SACRAMENTO, Calif. — After playing 19 of its first 24 games at home this season, the Sacramento State baseball team leaves the friendly confines of the state of California for competition for the first time this weekend, making the trip to Stephenville, Texas, for a three-game Western Athletic Conference series at defending league tournament champion Tarleton State from March 28-30.

Having won five of their last seven games, the Hornets open the series on Friday with a 4 p.m. PT start, followed by a 1 p.m. PT first pitch in Saturday's game two. Sunday's game three is scheduled for 11 a.m. PT.

PLAY BALL!
WHAT: Sacramento State (14-10, 2-1 WAC) at Tarleton State (11-15, 0-0 WAC)
WHEN: Friday-Sunday, March 28-30, 2025
TIME: 4 PM PT (Fri.) / 1 PM PT (Sat.) / 11 AM PT (Sun.)
WHERE: Stephenville, Texas
STADIUM: Tarleton Baseball Complex
FOLLOW:
Game 1: WAC International | Live Stats
Game 2: ESPN+ | WAC International | Live Stats
Game 3: ESPN+ | WAC International | Live Stats

GAME NOTES: Sacramento State | Tarleton State | Western Athletic Conference

PROBABLE STARTERS
Game 1: RHP Evan Gibbons (3-1, 4.04 ERA) at RHP Jake Burcham (1-3, 4.71 ERA)
Game 2: RHP Tyler Stewart (1-1, 3.34 ERA) at RHP Brian Panneton (2-1, 3.67 ERA)
Game 3: RHP Ethan Lay (1-1, 3.42 ERA) at RHP Holt Gibson (0-2, 5.76 ERA)

WE'LL DO IT LIVE
• The series opener on Friday will be streamed live via the WAC International platform, with Saturday and Sunday's games scheduled to be shown on ESPN+
• Live stats will also be available for all three games
• Links to follow along are available on the baseball schedule page at HornetSports.com

ABOUT THE TEXANS
• Tarleton State enters the weekend with an 11-15 overall record and will open their Western Athletic Conference schedule this weekend against Sacramento State
• The Texans are coming off a 10-7 midweek loss at Texas Tech on Tuesday (March 25), but took 2-of-3 from former WAC rival Stephen F. Austin over the weekend at home
• Like the Hornets, Tarleton State has been homebodys for most of 2025, playing 20 of its 26 games at home, posting an 11-9 record in those contests while going 0-6 on the road
• Senior infielder Slade McCloud is one of three regulars to hit better than .300 on the year, leading the team with a .374 average in 26 games, scoring 23 runs, and slugging 14 extra-base hits -- including nine doubles and a pair of home runs -- while driving in 19
• Junior outfielder Tyson Drake leads the team with six home runs and 24 RBI, batting .291 on the year
• Freshman infielder Rayner Heinrich (.354) and senior catcher/infielder Jaime Perez (.333) are also hitting above the .300 mark for the year entering the weekend
• Tarleton State is scheduled to throw RHP Jake Burcham (1-3, 4.71 ERA), RHP Brian Panneton (2-1, 3.67 ERA), and RHP Holt Gibson (0-2, 5.76 ERA), this weekend

SERIES NOTES
• Tarleton State leads the all-time series with Sacramento State, 5-3
• All three of the Hornets' wins in the series have come in Stephenville after they took 3-of-4 in 2021
• Last season, Tarleton State swept Sacramento State in Northern California in late April -- including a marathon 14-inning contest in the series opener -- and eliminated the Hornets from the WAC Tournament with a 12-6 victory in the opening round
• One team has scored double figures in a game five times -- four of those coming during that four-game series during the 2021 season

CONGRATS COACH!
• With two victories over UT Arlington last weekend, Sacramento State Head Coach Reggie Christiansen clinched career wins No. 200 and No. 201 in Western Athletic Conference play in his career
• The 201 victories are the most by any current WAC head coach, ahead of both Seattle U's Donny Harrel and UT Arlington's Mike Trepasso, who each have 141 wins during their tenure in the league -- 140 of Trepasso's coming during his time as head coach at Hawai'i, which was a member of the WAC during his tenure from 2002-12
• Coach Christiansen is 201-155 (.565) in 14 seasons in the WAC, winning league regular season titles in 2012 and 2014, as well as conference tournament crowns — and ensuing NCAA Tournament berths — in 2014, 2017, and 2019

