Baseball Travels to Sacramento for River City Classic
2/18/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 18, 2004
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What's On Schedule for the Gaels: Saint Mary's participates in the River City Classic hosted by Sacramento State this weekend in Sacramento, CA. The Gaels (3-6) will play Sacramento State (7-4) in the first round of the tournament on Friday, February 20 at 1:30 p.m. at Hornet Field. The Gaels' next two games on Saturday and Sunday will be determined based on how they do on Friday.
Who's Hot: Saint Mary's freshman right handed pitcher Bryan Oland has been outstanding in his first three starts in Saint Mary's uniform. The freshman from Santa Ana, CA is 2-1 on the season with a 1.80 earned run average. In Oland's last start on Saturday against Sacramento State, the right hander pitched eight innings, allowing one run on six hits. On the season, Oland has pitched a team-high 25 innings, while striking out 10 batters and allowing his opponents to hit .205 against him.
River City Classic: Saint Mary's participates in the River City Classic on Friday, February 20 through Sunday, February 22 in Sacramento, CA. The Gaels will face host Sacramento State on Friday at 1:30 p.m. at Hornet Field. The winner of that game will face either Cal Poly or San Francisco, who play at Noon at American River Junior College in Sacramento, CA. The loser Saint Mary's first game will play the loser of the Santa Clara versus Washington State game, which is being played at 10 a.m. on Friday at Hornet Field. The Championship game of the tournament will be played at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday at Hornet Field.
Saint Mary's on the Radio: Fans will be able to listen to 25 games during the 2004 season broadcasted on KSMC 89.5 FM. A combination of announcers will provide play-by-play and commentary throughout the season. This week the Gaels' game on Saturday, February 21, can be heard beginning at 10 a.m. or 1 p.m. with Dave Lankford and Dan Mininni calling the action.
First-Year Head Coach Jedd Soto: Saint Mary's College announced the hiring of its 11th head coach in school history on July 1, 2003 when it named Jedd Soto head baseball coach for the Gaels. Soto was a unanimous choice of the players, coaches, administrators and the search committee, and will be entering his first season as a head coach at the Division I level. At 29 years of age, Soto becomes the youngest head coach in the West Coast Conference. Soto was the inaugural head coach of the Feather River baseball program - which began in 1998 - and he transformed Golden Eagle baseball into a perennial power in California during his six years in Quincy, CA. In 2003 Soto led the Golden Eagles to a California State Final Four finish, while posting a 36-12 record. During the 2000-03 seasons Feather River reached the playoffs each year, while winning the Golden Valley Conference championship the past three seasons. Soto was named Golden Valley Conference Coach of the Year in 2001, 2002 and 2003, and posted a career record of 167-85 - a .663 winning percentage - at FRC. Soto produced seven First Team Junior College All-Americans, eight players drafted by Major League Baseball (five from the 2003 team), nine First Team All-State honorees, 28 First Team All-GVC selections, and one Freshman All-American. Additionally, the Golden Eagles sent 44 players to four-year institutions, including 15 athletes to Division I schools. Soto earned his bachelor's degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Marketing and Management, and minors in Real Estate and Insurance from the University of Louisiana Monroe in 1996. He finished his college career with a pitching record of 24-4 and 19 saves. Soto was born in San Dimas, CA. He grew up in Reno and graduated from Reed High School, where he was an all-conference and all-state varsity letterman.
Scouting the Hornets: Sacramento State holds a 7-4 record coming into the tournament after taking two out of three games against the Gaels last weekend. The Hornets have been led offensively so far this season by John Acha, who is batting .375 with four home runs and 11 RBI. Sacramento State is also led by Bret LeVier, who is batting .372, Jack Arroyo is batting .358 and Brett Flowers is batting .357. As a team the Hornets are batting .293 and their opponents are batting .289. The pitching staff is led by Renec Stelzriede, who is 2-0 in six relief appearances and Ethan Katz is 2-0 in three starts with a 6.28 earned run average.
