April 12, 2005

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -

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This Week
The Santa Clara baseball team will play its second to last home game in Buck Shaw Stadium on Tuesday night before beginning a seven-game road swing at Loyola Marymount on Friday afternoon.

The Gators and Broncos will face each other for the first time since 1996, although the series between the schools dates back to 1936. This season, SFSU is 15-25 overall with a 9-18 mark in CCAA play. Casey Garrison leads the Gators with a .382 batting average and four home runs. Carlos Medina is tied with Garrison in the home run category and leads the team with 29 RBI.

The preseason pick to win the conference title, Loyola Marymount has posted a 13-18 overall mark this season with a 6-5 record in WCC action. Last week, the Lions shocked top-ranked Cal State Fullerton, defeating the Titans, 13-6. Joe Frazee is pacing the LMU offense with a .369 average and 12 doubles. Chris Petit, the reigning WCC player of the week has a team-high 23 RBI and five home runs this season.

Schott Stadium to Open April 30
The long-awaited opening day of Santa Clara University's Stephen Schott Baseball Stadium is scheduled for Saturday, April 30 at 1 p.m., SCU Director of Athletics and Recreation Dan Coonan announced. The Broncos will host Gonzaga University in the second game of a three-game West Coast Conference series in the first game at Santa Clara's baseball dedicated facility.

A discounted package of SCU Bronco games at Schott Stadium will be made available soon. Single game tickets to opening day and each of the other seven games in Schott Stadium will go on sale Friday, April 8, through the SCU Athletic Ticket Office by calling 408/554-4660 or online at www.santaclarabroncos.com. Reserved seats have already sold out, but adult general admission tickets are priced at $6. General admission tickets for youths aged 12 and under and seniors over the age of 65 are $3 each, while members of Bronco Kidz receive admission for just $2 with their membership card.

Adding Watts-age
Junior catcher Kris Watts has become a valuable part of the Santa Clara lineup after transferring from Ohlone College prior to the 2005 season. Currently third on the team with a .312 batting average, Watts is one of two Broncos who has played in all 33 of the Bronco's contests this season. The Fremont, Calif. native ranks fourth on the team with 34 hits and tied for first with 21 RBI.

Heating Up in Conference Action
Sophomore infielder Kevin Drever has posted impressive numbers during West Coast Conference play this season. The Salinas, Calif. native currently paces the team with a .556 batting average in WCC games. His on-base percentage of .636 is also a team-best, while he also leads the team with three stolen bases in conference play.

Overall, Drever leads the team with a .355 batting average in all games. He ranks second on the team with five stolen bases. His .414 on base percentage is good for third on the squad.

Newton is New Addition in the Infield
Prior to last weekend, Eric Newton had made only three starts in the Bronco infield this season. However, he would make the most of his chance to start on Saturday as he recorded his first home run of the season and knocked in two runs. The San Jose native continued his offensive tear on Sunday with a pair of solo home runs against San Diego. In only 24 at-bats this season, Newton is currently tied for third on the team in home runs.

Rea Edges Towards Career Saves Record
After posting a Santa Clara single-season record with 13 saves in 2004, senior right-hander Anthony Rea moved a large step closer to holding the Bronco career save record. Entering the 2005 campaign, Rea had 20 career saves. With five this season, he is currently tied atop the Bronco record books with Mike McDonald. One more save, which would be the 26th of his career, would make Rea all-time career saves leader in Santa Clara baseball history.

O'Brien Closing in on 100 Wins
Bronco skipper Mark O'Brien is nearing a milestone 100th win as his current record stands at 97-104. In only his fourth year at the helm, he has posted a 53-47 mark in West Coast Conference play. When O'Brien does reach his 100th win, he will become only the fifth coach in Santa Clara baseball history to reach the milestone. He will join former Bronco coaches John Oldham, Jerry McClain, Sal Taormina and John Cotrell in the esteemed group.

Up Next
Santa Clara will continue its road swing with a three-game WCC series at Saint Mary's. Friday's contest will begin at 2 p.m. with Saturday and Sunday's games starting at 1 p.m. SCU will also travel to Stanford on April 26, before returning home to host Gonzaga on April 29. The Friday night game with the Bulldogs will mark the final baseball game at Buck Shaw Stadium before Stephen Schott Stadium opens on Saturday.

Bronco Rotation Notes

Anthony Rea
Senior Right-handed Pitcher (Palo Alto, Calif. - Gunn HS)
Will be making his fifth start of the season against Loyola Marymount... strong in first start of the season, pitching 7.2 innings against Washington... allowed only five hits and struck out six Huskies... third on the team in apperances with 15... 4.25 ERA is tops among Bronco hurlers with more than 35 innings of work... tied for SCU career saves record with 25... set a single-season record a year ago with 13... currently has five saves on the season... posted new career-highs with nine strikeouts in eight innings at San Francisco in his second start of the season... allowed only one run in the Bronco's only complete game this season.

Adam Sanabria
Senior Left-handed Pitcher (Longwood, Fla. - University of Florida)
Will be making his second start of the season after starting at Stanford on April 5... top left-handed Bronco reliever this season... 1.77 ERA is the lowest on the team... ranks second on the squad with 16 appearances... threw a season-high 4.1 innings with a season-best four strikeouts against the Cardinal... has posted 18 strikeouts in 20.1 innings of work.

Kellan McConnell
Senior Right-handed Pitcher (San Juan Capistrano, Calif. - Capistrano Valley HS)
Has made 11 starts in 2005, which is tops on the team... tied for team lead with 50 strikeouts in a team-high 60 innings of work... recorded a season-high 10 strikeouts in 7.2 innings of work against Washington on February 20 to earn his first win of the season... second win came against San Jose State after allowing only one run in seven innings of action... named WCC Pitcher of the Week after Washington series.