April 16, 2009
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Santa Clara baseball looks to even its West Coast Conference record this weekend with a three-game series on the road at San Francisco. The Broncos and Dons open on Friday, April 17 at 3 p.m. at Benedetti Diamond and then continue action on Saturday, April 18 at 1 p.m. The series comes to a close on Sunday, April 19 at 1 p.m. SCU remains on the road to take on Stanford in its lone mid-week game on Monday, April 20 at Sunken Diamond.
Last Time Out
SCU saw its four-game win streak, which included a sweep of Portland and an upset of then-No. 18 Cal Poly, come to a close with a tough 16-3 non-conference midweek setback against Stanford on Wednesday. The Broncos' three runs came on a two-out two-run homer from Geoff Klein, his fourth of the season, which also plated Jon Karcich. Later on in the contest, Andrew Biancardi scored the third and final run after hitting a leadoff double. Although the Cardinal out-hit the Broncos 17-6, SCU struck out 13 batters compared the three Ks Stanford posted.
Follow The Broncos Online! All three games against the Dons this weekend will feature live stats via Game Tracker on www.USFDons.com.
Battle on the Mound
Friday • Nate Garcia (4.01 ERA, 4-3, 53 K) vs. Matt Lujan (6.94 ERA, 2-5, 26 K)
Saturday • Thain Simon (4.91 ERA, 2-3, 29 K) vs. Doug Murray (4.00 ERA, 6-0, 33 K)
Sunday • TBA vs. Matt Hiserman (4.15 ERA, 1-4, 52 K)
Bronco Watch
Santa Clara enters the weekend with a 14-18 overall record and a 3-6 mark in WCC play. Junior catcher Klein continues to lead the team with a .385 batting average, four home runs and 41 RBIs. Junior shortstop Karcich is second on the squad with a .327 average and 24 runs. Senior infielder Brady Fuerst leads with 17 doubles, while senior outfielder Matt Long has a team-high 25 runs and 5 triples. On the mound, junior Garcia has a 4.01 ERA and 61 strikeouts.
Scouting San Francisco
The Dons enter the weekend with a 17-20 overall record and a 4-5 WCC mark. USF is also 4-4 at home. In their last outing, the Dons defeated the Hornets of Sac State, 12-7. Drew Johnson was 5-for-5 with three runs, while Zach Kim had three RBIs and a run. Overall, Kim leads the team with 12 doubles and two triples, while in WCC games Dane Braunecker leads with a .433 average and eight runs.
Last Time vs. USF
Santa Clara and San Francisco last met with a three-game series on the Mission Campus on April 18-20, 2008. The Broncos won the series 2-1, claiming an 8-0 shutout in game one and a 7-6 edge in game three.
All-Time vs. USF
Friday's game marks the 219th meeting in the series that Santa Clara leads 155-62-1.
Scouting Stanford
The Cardinal will travel to Arizona prior to hosting the Broncos on Monday. Stanford heads into the weekend with a 15-13 overall record and a 9-7 record at home. Adam Gaylord leads the team with a .328 average, while Jake Schlander has scored 20 runs. Kellen Kiilsgaard remains the team's RBI leader with 28. He also leads with eight doubles and seven home runs. It has yet to be determined who the Broncos will face on the mound, but as a team the Cardinal has a 4.45 ERA and 211 strike outs.
Last Time vs. Stanford
Stanford took a 2-0 lead in this year's series with a 16-3 win on April 15. Prior to that, the Cardinal edged the Broncos 6-5 on April 1.
All-Time vs. Stanford
Monday's 349th meeting in the series that Stanford leads 182-160-7.
On Deck
SCU returns to Stephen Schott Stadium for a seven game home swing. The Broncos will host the Bulldogs of Gonzaga on April 24-16 and then the Aztecs of San Diego State on May 1-3. The home stand concludes with the series finale against Stanford on May 6. For tickets, visit www.SantaClaraBroncos.com or call 408-554-4660.
In the WCC
The Broncos earned their first, second and third WCC wins last weekend with a sweep of Portland. SCU is now second in doubles, third in triples and fourth in the conference in batting average and slugging percentage. Individually, Fuerst and Long are second in doubles and triples respectively, while Klein is third in RBIs and fourth in batting average. Garcia moved back to No. 1 in innings pitched and remains in third in strikeouts. In WCC games only, if fourth in hits and second in batters struck out. Individually, Andrew Biancardi is sixth in batting average, while Garcia leads with 23 strikeouts. See page 5 for the complete list.
On the National Stage
As a team, Santa Clara is ranked in the top 100 in doubles (No. 16), doubles per game (No. 3), sacrifice flies (No. 87), strikeouts per nine innings (No. 39), walks per nine innings (No. 57) and fielding PCT (No. 97). Individually, the Broncos have eight different players ranked in 24 categories. Fuerst leads the way with a No. 8 ranking in doubles per game and doubles, while Long is No. 9 in triples and Garcia is No. 26 in strikeouts. See page 5 for the complete list.
Play That Funky Music Friday Nights At Schott Stadium
Santa Clara baseball will host two music themes nights this season beginning with Funk Night on April 24 against Gonzaga. Join us for sweet funkadelic sounds and a Best Funked-Out Fan costume contest. The Broncos will then party like it's 1985 with 80s night on May 2 against San Diego State.
SCU Record Books Watch List
> Long is now tied for No. 4 all-time in triples (13)
> Long is now No. 6 all-time in at bats (785)
> Long is now in sole possession of No. 8 all-time in runs (142)
> Long is now No. 4 all-time in hits (247)
> Long is now No. 6 all-time in total bases (360)
> Long is tied for 10th all-time in walks (93)
> Long is tied for 8th in single-season triples (5)
> Long is tied for 10th in single-season sac flies (5)
> Long is 2 extra base hits away from entering the all-time list.
> Long 8 home runs away from entering the all-time list.
> Karcich is tied for No. 10 in hit by pitch (22)
> Karcich is 6 doubles away from entering the all-time list
> Karcich is 8 home runs away from entering the all-time list.
> Brady Fuerst is 8 doubles away from entering the all-time list.
> Fuerst is 3 doubles away from entering the single-season list.
> Geoff Klein is 4 doubles away from entering the single-season list.
> Garcia is 10 strikeouts away from entering the all-time list.
> Garcia is 8 starts away from entering the all-time list.
> Kalush is 1 save away from entering the all-time list.
