Photo by: Bobby Hester
BASE PREVIEW: Lancers Kick Off WAC Campaign at UTRGV
3/10/2023 8:00:00 AM | Baseball
RIVERSIDE – California Baptist University baseball opens Western Athletic Conference play this weekend with their first conference series against The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley in Edinburg, Texas. Against the Vaqueros, the Lancers are 4-3 overall and have only ever played at the UTRGV Baseball Stadium. California Baptist wrapped pre-season play with a 3-1 series win against Seton Hall at home and enter conference play 6-6 on the season. UTRGV is 8-4 with non-conference series wins against Houston Christian, the University of Houston, and #27 Central Michigan.
SERIES INFORMATION
Opponent: The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
Dates/Times: Friday, March 10 (5 p.m.); Saturday, March 11 (4 p.m.); Sunday, March 12 (10 a.m.)
Location: Edinburg, Texas (UTRGV Baseball Stadium)
Video: ESPN+: Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3
Live Stats: StatBroadcast: Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3
SERIES NOTES
UTRGV and the Lancers have only faced off in seven games in the last three seasons, with a three-game series in 2019 and a four-game series in 2021. The Lancers are 4-3 overall against the Vaqueros under the direction of head coach Gary Adcock. The Lancers have never faced UTRGV at home, only at the UTRGV Baseball Stadium.
During the three-game series in 2019, the Vaqueros secured the series win 2-1. The Lancers won the four-game series in 2021 after taking the first three games. UTRGV comes into the 2023 WAC Preseason Poll tied for fourth at 100 points with Abilene Christian and Sacramento State, while California Baptist was voted into the number three spot behind the number one GCU and the number two Sam Houston.
In 2022, the Vaqueros placed third in the southwest division of the Western Athletic Conference. They continued to the WAC tournament and beat Sacramento State in a 2-1 nail-biter but fell in the second round to the tournament champions New Mexico State 10-0 in seven innings.
The 2023 campaign will be the first time that the Lancers are eligible for post-season appearances. California Baptist split the WAC regular season titles in 2019 and 2021 with Grand .
WAC TOP PLAY
Garret Ostrander took home the WAC Top Play for his phenomenal catch over the visitng bullpen fence on Friday evening against the Seton Hall Pirates. Ostrander collected two hits, an RBI, and two stolen bases during the first game against the Pirates.
LANCERS AT A GLANCE
CBU enters this weekend hitting .249, slugging .405, and maintaining a .336 on-base percentage as a team. Leading the offense for the Lancers are junior Michael Carpentier and junior Garret Ostrander. Carpentier enters conference hitting .419, slugging .721, and leads the team in hits at 18. The junior has also collected seven doubles during his at-bat opportunities, as well as nine RBI. Ostrander comes into the weekend series with a dominating with a .480 hitting average. He's currently slugging .480 and sits at a .548 OBP.
As a pitching staff, CBU maintains a 5.94 earned-run average, 1.58 WHIP and .269 batting average against. Spencer Bengard has started three games this year, pitching 16.2 innings for the Lancers with a 2.16 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. Liam Rocha has only allowed nine hits during his 16 innings pitched, leading the team in strikeouts at 22. Rocha is currently throwing a 4.50 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. Reliever Jacob Wilson currently leads the pitching staff in wins, clocking in a perfect 4-0 record. The right-handed pitcher has only allowed three hits during his ten innings, throwing 13 strikeouts from the mound.
The Lancer's biggest win of their tough pre-season slate came from the Oklahoma Sooners, going 2-1 against the Men's College World Series runners-up. After a facing three different teams on the road, California Baptist returned to Totman Stadium to win their home opening series 3-1 against the Seton Hall Pirates.
VAQUEROS AT A GLANCE
UTRGV holds a high winning percentage after their opening season games, clocking in at .727 and an 8-3 overall record. The Vaqueros blew past Houston Christian with a three-game sweep, scoring ten runs in each game. UTRGV performed well against ranked #27 Central Michigan and won the series 3-2, putting eight or more runs on the board in all five games against the Chippewas.
Last week, the Vaqueros played well again the University of Houston, forcing the game to 13 innings in a close 7-5 loss. UTRGV secured a decisive 13-5 win on Saturday and closed out the series with a 1-0 Sunday win.
Before taking on the Lancers at home this weekend, UTRGV headed to Houston where they lost 14-3 to Rice University in a mid-week matchup to finish out their preseason. The Vaqueros have opened the season hitting .315, slugging .447, and maintaining a .406 on-base percentage. As a pitching staff, UTRGV averages 4.38 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, and .229 batting average against.
Offensively, the Vaqueros have four players hitting above a .350. Isaac Lopez is having a stellar start to the year, hitting .440, slugging .660 with three home runs, 10 RBI, and is sitting at a .535 on OBP. Steven Lancia is also performing well, hitting .389 and slugging .444. Brandon Pimental holds a .382 hitting average with a slugging percentage of .588 and Kade York is hitting a .366.
Jesus Aldaz, Colten Davis, and Alex Verdugo have all collected two wins this season from the mound. Aldaz and Davis have logged three starts, and both have only allowed 11 hits each. During his 19 innings, Aldaz has only given up two runs and clocks in with 19 strikeouts, with a low .95 ERA. Davis comes in with a 2.12 ERA, throwing a total of 17 innings pitched, and has given up only four runs with 20 strikeouts on the year. Verdugo has seen action in 12 innings for the Vaqueros, only giving up three runs and logging 17 strikeouts. Verdugo was also named WAC Pitcher of the week for the Vaqueros for his 10 strikeouts in seven innings against Houston last week.