ONE IS THE WINNINGEST NUMBER
• Tuesday's 4-3 win over Fresno State marked Sacramento State's 11th one-run decision (in 24 total games), improving to 7-4 in those contests
• The seven victories are the most for the Hornets since they posted 10 one-run victories in 17 chances during the 2022 campaign (58 total games)
• Another of the Hornets' outings have been decided by two runs (1-0 record)
• Eight of the team's last 13 games have been decided by a single run following Tuesday's contest

AS GOOGLE MAPS FLIES
• In the team's previous five road games, the Hornets have traveled a grand total of 780 round-trip miles for contests at San Francisco (twice), Pacific (twice), and Fresno State
• The mileage accrued this year so far would be less than half of this weekend's one-way trip to Stephenville, Texas (1,663 miles), to open a three-game series at conference rival Tarleton State

"SERIES"-OUS BUSINESS
• Friday night's are alright for the Hornets, who improved to 5-1 in series openers this year with their 8-3 win over UT Arlington last weekend
• Sacramento State is 3-3 in game two's and 3-2 in game three's (the Saint Mary's series was shortened to two games due to weather)
• The Hornets are batting .260 / .252 / .230 in games one, two, and three, respectively, while averaging 6.5 runs per game in the opener, 5.67 runs per game in game two, and 3.0 runs per game in the finale
• Sacramento State is outscoring opponents, 39-20, in the first game, the scoring is tied, 34-34, in game two, and the Hornets have been outscored, 22-15, in the final game
• On the mound, Sacramento State's pitching staff has posted a 3.00 ERA and a .222 average against in the opener and a 3.33 ERA and a .218 average against in the series finale
• Game two has seen the Hornets post a 5.00 ERA (compared to 5.40 for opponents) and a .270 average against
• Combined Sacramento State pitchers have posted a 3-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio, striking out 148 hitters against only 49 walks

BONUS BASEBALL
• Despite needing only 2:48 to finish the game, last weekend's 11-inning contest against UT Arlington was Sacramento State's longest of the year (in terms of innings) and the third to go to extras joining South Dakota State (March 1) and Pacific (March 9)
• The 11-inning contest against the Mavericks was also the longest since the Hornets and Tarleton State went 14 innings (and 4:21 on the clock not counting a rain delay) in the opening game of their series on April 26 of last season
• Sacramento State's three extra-inning games this year are the most since the 2023 Hornets played in four, posting a 2-2 mark in those contests

NOW WALK IT OFF (NOW WALK IT OFF)
• Senior Tyler White found some room against a drawn-in infield in game two against UT Arlington as his single drove home Jacob Cortez for the team's fourth walk-off win of the year
• Ryan Christiansen provided the dramatic finish against Ball State in the first game of a doubleheader (Feb. 21), Poturnak walked-off Pacific for a 1-0 win in the 10th (March 9), and Luis Pimentel Guerrero had the honors against Saint Mary's (March 15)

HOME IS WHERE THE WINS ARE
• Tuesday's win over Fresno State improved the Hornets to 12-7 at John Smith Field this season, just one win shy of its home win total from all of 2024 (13-18) and nine back of the 2023 campaign when Sacramento State finished 20-11

CYCLE SEEKING
• Prior to his 11th-inning heroics against UT Arlington, White nearly completed hitting for the cycle in the series opener with the Mavericks, finishing 3-for-4 while missing only the home run
• It marked the fourth near-miss of a cycle by a Hornet this season after Jakob Poturnak needed a triple in game four against Ball State on Feb. 22, Ryan Christiansen needed a triple in game three against South Dakota State on Feb. 28, and Pimentel-Guerrero's three-hit night against Nevada on March 10 left him just a triple short of the cycle
• The last Hornet to hit for the cycle was Jason Beeman at CSUN on April 24, 1994, who finished 4-for-6 with two runs scored and six RBI, while also throwing a complete game, allowing six runs on 13 hits and striking out three in a 14-6 victory

