Posted: Mar 19, 2019
*Updated on March 22
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Santa Clara baseball returns to Southern California to play a three-game weekend series against CSUN, a week after playing three against LMU in the West Coast Conference opener. The six straight games on the road is the longest stretch away from Schott Stadium this season.
The Broncos and the Matadors open the series on Friday at 3 p.m. followed by a Saturday game at 1 p.m. and the series finale on Sunday, also at 1 p.m.
Santa Clara (3-15, 0-3 WCC) at CSUN (9-13, 0-0 Big West)
Game #19 - 21
Northridge, Calif. | Matador Field
All-Time Series: Series is tied 4-4 as the teams last met in 2000.
PROBABLE STARTERS
Friday, March 22 • 3 p.m. PT
SCU RHP Keegan McCarville (2-2, 2.20 ERA) vs CSUN RHP Theron Kay (0-0, 9.00 ERA)
Saturday, March 23 • 1 p.m. PT
SCU LHP Russell Grant II (0-1, 3.72 ERA) vs CSUN LHP Wesley Moore (2-1, 2.51 ERA)
Sunday, March 24 • 1 p.m. PT
SCU TBA vs CSUN LHP Isaiah Nunez (3-2, 4.15 ERA)
LAST WEEKEND
Santa Clara lost each of the three games against LMU including two in walk-off fashion. In the series opener, Alex Lambeau's walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the 18th inning gave LMU a 2-1 win in a game that took five hours and five minutes to complete. In the second game of the series, a pair of costly errors in the eighth and ninth led to the game tying and winning runs for LMU as the Lions won 6-5. And in the series finale, the Lions jumped to a 6-0 lead to cruise to a 7-3 victory.
The Bronco relievers allowed seven runs, five earned over 21 1/3 innings during the series.
ABOUT CSUN
The Matadors are coming off a 28-30 record in 2018 including 13-11 in Big West play to finish tied for third under sixth-year head coach Greg Moore.
This season, LMU is off to a 9-12 start (as of March 19) having dropped three in a row and five of the last six. CSUN is hitting .252 overall and are led by Jayson Newman and Austin Elder who are hitting .404 and .318, respectively. Collectively, the Matadors have belted 20 homers by 10 different players led by Brandon Bohning with four. Bohning also is tied for the team lead in steals with seven along with Denzel Clarke as the team has swiped 28 bags in 32 attempts.
CSUN owns a 4.88 team ERA and opponents are hitting .288 Wesley Moore (2-1, 2.51), Walker Armstrong (0-2, 3.95), Isaiah Nunez (3-2, 4.15) and Blake Sodersten (0-1, 4.50) have each started five games. Blake Schriever is its closer with five saves, striking out 14 over 15 innings.
GAMEDAY INFORMATION |
|
| Radio | |
| Live Stats | |
| Santa Clara | |
| Visiting Team | |
FIRST YEAR IMPROVEMENTS UNDER HEAD COACH RUSTY FILTER
•Head coach Rusty Filter enters his second year with the Broncos, coming off a 26-26 season. In his first season in 2018, the Broncos saw signifcant improvements in various categories from the previous season:
•Overall wins from 13 to 26
•Average home attendance from 181 to 531
•Runs scored from 238 to 277
•Bases on balls from 155 to 190
•On-base percentage from .330 to .348
•Team ERA from 6.39 to 4.86
•Hits/extra-base hits allowed from 525/164 to 497/134
•Strikeouts from 373 to 401
•Fielding percentage from .958 to .968
STEPHEN SCHOTT STADIUM IMPROVEMENTS
Since the end of last season, Stephen Schott Stadium, the home of the Broncos, underwent the following field improvements:
•Resurfaced all the infield (dirt, grass, home plate).
•New astro turf with foul lines in the foul territory.
•New bullpens on both sides.
•New logo behind home plate.
2019 SCHEDULE QUICK HITS
•Prior to the season, the Broncos were scheduled to play 29 of its 53 regular-season games at Stephen Schott Stadium where they were 15-12 at home last season.
•Opening day weekend's rain forced one game to be moved from San José State to Schott Stadium and added an extra home game against Omaha so the Broncos are now scheduled to play 31 games at home.
•The Feb. 15 game at San José State was postponed with no make up date scheduled.
•Santa Clara plays three Pac-12 conference teams - vs Washington State (Feb. 21-24), vs. Washington (April 15) and vs. Stanford (April 30) plus at Stanford on May 7.
•Games against three 2018 NCAA Tournament qualifiers are on the docket - vs. Washington (April 15), vs Gonzaga (April 18-20) and vs Stanford (April 30) and at at Sanford (May 7) with the Huskies advancing to the College World Series.