Lancer baseball tickets are on sale now at CBULancers.com/baseballtickets, for all games at Totman Stadium.
SERIES INFORMATION
Opponent: The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
Dates/Times: Friday, March 10 (5 p.m.); Saturday, March 11 (4 p.m.); Sunday, March 12 (10 a.m.)
Location: Edinburg, Texas (UTRGV Baseball Stadium)
Video: ESPN+: Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3
Live Stats: StatBroadcast: Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3
SERIES NOTES
UTRGV and the Lancers have only faced off in seven games in the last three seasons, with a three-game series in 2019 and a four-game series in 2021. The Lancers are 4-3 overall against the Vaqueros under the direction of head coach Gary Adcock. The Lancers have never faced UTRGV at home, only at the UTRGV Baseball Stadium.
During the three-game series in 2019, the Vaqueros secured the series win 2-1. The Lancers won the four-game series in 2021 after taking the first three games. UTRGV comes into the 2023 WAC Preseason Poll tied for fourth at 100 points with Abilene Christian and Sacramento State, while California Baptist was voted into the number three spot behind the number one GCU and the number two Sam Houston.
In 2022, the Vaqueros placed third in the southwest division of the Western Athletic Conference. They continued to the WAC tournament and beat Sacramento State in a 2-1 nail-biter but fell in the second round to the tournament champions New Mexico State 10-0 in seven innings.
The 2023 campaign will be the first time that the Lancers are eligible for post-season appearances. California Baptist split the WAC regular season titles in 2019 and 2021 with Grand .
WAC TOP PLAY
Garret Ostrander took home the WAC Top Play for his phenomenal catch over the visitng bullpen fence on Friday evening against the Seton Hall Pirates. Ostrander collected two hits, an RBI, and two stolen bases during the first game against the Pirates.
LANCERS AT A GLANCE
CBU enters this weekend hitting .249, slugging .405, and maintaining a .336 on-base percentage as a team. Leading the offense for the Lancers are junior Michael Carpentier and junior Garret Ostrander. Carpentier enters conference hitting .419, slugging .721, and leads the team in hits at 18. The junior has also collected seven doubles during his at-bat opportunities, as well as nine RBI. Ostrander comes into the weekend series with a dominating with a .480 hitting average. He's currently slugging .480 and sits at a .548 OBP.
As a pitching staff, CBU maintains a 5.94 earned-run average, 1.58 WHIP and .269 batting average against. Spencer Bengard has started three games this year, pitching 16.2 innings for the Lancers with a 2.16 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. Liam Rocha has only allowed nine hits during his 16 innings pitched, leading the team in strikeouts at 22. Rocha is currently throwing a 4.50 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. Reliever Jacob Wilson currently leads the pitching staff in wins, clocking in a perfect 4-0 record. The right-handed pitcher has only allowed three hits during his ten innings, throwing 13 strikeouts from the mound.
The Lancer's biggest win of their tough pre-season slate came from the Oklahoma Sooners, going 2-1 against the Men's College World Series runners-up. After a facing three different teams on the road, California Baptist returned to Totman Stadium to win their home opening series 3-1 against the Seton Hall Pirates.
VAQUEROS AT A GLANCE
UTRGV holds a high winning percentage after their opening season games, clocking in at .727 and an 8-3 overall record. The Vaqueros blew past Houston Christian with a three-game sweep, scoring ten runs in each game. UTRGV performed well against ranked #27 Central Michigan and won the series 3-2, putting eight or more runs on the board in all five games against the Chippewas.
Last week, the Vaqueros played well again the University of Houston, forcing the game to 13 innings in a close 7-5 loss. UTRGV secured a decisive 13-5 win on Saturday and closed out the series with a 1-0 Sunday win.
Before taking on the Lancers at home this weekend, UTRGV headed to Houston where they lost 14-3 to Rice University in a mid-week matchup to finish out their preseason. The Vaqueros have opened the season hitting .315, slugging .447, and maintaining a .406 on-base percentage. As a pitching staff, UTRGV averages 4.38 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, and .229 batting average against.
Offensively, the Vaqueros have four players hitting above a .350. Isaac Lopez is having a stellar start to the year, hitting .440, slugging .660 with three home runs, 10 RBI, and is sitting at a .535 on OBP. Steven Lancia is also performing well, hitting .389 and slugging .444. Brandon Pimental holds a .382 hitting average with a slugging percentage of .588 and Kade York is hitting a .366.
Jesus Aldaz, Colten Davis, and Alex Verdugo have all collected two wins this season from the mound. Aldaz and Davis have logged three starts, and both have only allowed 11 hits each. During his 19 innings, Aldaz has only given up two runs and clocks in with 19 strikeouts, with a low .95 ERA. Davis comes in with a 2.12 ERA, throwing a total of 17 innings pitched, and has given up only four runs with 20 strikeouts on the year. Verdugo has seen action in 12 innings for the Vaqueros, only giving up three runs and logging 17 strikeouts. Verdugo was also named WAC Pitcher of the week for the Vaqueros for his 10 strikeouts in seven innings against Houston last week.
Lancer baseball tickets are on sale now at CBULancers.com/baseballtickets, for all games at Totman Stadium.
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