WE DEMAND... A SACRIFICE!
• Freshman Michael Perazzo has given himself up more than all but two players in the NCAA entering this week's games, tying for the national lead with nine sacrifice hits
• He is matched by Cal State Fullerton's Cam Burdick and NC State's Matt Heavner
• Perazzo's next sacrifice will boost him into the program's single-season top-10 list, while four more will tie him with Dane Fujinaka (2014), Blake Crosby (2008), and Bob Stevens (1975) for the record
• Six more sacrifices this year will tie him with Fujinaka and Kyle Moses (2012-15) for 10th on the career list

SEWELL STREAKING
• Sophomore Cameron Sewell enters this weekend's series riding a six-game hitting streak dating back to the second game of a doubleheader against Saint Mary's on March 15
• During that stretch, Sewell is batting .417 (10-for-24) with four multi-hit games, four runs scored, and nine RBI, adding a double, a triple, and two home runs
• His six-game streak is the longest active streak by a Hornet batter and is tied for the third-longest this season behind Jakob Poturnak's 14-game run from Feb. 17 to March 11, and Michael Perazzo's eight-game streak from Feb. 22 to March 11

LPG... OMG!
• Pimentel-Guerrero is in the midst of one of his best offensive stretches of the season, collecting multiple hits in seven of his last 12 games
• During that stretch, Pimentel-Guerrero is batting .400 (18-for-45), with seven runs scored and 13 RBI, along with eight extra-base hits -- including his first two home runs as a Hornet
• He now has 10 multi-hit games on the year after matching his Hornet career high with three hits against Fresno State on Tuesday, tied with his teammate Poturnak for the team lead

WINNER, WINNER CHICKEN DINNER
• Cortez's sixth-inning RBI single against Fresno State on Tuesday night made him the eighth different Hornet to tally a game-winning RBI this season
• White, following his walk-off hit against UT Arlington, now leads the team with three game-winning RBI on the season, while Ryan Christiansen, Elie Kligman, and Jakob Poturnak, have a pair apiece
• Cameron Sewell, Luke Oyler, and Pimentel-Guerrero as the other three to win it for Sacramento State

SHUT(OUT) THE FRONT DOOR
• The Hornets' 1-0 extra-inning win over UT Arlington last weekend marked the team's third shutout of the season -- the most for the program since the 2023 squad blanked St. Thomas (Feb. 25), Fresno State (March 15), and Seattle U (April 21), that year
• A fourth shutout this year would be the most in a season since shutting out four opponents in 2022: Northern Illinois (twice on Feb. 19), No. 6 Long Beach State (Feb. 25), and Seattle U (March 18)
• The three shutouts this year ranked tied for No. 13 in the NCAA entering the week, two back of national leaders Iowa, Northwestern, Southeastern Louisiana, and Wake Forest

BRIGHT AND EARLY
• Sacramento State has seized control of the game early thus far this year, outscoring opponents by a 45-18 count in the first two innings -- including 29 of those runs in the second inning alone
• The 29 runs in the second inning are the most in any inning this year, edging out the 24 runs scored in the fourth inning
• The Hornets are 6-2 this season when scoring in the first inning and 7-5 when scoring first

WHAT CAN BROWN DO FOR YOU?
• Preseason All-American and Stopper of the Year candidate Kade Brown has made eight appearances for the Hornets this year and has come away with a positive result in all but one
• Brown posted a win or a save in each of his first seven appearances this season before holding UT Arlington scoreless for 3.0 innings of work in the Hornets' eventual 1-0 extra-inning win in game two
• His latest save came in the opener against UT Arlington, striking out a pair and getting the final five outs in the 8-3 win over the Mavericks
• In the process, he lowered his season ERA to 0.47 and is holding opponents to a .111 average
• His save total puts him in a nine-way tie for fifth in the NCAA, just two back of Clemson's Lucas Mahlstedt for the national lead as of March 25
• Brown's latest save was the 14th of his career, putting him in sole possession of sixth on the school's career list, just two back of Tanner Dalton (2018-19) and Michael Penbera (1999-01) for fourth
• His six saves this year are two shy of his 2024 total, which is tied for 10th on the single-season list