•Longest homestead is nine games from April 9-23.
•Longest stretch of road game is six games from March 15-24.
NEW LOOK ROSTER
•Twenty-one newcomers dot the Santa Clara roster this season including 14 freshmen and seven transfers (excluding two player with roster exemptions who will not play in 2019 due to injuries - Matt Erickson and Alec Olmsted).
•The newcomers include 11 pitchers (eight right-handed and three left-handed), one catcher, six infielders and three outfielders.
NEWCOMERS IN ACTION
•Eighteen newcomers made their Bronco debuts on opening weekend along with RHP Matthew McGarry who sat out last season after transferring from Vanderbilt.
•In all, 19 newcomers have seen action this season, the last one being John Hanley, who made his Bronco debut as a pinch-hitter against LMU (March 17).
•At least three newcomers have been in the starting lineup in each of the 18 games this season.
•Freshmen Dawson Brigman has started in the each of the first 18 games. Freshman Matt Jew has started the second most games among newcomers with 16.
•Brigman and Connor Henriques are the only players who have started in the same position this season (18 games for Brigman at short & 13 games for Henriques at third).
•Jew went 6-for-12 in the San José State series including belting a solo home run in each game of the opening day doubleheader. Jew safely reached base on nine of 15 plate appearances.
•Brigman (vs. SJSU, Feb. 17), Jew (vs. SJSU, Feb. 17) and fellow freshman Blake Faddoul (vs. Washington State, Feb. 24) each have gone yard.
•Junior college transfers Brendan Ecklebarger (Feb. 22) and Keegan McCarville (Feb. 23) picked up their first career wins against Washington State.
•Junior college transfer Ethan Heinrich earned his first career save against Washington State (Feb. 23).
•Twin brothers Locke Bernhardt and Holden Bernhardt made their Bronco debuts in, appropriately, a twin bill against San José State on opening day (Feb. 16).
•McCarville has allowed just three runs in his last four starts spanning 24 1/3 innings, striking out 21 and walking just five. His record is 2-1 in the span.
HOME RUNS
•The Broncos have hit 13 home runs collectively, all solo shots, by six different players (five by MacNichols, three by Jew, two by Jason Dicochea plus one each by Brigman, Faddoul and Nnebe).
•The first 12 home runs hit by the Broncos were all solo shots until Jake MacNichols' 3-run shot against LMU (March 16).
•The pitching staff has given up just two home runs through the first 18 games.
STREAKS
•Junior Jason Dicochea has reached base safely in 10 straight games.
•Junior Jake MacNichols hit a home run in three consecutive games (Feb. 23 - March 1).
NOTABLE
•Brendan Buckley threw a career-high 5 1/3 innings in relief against LMU (March 16) after tossing five innings in his previous appearance vs Omaha (March 9). Coming off an injury last season, the redshirt sophomore has allowed just two earned runs in 18 1/3 innings this season. His 0.98 ERA ranks 33rd in the nation.
•Jake MacNichols is tied for second in the WCC with five home runs.
•Matthew Calhoun and Connor Henriques are tied for the league lead in sacrifice bunts with five.
•Bronco closers redshirt senior Eric Lex and junior Ethan Heinrich have combined for three saves and have not allowed an earned run in 10 2/3 innings while striking out 15.
BRONCO MLB DRAFT SELECTIONS UNDER RUSTY FILTER
•Four players from last season's squad was selected in the 2018 Major League Baseball First-Year Players Draft:
•RHP Steven Wilson (8th round by the San Diego Padres)
•INF Jake Brodt (9th round by the Toronto Blue Jays)
•INF John Cresto (28th round by the Colorado Rockies)
•RHP Penn Murfee (33rd round by the Seattle Mariners)
•Newcomer Keegan McCarville, a right-handed pitcher, was selected in the 24th round by the Tampa Bay Rays but chose to attend Santa Clara.
USA BASEBALL COACHING ASSIGNMENT
•This past summer, Filter served as the pitching coach for the inaugural USA Baseball 2018 16U National Team Development Program (NTDP) Stars team. He was previously the pitching coach for USA Baseball's 18U National Team in 2017 as well as coaching at the 2015 and 2016 Tournament of Stars.
MARK MARQUESS AT SANTA CLARA
•One of the premier coaches in college baseball history, member of American Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame, and gold-medal winning Olympic baseball coach, Mark Marquess was hired as Special Assistant to Santa Clara Director of Athletics, Renee Baumgartner, last fall. In this new role, Marquess, who served as Stanford head baseball coach for 41 years and is the fourth winningest coach in Division I history, is a mentor for all Santa Clara coaches and staff, serving on campus committees, supporting development, and working on special projects.
