SACRAMENTO -- Rebounding with a midweek win over their local rival to get back into the win column, the Sacramento State baseball team continues a run of nine straight games at home beginning Wednesday (March 8) as Central Michigan comes to town for a four-game series. Moved up by a day due to the threat of weather in the forecast, the Hornets and Chippewas open with a single-game on Wednesday at 4 p.m., followed by a doubleheader on Thursday (March 9) at 11 a.m., then a single-game on either Friday or Saturday, weather permitting. First pitch for the series finale is TBA depending on weather conditions.
PLAY BALL…
WHAT: Central Michigan (6-5) at Sacramento State (7-4)
WHEN: Wednesday-Friday, March 8-10, 2023
TIME: 4 p.m. | 11 a.m. (DH) | TBA
WHERE: Sacramento, Calif.
STADIUM: John Smith Field
LIVE STATS: HornetStats.com - Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4
WATCH LIVE: ESPN+ - Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4
SCOUTING THE CHIPPEWAS…
Central Michigan enters the weekend series with a 6-5 overall record, having already spend a significant amount of time on the West Coast… The Chippewas, in the midst of 18 consecutive games on the road to start the year, split a pair of games at Saint Mary's last weekend and defeated San Jose State on Monday heading into the four-game stretch against Sacramento State… Central Michigan isn't scheduled to play its first home game until March 24, opening a three-game Mid-American Conference series against Kent State… Grad utility player Garrett Navarra, who pitches as well as plays the outfield, leads all regulars with a .394 average and a 1.032 OPS, while junior infielder Danny Wuestenfeld and freshman infielder/pitcher Christian Mitchelle are each batting .294 on the year… Sophomore outfielder Robby Morgan IV leads the team with four home runs and 12 RBI, but is batting just .200 on the year… The Chippewas' pitching staff has combined for a 5.53 ERA over 11 games, with opponents batting .261 against the staff collectively.
AGAINST CENTRAL MICHIGAN…
This week's series against Central Michigan will be the first between the two programs in their respective histories.
CONFERENCE CALL…
Central Michigan will be the third program from the Mid-American Conference that Sacramento State will have faced in its history, posting a 2-0 record against Eastern Michigan and a 4-0 mark against Northern Illinois… The Hornets took a pair from the Eagles back in 2001 at John Smith Field and swept a four-game set from the Huskies to open the 2022 season at home.
LAST TIME OUT…
After field conditions forced a change in venue, Sacramento State made the most of its newly gained home date on Tuesday (March 7), defeating Causeway rival UC Davis by a 9-6 score at John Smith Field. Seven different Hornets finished with hits, including two-hit performances from Martin Vincelli-Simard, Wehiwa Aloy, and Garet Crenshaw as Sacramento State broke a 5-5 tie with a three-run fifth inning and never looked back. Wesley Harper (1-0) earned the win in relief of starter Kevin Haynes, pitching two scoreless innings while allowing one hit and striking out a pair. Senior Jack Zalasky pitched the final two hitless, scoreless innings, striking out three to nail down his fourth save of the season.
LOOKING AHEAD…
Following the four-game series against Central Michigan, the Hornets remain home for four more games, welcoming long-time rival Fresno State to John Smith Field on Tuesday (March 14) before opening up Western Athletic Conference play against reigning regular season champion Grand Canyon on March 17-19.
HORNET SHORT HOPS…
• Tuesday's win over UC Davis was the fifth straight in the series for the Hornets against their Causeway rival, while improving to 2-0 in midweek games this year including a win over Nevada on March 2.
• The Hornets have won five of their last six midweek games dating back to last season.
• Freshman Wehiwa Aloy continued a torrid start to his collegiate career, extending his team-best hitting streak to 11 games to start the season following his 2-for-3 game against UC Davis.
• As of March 7, Aloy's 11-game hitting streak is tied for the second-longest active hitting streak in the nation behind only Florida State's Colton Vincent and Auburn's Bryson Ware. Vincent and Ware have hit safely in each of their first 12 games this year and have a 16-game and 13-game hitting streak, respectively, dating back to last year.
