SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A familiar foe is on deck for the Sacramento State baseball team this weekend as the Hornets -- who have won three of their last four -- take on local rival Pacific in a four-game home-and-home series that began with a mid-week clash on Wednesday in Sacramento.

The Hornets host the Tigers on Friday (March 13) at 6 p.m. at John Smith Field before the scene switches to Klein Family Field in Stockton, Calif., for games on Saturday (March 14) at 3 p.m. and Sunday (March 15) at 1 p.m. All three games will be streamed live on the ESPN+ platform.

PLAY BALL!
WHAT: Pacific (6-10, 0-0 WCC) at Sacramento State (6-11, 0-0 WAC)
WHEN: Friday-Sunday, March 13-15, 2026
TIME: 6 PM PT (Fri.) / 3 PM PT (Sat.) / 1 PM PT (Sun.)
WHERE: Sacramento, Calif. (Fri.) & Stockton, Calif. (Sat. & Sun.)
STADIUM: John Smith Field & Klein Family Field

FOLLOW:
Game 1: ESPN+ | WAC International | Live Stats
Game 2: ESPN+ | Live Stats
Game 3: ESPN+ | Live Stats

GAME NOTES: Sacramento State | Pacific | Western Athletic Conference

PROBABLE STARTERS
Game 1: RHP Zach Todd (3 GS, 1-1, 3.15 ERA) at RHP Kurt Marton (3 GS, 1-1, 1.80 ERA)
Game 2: TBA at LHP Garret Plata (3 GS), 0-0, 0.68 ERA)
Game 3: RHP Carson Timothy (4 GS, 1-1, 1.53 ERA) at RHP Liam Smith (3 GS, 1-1, 7.20 ERA)

AGAIN? YES, AGAIN...
• This weekend marks the third, fourth, and fifth meetings with Pacific already this season after the Tigers posted a come-from-behind 8-7 win in Stockton on Feb. 24 and the Hornets answering with a 10-0 shutout in seven innings on Wednesday (March 11) in Sacramento
• The series was a late add to the schedule prior to opening day after it was discovered that UConn, which was Sacramento State's original opponent for this weekend, had double-booked its schedule with a series at Portland
• The last time that the Hornets played a non-conference opponent five times in the same season was back in 2012 when they hosted Dartmouth on March 15-19, winning three of those

ABOUT THE TIGERS
• Pacific enters the week with a 6-10 overall record after its loss to Sacramento State on Wednesday and has lost its last four straight games after dropping a three-game series at Nevada over the weekend
• Following their win over the Hornets at home back on Feb. 25, the Tigers have played their last eight games on the road entering Friday's contest
• Of Pacific's six wins, four of those have come at home where it is 4-4 overall, while the Tigers have gone just 2-6 away from Klein Family Field
• Sophomore Robert Orr has been red-hot to start the season, batting .414 with six doubles, four home runs, and 11 RBI to go with 11 runs and a 1.176 OPS
• He is one of three Tigers to drive in at least 10 runs on the year along with teammates Jake Tandy (10) and Grant MacArthur (10)
• As a team, Pacific is batting .253 with nine home runs and 41 extra-base hits
• As a staff, Tiger pitching sports a 5.89 ERA with opponents batting .281 while striking out 143 against 78 walks

SERIES NOTABLES
• Sacramento State leads the all-time series with Pacific by a 106-81-1 count according to records that date back to the 1950 season
• The Hornets are 61-35-1 at home against the Tigers and 45-46 on the road
• According to available records, the 106 victories against Pacific are the third-most against any one school in the program's history behind only 149 wins against UC Davis and 116 against Chico State
• Sacramento State took three of the four meetings with Pacific last season, winning two of a three-game weekend set against the Tigers in early March, then posting a 13-3 midweek win on the road a couple weeks later
• All three of those games in the weekend series last season were decided by a single run as the two teams split a pair of 6-5 decisions in the first two games before the Hornets earned a walk-off 10-inning win in the series finale
• Sacramento State has won eight of the last 12 meetings with their local rival dating back to 2022 with three of those wins coming on the road

CONFERENCE CALL
• Sacramento State is a combined 319-324-4 (.496) against the current West Coast Conference baseball lineup, having faced all 10 of the league's members
• The Hornets will face only two WCC schools on the diamond this year, adding midweek games against San Francisco on March 17 (away) and April 14 (home) in addition to the five games against the Tigers this year
• Sacramento State was a combined 6-4 against the WCC last season, going 3-1 against Pacific, 2-2 against San Francisco, and 1-1 against Saint Mary's
• That record does not include a 2-1 series win over Seattle U as the Redhawks were members of the WAC in 2025 prior to aligning with the WCC last summer
• The 106 wins against Pacific are the most for the Hornets against any one WCC school, followed by 66 wins against Saint Mary's and 65 more against San Francisco

MILLENNIAL MILESTONE
• Sacramento State enters the 2026 season needing just 11 more victories to reach 1,000 all-time wins in the program's Division I history
• Since it's first full Division I season in 1990, the Hornets have posted a 989-1,070-4 record

TWO TO WATCH
• Senior RHP Ethan Lay and junior RHP Kurt Marton were two of more than 140 Division I pitchers from across the country named to the College Baseball Foundation's initial National Pitcher of the Year watch list for 2026 the organization announced on March 11
• The duo are two of four total hurlers honored from the WAC, joined by California Baptist right-handers Michael Malki and Bryan Peck on this year's list.

