Cal State Fullerton and UC Irvine take identical 3-0 conference records into a series showdown at Anteater Ballpark this weekend, including a Sunday matinee that will be televised nationally on ESPNU.
AROUND THE BIG WEST
League Unbeatens Meet On ESPNU
A showdown between Big West co-leaders Cal State Fullerton and UC Irvine highlights this week’s schedule, culminating with Sunday’s 2:00 p.m. tussle at Anteater Ballpark airing live on ESPNU.
The Titans and Anteaters swept their conference-opening series last week to race out to 3-0 starts. Cal State Fullerton and UC Irvine were picked to finish 1-2 in the preseason coaches’ poll. Titan head coach Dave Serrano returns to his old stomping grounds as he guided the UCI program for three seasons before taking the reins at its cross-county rival.
CSF outscored UC Davis 46-13 to start Big West play with a flourish. The Titans have won eight of their last 10 games after a 7-9 start. After a two-week absence from the national polls, CSF reentered at No. 26 in this week’s Collegiate Baseball rankings. Prior to facing the Anteaters, which are nationally ranked as high as No. 18, the Titans travel to No. 2 UCLA for a Tuesday nonconference game.
UCI is playing solid ball as well of late. The Anteaters have won four straight and 10 of their last 12 contests. They are 9-1 at Anteater Ballpark heading into a Tuesday game against San Diego State. During that 12-game stretch, UCI has held its opponent to five runs or less 11 times.
In other action around the league, Central Coast rivals Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara battle in San Luis Obispo, while Long Beach State makes the trek to northern California to face UC Davis. UC Riverside also heads north to visit Pacific. Cal State Northridge plays a three-game non-conference series against Cal State Bakersfield.
McConkey Gets Triple Bug
UC Riverside senior first baseman Brian McConkey did something what many probably would have failed to predict in last Saturday’s game against Cal Poly. McConkey, who had all of one triple in 192 career at bats, delivered three three-baggers in the 14-5 UCR win. The three triples tied an NCAA single-game record held by several players. Albany’s Brad Daniels was the last to do so on April 9, 2006 against Hartford.
Brown Moving Up Steals and Triples Lists
Cal State Fullerton junior Gary Brown collected five stolen bases in the UC Davis series, giving him 67 steals for his career. He is now only three steals shy of moving into the Big West career top 10. Former Titan David Bacani (1998-01) along with UC Santa Barbara’s Mike Czarnetski (1987-90) occupy the No. 9 spot with 70 career steals. In addition, Brown is also climbing up the Big West record book in career triples. The conference leader with six triples in 2010, Brown’s career total is now 15, tying him for fourth all-time with San Jose State’s Ken Henderson (1988-91).
Weathers Captures 300th Win
Head coach Mike Weathers earned his 300th career win at Long Beach State on Friday night when the 49ers defeated Pacific 13-4. Weathers enters this week with a 301-193 record. He is the third Big West coach to reach a milestone this season, as Mike Gillespie won his 100th game at UC Irvine and Bob Brontsema captured his 446th win at UC Santa Barbara to become that school’s winningest coach.
Gillespie Nears Next Milestone
UCI’s Mike Gillespie is in his 23rd season as a college head coach, and owns a career mark of 897-512-2. He needs three more wins to reach 900. The Anteaters play four times this week, including a three-game series against Cal State Fullerton this weekend.
Pacific Among Nation’s Best In Hitting and Fielding
Pacific flirted with winning its first Big West road series at Long Beach State since the 1988 season, but faltered in the final two games. The Tigers won the series opener, 2-1, to claim their first road win against the 49ers since May 25, 1998. Despite the series loss, Pacific is still 17-9 on the year, and the 17 wins ties UC Irvine for most in the Big West. The team leads the Big West and ranks 25th in the nation with a .339 batting average. Additionally, the Tigers have a stellar .976 fielding percentage which ties them for the 20th-best mark nationally.
