MORAGA, Calif. — The Gaels begin at home for a mid-week matchup versus Sacramento State before hitting the road for a four-game series against Utah Valley.
SCHEDULE
Game #12
Saint Mary's Gaels (5-6) vs. Sacramento State Hornets (4-6)
Tuesday, March 5, 2:00 p.m.
Moraga, Calif. –– Louis Guisto Field
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Game #13
Saint Mary's Gaels (5-6) at Utah Valley Wolverines (2-8)
Friday, March 8, 2:00 p.m. MT
Orem, Utah –– UCCU Ballpark
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Game #14
Saint Mary's Gaels at Utah Valley Wolverines
Friday, March 8, 5:00 p.m. MT
Orem, Utah –– UCCU Ballpark
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Game #15
Saint Mary's Gaels at Utah Valley Wolverines
Saturday, March 9, 1 p.m. MT
Orem, Utah –– UCCU Ballpark
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Game #16
Saint Mary's Gaels at Utah Valley Wolverines
Sunday, March 10, 12 p.m. MT
Orem, Utah –– UCCU Ballpark
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SCOUTING REPORT
The Gaels have a 5-6 record coming into the week following a three-game series against Cal last weekend. Saint Mary's won the first game of the series after the offense came alive in a 10-3 victory, however they dropped the next two games with Saturday's game being cancelled due to weather. SMC continues to hit well and are hitting a .273 clip after collecting a number of extra base hits and homeruns during last week's matchups. The Gaels are also just one hit shy of the 100th hit of the season as a squad.
Junior Joe Vranesh remains hot for Saint Mary's and is leading the team in batting average (.395), slugging percentage (.684), and on-base percentage (.511). Going into last Friday's game, Vranesh had a nine-game hitting streak since the first game of the season. He also collected his first two homeruns of the season in the series against the Bears. His first homerun came in the fourth inning of Friday's game as he sent a solo shot over the right-center field wall. HIs second homerun of the season came in the final inning of Sunday's matchup as the Gaels were attempting to mount a comeback. Vranesh also leads the team in RBI (11) and is second behind Kevin Milam for total hits (15). Milam is ranked second in the nation and first in the conference with seven doubles on the season.
Freshman Tyler Thorton also continues to impress for the Gaels with strong numbers in his first collegiate season. In just his second career start, freshman Tyler Thorton pitched a gem against the Cal Bears. Through seven innings of work, Thorton struck out 12 batters and only allowed two hits. The freshman was rolling through the first 4.1 innings, retiring 13 hitters in a row with eight strikeouts before allowing his first hit in the top of the fifth. Thorton has the lowest ERA of any Gael starter (2.19) through his first two outings with a WHIP of 0.99. He has a total of 19 strikeouts on the season, which is more than any other pitcher for SMC.
SACRAMENTO STATE
The Hornets have posted a 4-6 record so far this season after three separate series. Sac State took the three-game series against North Dakota State 2-1 after losing the first game and winning the next two. They dropped their next series 1-3 against Pacific and also dropped the following series 1-2 against UCLA. Sac State is ranked fifth in the Western Athletic Conference and go on to a four-game series against Towson following Tuesday's game against the Gaels.
Junior Matt Smith is leading the Hornets with a batting average of .250, along with a slugging percentage of .325. He has ten hits on the season including a double, a triple, and three RBI. The freshman Martin Vincelli-Simard has the best on-base percentage on the team (.324) and the highest slugging percentage at .514. The team as a whole is batting a .194 clip with three homeruns and an on base percentage of .283.
On the mound, sophomore starter Scott Randall has recorded the lowest ERA (1.00) of any starter for the Hornets through his 18 innings pitched. Randall has a record of 1-1 and has only allowed 17 hits and four walks all season. He has a total of 21 strikeouts and is averaging 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings. Sophomore reliever Travis Martizia is also pitching well for Sac State with an ERA of 2.16 through eight and a third innings pitched. Martizia has only allowed nine hits and has only walked three batters.
UTAH VALLEY
The Wolverines have had a tough start to their season and are currently posting a record of 2-8 through the first few weeks of the season. They won their second game of the season 4-3 against Fresno State and also won 11-9 against UC Davis last Sunday, but have yet to win another matchup. Utah Valley will travel to Provo on Tuesday to take on local opponent BYU before returning home to host SMC for four-games. The team is batting a .245 clip with a slugging percentage of .306.
Senior infielder Michael Beltran is a key piece of the Wolverine offense and is leading the team in several categories. Beltran leads the team in batting average (.389), slugging percentage (.528), on-base percentage (.522) and hits (14). He is ranked 94th in the nation in on-base percentage and has collected a double and two triples. Junior Kade Poulsen is second on the team with a batting average of .323.
Junior pitcher Paxton Schultz has the lowest ERA (4.09) among starters for the Wolverines in his 22 innings pitched. He has struck out 22 batters and allowed only four walks on the season. Schultz is also the only Wolverine to have pitched a complete game and is among a handful of pitchers in the NCAA to have pitched one at this point in the season. The team as a whole has struck out 61 batters and are holding their opponents to a batting average of .300.
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