California Baptist University
Rutgers University
BASE Preview: CBU Ships Off to the East Coast for Weekend Series
3/13/2025 1:45:00 PM | Baseball
RIVERSIDE--- California Baptist baseball heads to the East Coast this weekend to take on Rutgers University before returning home to Riverside to begin Western Athletic Conference play. Both the Lancers and Scarlet Knights head into the weekend with an 8-9 record, while CBU is on a four-game win streak.
THE LANCERS AT A GLANCE
California Baptist has finally found its rhythm after sweeping Air Force last weekend and securing its second midweek win of the year over the University of San Francisco, stringing together four solid wins. CBU will be looking to keep the good times rolling with a series win over Rutgers this weekend.
The last week's bats were hot for the Lancers as several hitters have risen in the ranks to be offensive leaders for California Baptist. Bubba Rocha currently leads the squad with a .375 batting average while posting a .508 on-base percentage. The junior outfielder owns 18 hits on the season with four doubles and two home runs, totaling 28 bases. Just behind Rocha is Julian Alvarez, whose senior season is off to a solid start with 13 hits and 10 RBI while maintaining a .342 batting average. Extra bases are the name of the game for the Lancers this season, as the squad currently ranks in the top 20 in the nation for most doubles with 41.
CBU's pitching staff enters the weekend with a team ERA of 4.23 as Cody New continues his dominance on the mound, contributing significantly to that low ERA. New posted another 11 strikeouts during his outing last Friday, bringing his season total to 30, which ranks 38th in the nation. The sophomore lefty owns a 1.33 ERA and 0.98 WHIP, along with his 2-1 record on the mound. Andrew Rudd has been strong for the Lancers this season, earning quite a few starts to the young season as he enters the weekend with a 3.71 ERA. Rudd went five innings during CBU's midweek battle with the Dons, and the sophomore allowed just one hit while sitting down three.
SERIES INFORMATION
Opponent: Rutgers
Dates/Times: Friday, March 14th (1:00 p.m. PST); Saturday, March 15th (11:00 a.m. PST); Sunday, March 16th (8:00 a.m. PST)
Location: Piscataway, NJ
Video: BIG10+: Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3
Live Stats: Statbroadcast: Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3
SERIES NOTES
This will be the first time the Scarlet Knights and Lancers have faced each other on the diamond. Rutgers have faced WAC foe Grand Canyon earlier this season in Arizona and came away with a 1-3 record against the Lopes.
THE SCARLET KNIGHTS AT A GLANCE
Rutgers is on the hunt for its second series win this season after coming off a 1-2 loss to Iowa to open Big Ten play. The Scarlet Knights rebounded with a pair of midweek wins against Penn and Wagner, improving their record to 8-9.
Rutgers has struggled offensively this season as the team is batting .266, with one Scarlet Knight batting over .300. The most runs the squad has scored in a single game this year was in its win over GCU after stacking 18 runs, but on average, the team is scoring about five runs per game. Trevor Cohen leads the team with a .341 batting average, posting seven RBI and eight doubles on 25 hits.
On the pitching side, Rutgers has shared the wealth amongst its pitching staff, as all pitchers have tossed 12 or fewer innings this season. The squad checks in with a 6.42 ERA but has posted some significant strikeout numbers, with six Scarlet Knights owning 10 or more. Typical starters for Rutgers include Landon Mack and Justin Shadek. Mack enters the weekend with a 5.28 ERA on 15.1 innings across four starts, while Shadek owns a 9.22 ERA on 13.2 innings across four starts. Rutgers also reaches for Quinn Berglin often, who has totaled six appearances and a .087 ERA with 10 Ks on the year.
