MORAGA, Calif. — The Gaels return to the Bay this week to take on local opponent San Jose State before beginning another weekend series against Cal.
SCHEDULE
Game #8
Saint Mary's Gaels (4-3) at San Jose State Spartans (5-2)
Tuesday, February 26, 2:30 p.m.
San Jose, Calif. –– Municipal Stadium
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Game #9
Saint Mary's Gaels (4-3) at Cal Bears (4-3)
Thursday, February 28, 7:05 p.m.
Berkeley, Calif. –– Evans Diamond
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Live Stats
Game #10
Saint Mary's Gaels at Cal Bears
Friday, March 1, 6:05 p.m.
Berkeley, Calif. –– Evans Diamond
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Live Stats
Game #11
Saint Mary's Gaels vs. Cal Bears
Saturday, March 2, 1 p.m.
Moraga, Calif. –– Louis Guisto Field
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Game #12
Saint Mary's Gaels vs. Cal Bears
Sunday, March 3, 1 p.m.
Moraga, Calif. –– Louis Guisto Field
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Live Stats
SCOUTING REPORT
The Gaels are entering this week with a record of 4-3 following a tough weekend series against the Oregon Ducks. The Gaels swept Washington State in their opening weekend before dropping their next three against Oregon, with the final game of the series being cancelled due to weather. Saint Mary's has recorded a team batting average of .288 so far compared to their opponents who are hitting just .215. The Gaels have also posted a slugging percentage of .376 and an on-base percentage of .401. The squad has collected 66 hits and 39 RBI through the first seven games of the season.
Junior Joe Vranesh has been on a hot-streak since the season started and is the only Gael who has recorded a hit in every game this season. Vranesh has 11 hits on the year including four hits in game two of the opening series against the Cougars. The Alamo-native is hitting a .440 clip with nine RBI, two doubles and a triple, while posting a .600 slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .563. Vranesh has also been stellar in the field through the first two series and has not recorded an error all season. Junior Kevin Milam has also been a big offensive asset for the Gaels thus far as he is hitting .407 with six RBI, a homerun, and four doubles.
On the mound, junior Ken Waldichuk is leading the Gaels with a 1.50 ERA through 12 innings pitched. Waldichuk has only allowed four hits and two earned runs, while striking out 14 batters and only giving up three walks. The junior is holding opposing batters to a .103 clip and is tied 43rd in the nation with a WHIP of .58. Freshman Tyler Thorton has been impressive in his first collegiate season as he is posting a 1.69 ERA through five and a third innings, while only allowing two hits and striking out seven batters.
SAN JOSE STATE
The Spartans have recorded a 5-2 record through the first two series of the season and are most recently coming off of a 2-1 series win over UC Riverside. SJSU opened their season with a 3-0 series sweep of Santa Clara including a 20-10 win in the series finale. San Jose State is 2-2 so far at home and have collected a total of 18 runs on their home field. The Spartans are hitting well through the first seven games and are ranked 40th in the nation in team batting average (.306).
Senior Andrew Mitchel was recently named to the 2019 All-Mountain West Preseason Team, as voted by the league's head coaches. He was also the 2018 Mountain West Co-Pitcher of the Year and a second team ABCA/Rawlings West All-Region honoree, both in his first season. He collected 101 strikeouts and led Mountain West conference with 10.45 strikeouts per nine innings.
Junior Kellen Strahm is leading the Spartans with a .500 batting average and a total of 15 hits. He has recorded 10 runs and five RBI, with one double and a slugging percentage of .533. Freshman James Shimashita is making a strong collegiate debut as he has collected nine hits, 10 RBI, and is posting a .357 slugging percentage. On the mound, junior Josh Zanger has pitched well in relief for SJSU and has only allowed one earned run in his eight innings pitched. Zanger has also recorded eight strikeouts and is holding opposing players to a batting average of .172.
CALIFORNIA
The Cal Bears have posted a 4-3 record through the first two weeks of the season and are currently on a four-game win streak. The Bears mostly recently swept Cal Poly in a three game series after beating BYU in a single game series earlier in the week. Cal has a 3-0 record away and a 1-3 record at neutral sites, however they have yet to play on their home field and will have their home-opener against SMC on Thursday. The team has posted a .243 batting average through the first seven games with a .370 slugging percentage.
Junior Andrew Vaughn is leading the Bears with a batting average of .524 while recording 11 hits, eight runs, and nine RBI. Vaughn is tied for 24th in the nation with three homeruns in three different games this season. He is also tied 11th nationally with a slugging percentage of 1.000, while recording a strong .714 on-base percentage. Junior Max Flower is another offensive weapon for the Bears as he is hitting a .321 clip with nine hits and four RBI.
Pitching in relief for the Bears this season, junior Rogelio Reyes has been a big help defensively as he is posting a 0.00 ERA through eight and a third innings pitched. Reyes has allowed eight hits but no earned runs while striking out 13 batters and holding opponents to a .242 batting average. Freshman Sean Sullivan is also pitching well for Cal in relief as he has made three appearances, pitched six innings total, and only allowed three hits while striking out seven batters and maintaining a 0.00 ERA.
#GaelsRise – For ticket information to all home baseball games, call the SMC Ticket Office today at 925-631-4689 or click the ticket link
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