YOU COMPLETE ME
• Lay followed up that announcement by throwing a gem in the Hornets' 10-0 victory over Pacific on Wednesday (March 11), scattering just two hits and allowing four baserunners while striking out six
• At one point, Lay retired 16 straight Tiger hitters from the first through sixth innings before Pacific was able to work hits only walk of the game to lead off the seventh
• It was the first shutout by a Hornet pitcher since Colin Hunter no-hit Northern Illinois on Feb. 19, 2022, in his first career start
• It was the first complete-game effort for a Sacramento State hurler since Evan Gibbons gave up just one run on two hits in seven innings while striking out eight against Stephen F. Austin on May 10, 2024

HE DOESN'T LIKE YOU...
• Lay hasn't made many friends on the mound in his two career starts against Pacific, allowing just three hits over 14 shutout innings, walking one and striking out 17

BREAK OUT THE BATS
• The 10 runs and 14 hits against the Tigers on Wednesday marked only the second time this season that the Hornets have scored double-digit runs and the fourth time they have finished with 10-or-more hits

IN YOUR JACE!
• Senior Jace Jeremiah is one of four Hornets (Erick Dessens, Orlando Cobarrubias, and Sam Harry) with active hitting streaks of at least four games entering this weekend's games
• Jeremiah has collected hits in nine of his last 10 contests after having just one hit in his first six games
• The San Mateo, Calif., native is batting .394 (13-for-33) in that 10-game stretch, scoring six runs with two doubles, a home run, and six RBI
• He has reached base safely in all 10 of those games -- the second-longest streak by a Hornet this season behind Luis Pimentel-Guerrero's 12-game run -- drawing a walk in the series opener at No. 2 LSU to keep that streak alive

WE'RE GOING STREAKING!
• Dessens holds the longest active hitting streak by a Hornet at five games, batting .273 (6-for-22) with a double, a triple, and four RBI
• Cobarrubias has hits in his last four games dating back to the midweek game at Fresno State on March 3, batting .357 (5-for-14) with four runs scored, a double and three RBI
• Harry's four-game streak has him batting .316 (6-for-19)  with two doubles, a triple, two runs, and three RBI
• Harry and Cobarrubias have also both reached base safely in their last eight consecutive games

CYCLE SEEKING
• Junior Jakob Poturnak fell a triple short of a cycle in Wednesday night's win over Pacific, launching his second home run of the year in the second and adding a double in the fifth
• He is the second Hornet to come close this season after Luis Pimentel-Guerrero was 4-for-6 with a double and a home run in the finale against Saint Joseph's on Feb. 22
• The last Sacramento State player to hit for the cycle was Jason Beeman at CSUN on April 24, 1994, finishing 4-for-6 with two runs and six RBI while also throwing a complete game on the mound in a 14-6 victory over the Matadors

LET'S GEAUX!
• After taking 2-of-3 in Baton Rouge against No. 2 LSU, the Hornets posted their first series win over a nationally ranked opponent for the first time since sweeping No. 6 Long Beach State -- also on the road -- in 2022
• With its 5-4 win in game two against the Tigers, the Hornets had their highest ranked victory under Head Coach Reggie Christiansen, surpassing a 2-1 win over No. 3 UCLA on March 3, 2019
• That also marked the highest-ranked victory for the Hornets since they defeated No. 2 Stanford, 2-1, on April 24, 2004
• Thanks to the weekend's results, Sacramento State improved to 22-37 against nationally ranked opponents under Christiansen since 2011, including winning eight of the last 13 such games

ISN'T IT GRAND?
• Junior Cameron Sewell's big day in game two at LSU included his second career grand slam and fell one shy of his career high with five RBI against the Tigers
• The grand slam was the first by a Hornet since JP Smith hit one at San Francisco on Feb. 17, 2025, and Sewell's first since he emptied the bases at Seattle U on April 14, 2024
• Sewell's five RBI were also the most by a Hornet since Smith had five against UC Riverside on April 25, 2025

"FIRE" STARTERS
• Sacramento State's usual weekend rotation of senior RHP Ethan Lay, junior RHP Kurt Marton, and sophomore RHP Carson Timothy have been nearly untouchable to start the season
• The Hornet trio has combined for a 2.02 ERA over 62.1 innings of work (12 starts), allowing just 14 earned runs and striking out 62 against only 10 walks
• Combined, opposing batters are hitting just .198 (47-for-237) against those three arms

