 in a three-game series at Bakersfield ... Chase Matheson led the Cougars at the plate, batting .526 with 10 hits, three runs scored, three doubles, eight RBI and a pair of walks ... Jared Patterson hit .450 with nine hits, seven runs scored, two doubles, four walks and four stolen bases over the five games ... Mattingly Romanin hit .308 at the plate with four hits, one run, three RBI and four walks ... Aveeno Nasiloski picked up the lone win on the mound last week as he worked 4.1 innings while giving up four hits with three strikeouts ... this week, Chicago State hosts Northwestern on Wednesday before welcoming WAC foe North Dakota for a three-game series that begins on Friday.
Grand Canyon (18-15, 8-4 WAC)
The Antelopes picked up their third WAC series victory in four tries after taking two of three games from conference leader Sacramento State ... the Hornets entered the weekend without a loss in WAC play, but GCU won the opener, 3-2, in dramatic fashion as Michael Pomeroy plated the game-winner in the bottom of the ninth inning ... after dropping a 5-4 decision in the second game, the sixth straight one-run game for the Lopes, GCU responded with an 8-6 victory in the series finale ... Pomeroy hit .500 (6-for-12) for the weekend, while Malcolm Purdy picked up a pair of wins after tossing 3.2 scoreless innings of relief ... Kyle Detwiler secured his second save in the series finale on Sunday ... GCU will now head to Lawrence, Kan., for a two-game, non-conference matchup at Kansas on Tuesday and Wednesday, before returning to WAC play at Northern Colorado beginning on Friday.
New Mexico State (13-19, 5-4 WAC)
New Mexico State played only one game last week and its three-game series at North Dakota was cancelled last week due to weather ...New Mexico State dropped a 9-6 decision at Air Force last week ... Jory Golfstrom went a perfect 2-for-2 in the game with one RBI and a walk ... Derek Umphres hit .500 with two hits, one run and a walk ... Michael Poulson led the team with three RBI in the game ... the Aggies host Seattle U this week in a four-game series ... the second game of Friday’s double-header against the Redhawks will be a seven-inning non-conference contest.
North Dakota (6-15, 6-3 WAC)
North Dakota had a four-game set with New Mexico State wiped out last weekend in what would have been the first true home games for UND ... UND has played just three “home” games this year, all coming in a series moved to Bismarck, N.D. (Mar. 29-30) against Northern Colorado ... North Dakota will play at South Dakota State on Tuesday before returning to WAC play at Chicago State beginning on Friday ... UND’s new home opener will come Friday, April 25 in the opener of a three-game set with Seattle, the start of eight games at Kraft Memorial Field still left on the docket.
Northern Colorado (5-31, 0-12 WAC)
Northern Colorado went 0-4 last week ... the Bears dropped a 13-5 decision at home to Air Force to open the week ... Northern Colorado then went 0-3 in a three-game road series at Seattle U ... the Bears dropped the three games by scores of 3-1, 4-3 and 6-0 ... Jensen Park led the Bears at the plate over the four games last week, hitting .474 with nine hits, three runs scored, two doubles, one home run, four RBI and three walks ... Ryan Yamane hit .333 with four hits, two runs scored and a pair of walks ... this week, Northern Colorado opened the week on Monday with a 14-3 setback at No. 15 Washington ... the Bears continue play this week at home with a three-game series against Grand Canyon which starts on Friday.
Sacramento State (21-14, 10-2 WAC)
Sacramento State had been 17-0 when leading after six innings before two late losses in four games last week ... the Hornets have played three extra-inning games in their last six contests, including a 15-inning game and a 14-inning contest over a span of three games ... senior David Del Grande broke the program record for career hit by pitches with two last week, giving him 40 career hit by pitches ... Sacramento State is still hitting .332 as a team with a 2.61 team ERA in a 10-2 start to WAC play ... the Hornets return to action on Tuesday when the team plays a non-conference game at UC Davis ... the Hornets then welcome Utah Valley to campus for a three-game series that begins on Thursday.
Seattle U (15-15, 6-3 WAC)
Seattle U rebounded with a perfect 4-0 week, defeating Concordia University (Ore.) in a midweek contest before sweeping Northern Colorado in a three-game WAC series ... Wednesday against Concordia, the Redhawks scored five runs in the third inning, and then the bullpen did the rest in Seattle U’s 5-2 victory ... Friday, Mac Acker pitched Seattle U’s first complete game of the season, and Brian Olson drove in all the Redhawk runs with a double and a home run in SU’s 3-1 victory ... Saturday’s game was a battle, but SU scored the go-ahead run in the seventh inning, and then used the relief pitching of Skyler Genger and Garrett Anderson for a 4-3 victory ... The Redhawks jumped on top Sunday with four runs in the first inning, and Connor Moore struck out nine batters in six innings as Seattle U completed the sweep with a 6-0 win ... Landon Cray led the Seattle U offense with seven hits during the week, while Olson drove in six runs ... SU plays at Portland Tuesday before playing three games at NM State.