Going The Distance
The pitching staffs of UC Santa Barbara and UC Davis are tied for the league lead with four complete games. Mario Hollands and Nick Capito have gone the distance twice apiece for the Gauchos while Dayne Quist has amassed a league-best three complete games with the Aggies. Twelve different Big West pitchers have combined to throw 17 complete games through the first weekend of Big West play.
Cusick Carrying Hit Streak
UC Irvine’s Jeff Cusick owns the Big West’s longest current hitting streak at 16 straight games, which ties him for the 15th longest in Division I. Kansas State’s Nick Martini has hit safely in 23 straight games. The longest hit streak by a Big West player in 2010 was owned by Cal State Northridge’s Dominic D’Anna, who had an 18-gamer going before seeing it snapped on Sunday against UC Irvine. The owner of the nation’s longest hitting streak is Delaware’s Carlos Alonso at 32 games.
Ramirez Dialed In
Cal State Fullerton’s new ace of the pitching staff is unquestionably sophomore Noe Ramirez. The right-hander won his fifth straight start, allowing two earned runs in seven innings of work in CSF’s 20-4 win over UC Davis on Thursday. Over his last five starts, Ramirez has averaged 8.1 innings and nearly nine strikeouts. He is one of six starters in the Big West with an ERA below 3.00.
Cal Poly Off To Tough Start
Cal Poly is off to its worst start in 10 years with a mark of 8-18. The 2000 squad began the season 5-13 before reeling off a five-game win streak and eventually finishing 32-24. The Mustangs have yet to win a weekend series this year and hope to accomplish that at home this weekend against nemesis UC Santa Barbara.
House Of Sac Bunts
Get ‘em on, get ‘em over, get ‘em in. A tried and true philosophy of Long Beach State baseball over the year, the team is known for getting runners into scoring position with excellent bunting. Junior Jordan Casas is a reflection of that success. He currently leads the nation in sac bunts per game (0.42) and is a reason the 49ers are ranked fifth in the country with 32 sac bunts overall.
College Baseball Foundation Names Six To Watch Lists
The College Baseball Foundation released the first watch lists for the Brooks Wallace Award and Pitcher of the Year, and the Big West was represented by six players. The Brooks Wallace Award, which recognizes the nation’s top shortstop, includes Cal State Fullerton junior Christian Colon, UC Santa Barbara senior Matt Valaika and Pacific senior Ben Gorang on the list of 54 players being considered by the CBF. On the 49-player Pitcher of the Year Watch List, UC Irvine seniors Danny Bibona and Eric Pettis join UC Santa Barbara junior Mario Hollands as Big West representatives.
Colon was one of two finalists for the 2009 Wallace Award that appeared on the initial 2010 list. The other player was Jedd Gyorko of West Virginia. Both awards will be presented on July 2 in Lubbock, Texas, as part of the College Baseball Awards Show.
Big West Vs. Top 25
Cal Poly 0-4
Cal State Fullerton 1-4
Cal State Northridge 2-1
Long Beach State 4-3
UC Davis 0-1
UC Irvine 0-2
UC Riverside 0-3
UC Santa Barbara 1-3
Pacific 1-1
Most Multi-Hit Games
Gary Brown, Cal State Fullerton 16
Brian Martin, Pacific 14
Mike Walker, Pacific 14
J.B. Brown, Pacific 13
C.J. Belanger, Cal State Northridge 13
Most Multi-RBI Games
Dominic D’Anna, Cal State Northridge 9
Nick Ramirez, Cal State Fullerton 9
Ryan Pineda, Cal State Northridge 8
Jeff Cusick, UC Irvine 8
Brian Martin, Pacific 7
Tyler Pill, Cal State Fullerton 7
Longest Hitting Streaks
Dominic D’Anna, Cal State Northridge 18
Carlos Lopez, Cal State Fullerton 17
*Jeff Cusick, UC Irvine 16
J.B. Brown, Pacific 15
Mitch Haniger, Cal Poly 14
Gary Brown, Cal State Fullerton 14
* Current streak
Live On The Net
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