KEEP CALM AND CAREY ON
• Making his first appearance on the mound since a Feb. 27 start against South Dakota State, sophomore left-hander Sean Carey posted his first collegiate win against Fresno State on Tuesday night
• Carey, making his 12th career appearance for the Hornets, went three shutout innings against the Bulldogs, allowing just two hits and needing only 28 pitches to dispatch the 10 hitters he faced

MONSON THE MAGNIFICENT
• It's been quite a week for senior right-hander Andrew Monson
• After claiming his second career win in the walk-off win over UT Arlington, Monson came in and nailed down his first career save as a Hornet in Tuesday's 4-3 win over Fresno State
• The Bulldogs loaded the bases with no outs in the ninth, but the righty wriggled off the hook, needing just three pitches to get out of the jam
• His first induced a double play for the first two outs of the inning, then got Justin Stransky to ground out on a 1-0 pitch to end the game

MY HERO ZERO
• Senior right-hander Evan Gibbons extended his run of innings without allowing an earned run to 16.2 innings in his last start against Pacific on March 7 before the Tigers struck for three runs in the sixth inning of a 6-5 Hornet win
• It was the longest streak by a Sacramento State pitcher since Travis Adams went 18.1 scoreless innings (four appearances) from April 10 to April 30, 2021: the last 2.1 innings vs. New Mexico State, 7.0 innings against SeattleU, 7.2 innings against Northern Colorado, and 1.1 innings against Grand Canyon
• Sophomore closer Kade Brown now owns the longest active streak by a Hornet pitcher at 14.2 innings, allowing just one unearned run over his last seven appearances

DON'T WALK
• As a staff, Sacramento State has walked only 72 batters in 217 innings and ranks No. 4 in the NCAA with walks allowed per nine innings (2.99)
• Offensively, the Hornets have walked nearly twice as much (122) as their pitchers have allowed (72)
• Sacramento State's staff also ranks No. 27 in the nation in strikeout-to-walk ratio at 2.85

"QUALITY" YOU CAN COUNT ON
• Out of the Hornets' four starts on the mound last week, three of those ended in "quality starts" as Colin Hunter, Evan Gibbons, and Ethan Lay all put forth quality efforts
• Sacramento State pitchers have thrown nine "quality starts" this season, four of those by Gibbons, three from Lay, and one each by Tyler Stewart and Hunter
• Gibbons allowed three earned over 6.2 innings, striking out six in his last start against UT Arlington, giving him his 17th such performance in 38 career starts as a Hornet
• Lay has "quality starts" in games against South Dakota State, Pacific, and UT Arlington, while Stewart (March 8 at Pacific) and Hunter (March 18 at Pacific) accomplished the feat for the first time this year
• All told, the Hornets are 7-2 in those nine "quality starts," including a 4-0 record in all four of Gibbons' outings this year

SPECIAL K'S
• When Tyler Stewart struck out a career-high 10 batters in a no-decision at Pacific on March 8, we thought that might stick for a while as the most by a Hornet this season
• That was until Ethan Lay came along and one-upped his teammate with 11 strikeouts in the series finale against the Tigers en route to conference pitcher of the week honors
• The 11 strikeouts were the most since Travis Adams struck out 13 Bears in a game at Northern Colorado on April 14, 2021
• According to available records, the back-to-back double-digit strikeout performances also marked the first time that a pair of Hornet starters finished with 10-or-more strikeouts in back-to-back starts since Mike Eby and Willie Rivera did so in a doubleheader against CSUN at home on March 19, 1995
• Eby struck out 10 Matadors over seven innings in a 17-6 game one win, followed by Rivera's 10 strikeouts in a complete-game effort in a 13-3 game two victory in the nightcap