Texas-Pan American (15-23, 5-7 WAC)
Texas-Pan American went 2-1 last week in a three-game series at Utah Valley ... the Broncs won the first two contests of the series by scores of 6-2 and 13-0 ... the team then dropped the series finale 14-11 ... Bryan Ramirez led the team at the plate over the three-game series, batting .667 with six hits, six runs scored, six walks, two RBI and a pair of stolen bases ... Ramirez earned WAC Hitter of the Week honors for his performance last week ... Ramirez had an impressive on-base percentage of .813 ... Blake English led the Broncs pitching staff, hurling a 7.0 inning complete game shutout victory in Saturday’s 13-0 win ... English threw 65-of-105 pitches for strikes and helped the Broncs clinch their first-ever road series victory over UVU ... this week, UTPA hosts Bakersfield in a three-game WAC series that bergins on Thursday.
Utah Valley (14-20, 7-5 WAC)
Utah Valley University saw both its six-game winning streak and a string of three straight series wins end against Texas-Pan American, dropping the first two games of the series ... the Wolverines salvaged the final game in the series, surviving a late UTPA rally to win 14-11 ... the Wolverines led 8-2 in the eighth inning before the Broncs rallied with seven runs to take a 9-8 lead ... Utah Valley responded by scoring six in the bottom of the inning, capped by a Jordy Hart three-run home run ... the Wolverines now head to Sacramento for a series at WAC-leader Sac State starting Thursday.
WAC NOTES
TEXAS-PAN AMERICAN’S RAMIREZ NAMED WAC HITTER OF THE WEEK
Texas-Pan American second baseman Bryan Ramirez has been named the Western Athletic Conference Baseball Hitter of the Week for April 7-13.
Ramirez, a sophomore from Pharr, Texas (PSJA HS), hit .667 (6-for-9), striking out only one time in four games last week. The Broncs went 2-2 on the week, winning two of three games in a WAC road series at Utah Valley. Ramirez recorded a .813 on-base percentage as he registered six hits and six walks. He scored six runs, tallied two stolen bases and knocked in a pair of runs over his four games last week. In the series at Utah Valley, Ramirez went 5-for-6 to lead the Broncs to a pair of WAC wins. Ramirez now has a nine-game hitting streak.
The other hitter of the week nominations: Bakersfield senior infielder Allen Gwynn … Grand Canyon senior first baseman Michael Pomeroy … Sacramento State sophomore Nathan Lukes … Seattle U sophomore outfielder Landon Cray … Utah Valley junior outfielder Jordy Hart.
BAKERSFIELD’S DAVIS NAMED WAC PITCHER OF THE WEEK
Bakersfield left-hander Austin Davis have been named the Western Athletic Conference Baseball Pitcher of the Week for April 7-13.
Davis, a sophomore from Scottsdale, Ariz. (Desert Mountain HS), reset his career high with nine strikeouts in an 11-0 victory over Chicago State on Sunday. Davis allowed only three hits and walked two in his first career shutout and second career complete game.
The other pitcher of the week nominations: Grand Canyon junior Coley Bruns … Sacramento State junior Alex Palsha … Seattle U senior Mac Acker … Texas-Pan American junior Blake English … Utah Valley sophomore Danny Beddes.
WAC TOURNAMENT HEADS TO MESA, ARIZONA’S CUBS PARK
The WAC has awarded Mesa, Ariz. the WAC Baseball Tournament for the 2014 season. The event will be played at the Chicago Cubs new Spring Training complex in Mesa. Visit Mesa, the destination marketing organization for the city, worked to secure the event which will feature the WAC’s top six baseball teams in May. In May of 2014, the City of Mesa will host the double-elimination tournament with the winner earning the WAC’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The top six teams from the WAC’s regular season standings will advance to the tournament.The WAC Baseball Tournament is no stranger to the state of Arizona and the City of Mesa. The league’s championship has been played in Arizona 12 times (1963, 65, 67, 69, 71, 73, 75, 76, 78, 2010, 11, 12) and the event was held in Mesa in 1971, 1973, 2010, 2011 and 2012. The $99 million new winter home of the Chicago Cubs is major league baseball’s newest stat-of-the-art spring training venue. The stadium will feature a 15,000 seat ballpark reminiscent of historic Wrigley Field; a state-of-the-art team clubhouse facility; a cluster of top-notch baseball practice fields; pristine youth soccer fields and a sparkling public lake that will boast an exciting new design.