• Aloy's 11-game hitting streak is the longest by a freshman in the nation this year and is tied with Louisiana senior Heath Hood and his 11 consecutive games with a hit.
• Aloy's string of 11 consecutive games with a hit to start the year is the longest since Jorge Bojorquez's 11-game hitting streak that kicked-off the 2022 season and is two shy of Cesar Valero's team-long 13-game hitting streak from March 11 - April 2 last year.
• Since returning from injury against Nevada on March 2, junior infielder Gunner Gouldsmith has been one of the team's hottest hitters, collecting hits in all five games he has appeared in, including a season-high two-hit performance against Tulane on March 5. Gouldsmith is batting .500 with three runs scored and three RBI, including a pair of walks and two stolen bases.
• Sacramento State's offense has collected at least one extra base hit in every game this season, although its six-game streak with a home run came to an end on Tuesday against UC Davis.
• Although they went homerless on Tuesday, five different players have accounted for the Hornets' last five home runs: Garet Crenshaw (3/2 vs. Nevada - the first of his Hornet career), JP Smith (3/3 at USC - the first of his career), Josh Rolling (3/3 at USC), Jeffery Heard (3/4 at UCLA), and Martin Vincelli-Simard (3/5 vs. Tulane).
• The Hornets drew eight walks off the Aggies' pitching staff — its second-highest total of the year behind the 12 against St. Thomas in the second game of a doubleheader on Feb. 25.
• After trailing 2-0 in the second inning against UC Davis, the Hornets collected its fourth come-from-behind win of the year.
• One of three Hornets with two hits in the game, junior Garet Crenshaw collected his first career multi-hit game with his two doubles.
• Freshman Ryan Christiansen made his collegiate debut a memorable one, collecting his first career hit and driving in a pair of runs as part of the decisive three-run fifth inning that broke a 5-5 tie.
• Senior Martin Vincelli-Simard is a winner. With his RBI single in the fifth that broke the tie against the Aggies, Vincelli-Simard collected his third game-winning RBI of the season (no other Hornet has more than one) and his second straight after providing the winning RBI against Nevada.
• Seven different players have accounted for the game-winning run this year, as Gouldsmith joined the club with his score against the Aggies.
• Aloy's two-hit performance against UC Davis marked his sixth multi-hit game of the year — the most of any Sacramento State hitter thus far.
• Junior catcher Carson Blatnick has been perfect defensively behind the plate in 61 chances while throwing out five of the eight would-be basestealers against him thus far.
• When not playing first base, Vincelli-Simard has also been perfect behind the plate, extinguishing three would-be base stealers in seven attempts.
• Senior closer Jack Zalasky is getting results, notching four saves in five appearances thus far this season and entered the week ranked among the top five in the nation and atop the Western Athletic Conference leaderboard in the category in the early-going.
• Zalasky's 19 career saves rank third on the school's all-time list, trailing only Sutter McLoughlin's 33 saves from 2013-15 and Mike Frame's 26 saves from 1987-89.
• Zalasky's nine strikeouts are tied for third on the team (Noah Takacs with 17 and Tyler Stewart with 11) while he is holding opposing hitters to a .095 average.
• Junior right-hander Wesley Harper picked up his first win of the season against UC Davis thanks to a season-best two innings of scoreless relief, improving to 4-0 in the career overall with the Hornets. Harper has allowed only one run over four innings of work, holding opponents to a .188 average.
• Another reliable arm out of the bullpen has been that of junior left-hander Max Pettey, who surrendered his first run of the season against UC Davis, but has posted a 1.29 ERA in six appearances while holding hitters to a .130 average.
• Junior right-hander Jasper Nelson is unscored upon in four appearances out of the bullpen, allowing just four hits over eight innings of work, striking out five and holding opponents to a .138 average.