Scouting Cal Poly: The Mustangs enter the week with a 10-3-1 overall record and are coming off a weekend sweep over Peppderdine. So far this season the Mustangs have been led by Chalon Tedtje, who is batting .440 with 12 RBI and Cory Taillon is batting .436 with four RBI. As a team the Mustangs are batting .294 and their pitching staff is led by Dennis LeDuc, who is 2-0 in seven relief appearances and Jonathan Fleming is 2-0 in three starts.
Scouting San Francisco: The Dons enter the week with a 1-4 overall record after going 1-3 last weekend. San Francisco claimed its first victory of the season against Northwestern on Saturday by a 10-4 score. The Dons' Kevin Rose picked up the victory for San Francisco.
Scouting Santa Clara: The Broncos bring a 5-3 overall record into the River City Classic and will face Washington State in Game 1 of the tournament. Santa Clara has been led offensively by Dustin Realini, who is batting .424 with one home run and 10 RBI. The Broncos' Nic Crosta is batting .407 with two home runs and 10 RBI and Will Thompson is batting .389 with three home runs and 10 RBI. The pitching staff is led by Chad Fillinger, who is 2-0 in three starts with a 1.93 earned run average.
Scouting Washington State: The Cougars enter the week with a 2-2 overall record with victories over USF and Nevada and losses to Pacific and Northwestern. So far this season Washington State has been led by Brandon Heddinger, who is batting .571 with six RBI and Jay Miller is batting .429 with five RBI. The pitching staff has been led by Aaron MacKenzie and Aaron Trolia. MacKenzie didn't allow a run in his only start this season and picked up a victory.
Last Week in Gael Baseball: Saint Mary's went 1-2 against Sacramento State last weekend, dropping its overall record to 3-6. In the first game of the series, the Hornets put nine runs on the board in the third inning to take a commanding 11-3 lead, which the Gaels could not come back from. Saint Mary's freshman Shan Day picked up the loss after pitching 2.1 innings before leaving with arm trouble. In game two, the Gaels beat the Hornets 3-2 at Louis Guisto Field. Saint Mary's starting pitcher Bryan Oland pitched eight innings, allowing six hits and one run, picking up his second victory of the season. In the final game of the series played in Sacramento, the Gaels once again took an early lead, but the Hornets scored five runs in the fifth inning to take a 5-3 lead, eventually leading to a 7-4 victory.
Sophomores Leading The Way: Saint Mary's sophomore shortstop Gilbert Gil and sophomore third baseman Bryan Byrne are leading the way offensively after nine games. Gil is leading the team in batting with a .342 average, leading the team in RBI with 10 and doubles with six. Byrne is batting .324 and leads the team with three home runs to go along with his six RBI.
West Coast Conference Preseason Coaches Poll: Saint Mary's was picked to finish last in the Coast Division with a total of 13 points. The Gaels will face San Diego, Loyola Marymount and Gonzaga this season in the Coast Division. In the West Division, Pepperdine is the favorite, followed by Santa Clara, San Francisco and Portland. The Coast Division is led by USD, LMU and then Gonzaga. Overall, Pepperdine received seven first place votes for 49 points, San Diego received one vote for a total of 39 points, followed by Santa Clara with 36 points, LMU (33), San Francisco (23), Gonzaga (22), Saint Mary's (13) and Portland (9).
Coming Up Next For the Gaels: Saint Mary's plays four games in a week for the first time this season, when it hosts San Jose State on Tuesday, February 24 at 2 p.m., before facing Pacific in a three-game weekend series. The Gaels will host Pacific on Friday, February 27 at 2 p.m., before playing in Stockton on Saturday and Sunday at 1 p.m.
BSB | Saint Mary's vs. Pacific Highlights, 4-4-26
Saturday, April 04
BSB | Saint Mary's vs. Pacific Highlights, 4-3-26
Friday, April 03
BSB | Saint Mary's vs. Pacific Highlights, 4-2-26
Friday, April 03
BSB | Saint Mary's at Portland Highlights, 3-29-26
Sunday, March 29