WALK THE WALK
• The Hornets' staff enters the weekend having walked only 48 hitters while striking out 144 through the first 17 games, ranking No. 13 in the NCAA in fewest walks allowed per nine innings (2.93), No. 24 in WHIP (1.18), No. 30 in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.00), and No. 40 in fewest hits allowed per nine (7.68)

KURT PUTTING THE HURT ON HITTERS
• Turns out we did jinx it... Sorry, Kurt
• Marton walked his first batters of the season in his start at No. 2 LSU, but still left the game having allowed just one hit over 4.1 shutout innings and striking out four against the powerful Tiger lineup
• He had opened the season without walking a batter for his first 17.2 innings until LSU led off the bottom of the third with a walk
• Marton, who is second on the team with 21 strikeouts against those three walks, is No. 55 in the NCAA in strikeout-to-walk ratio (7.00) and is No. 52 in fewest walks per nine (1.35)
• Among WAC leaders, Marton is atop the league in fewest runs allowed and fewest walks, while ranking among the top 10 in ERA (3rd), opponent batting average (4th), fewest hits allowed (t4th), strikeouts (6th), and innings (7th)

TIMOTHY TERRIFIC
• Sophomore RHP Carson Timothy's first win as a Hornet was a memorable one, allowing an unearned run on five hits while striking out four over a season-high 6.2 innings in a 6-1 win at No. 2 LSU
• Timothy has allowed only three earned runs all season over 17.2 innings of work, holding opponents to a .191 average in his four starts
• Among WAC leaders, he shares the league lead in fewest walks allowed (3) while ranking among the top 10 in ERA (2nd), opponent average (3rd), fewest hits allowed (2nd), and fewest runs allowed (9th)

WILLLLLLLLSSSOOONNN!
• Nailing down both wins against No. 2 LSU was true freshman reliever Trevor Wilson, who had a pitcher of the week worthy weekend
• He recorded the final two outs in a 5-4 win in game two and threw the final 2.1 innings while allowing just one hit in the series finale to record the second and third saves of his collegiate career
• After surrendering two runs in back-to-back appearances at Pacific and in a start against California, Wilson has given up just two hits in four scoreless innings
• His eight appearances are second in the WAC and rank No. 38 in the nation, while his three saves are third in the league and No. 19 in the NCAA

CAREY-ING THE LOAD
• Junior LHP Sean Carey earned his second career win in game two against No. 2 LSU, throwing 2.2 scoreless innings without allowing a hit and striking out four
• Over his last two games (5.1 innings) against California and the Tigers, Carey has allowed just one hit while striking out eight without a walk
• Over his last five games (8.1 innings), Carey has allowed just one run on two hits with 13 strikeouts

IN "LAY"-MAN'S TERMS
• Following his stellar outing against Pacific on Wednesday, Lay enters the weekend tied for the most strikeouts in the WAC with 31, ranking No. 31 in the nation and No. 27 in the NCAA with a 10.33 strikeout-to-walk ratio
• His 2.93 ERA ranks fifth in the league while the senior also stands among the top 10 with a .213 opponent batting average (5th) and leads the league in innings pitched (27.2)
• His three walks allowed are tied for the fewest in the league along with his teammate Marton
• The senior bolstered his total with 13 strikeouts -- without a walk -- while carrying a perfect game into the seventh inning in game two against Saint Joseph's, setting a new career high
• He became the 16th Hornet in school history to strikeout at least 13 batters in a game and the first since Travis Adams (who made his Major League debut with the Minnesota Twins last summer) finished with 13 at Northern Colorado in 2021
• That performance marked Lay's second double-digit strikeout game of his Sacramento State career after striking out 11 against Pacific on March 9 of last year
• He has also struck out eight-or-more batters in a game five times as a Hornet

"QUALITY" YOU CAN COUNT ON
• Lay logged his third "quality start" of the year on Wednesday against Pacific -- his 10th such start of his career after doing so a team-high seven times in 2025
• Marton has thrown a pair in three starts as a Hornet, throwing six shutout innings against UC Irvine (2/14) and allowing just two runs over 6.2 innings with nine strikeouts against Saint Joseph's
• Timothy's last start at LSU was his first "quality start" as a Hornet

STRIKE FIRST! STRIKE HARD! NO MERCY, SIR!
• Sacramento State has gotten out of the gates quickly this year, scoring a third (27) of its 80 runs in the first three innings thus far
• 17 of those 80 runs this year have come in the second inning alone -- the most of than any other inning 
• The Hornets have scored first in all six of their victories

DESSENS VS. THE WORLD
• The Hornets' Dessens hasn't been the only active member of the family on the diamond this spring as his father, Elmer, was a pitching coach for Team Mexico in the World Baseball Classic
• Mexico finished 2-2 and narrowly missed out on advancing to the quarterfinals
• Elmer is a 14-year (441 games) Major League Baseball veteran with nine different teams while also spending time in Japan and Mexico