MORAGA, Calif. – After winning their second consecutive game and sweeping the season series with Fresno State Tuesday night, Saint Mary's will return to Moraga to host San Diego in WCC action starting on Friday, April 11th. The Gaels took two of three against the Toreros in 2024 but San Diego got the last laugh as they won the 2024 WCC Tournament for their second title in the last three seasons. 

Saint Mary's got great performances out of their bullpen Tuesday night and will have a chance to climb above .500 in conference play with a series sweep over San Diego which would be their first since 2002. Eddie Madrigal leads all starters with a .358 average and nine home runs as the Gaels offense ranks first in the WCC with a .286 batting average and a .386 on-base percentage. First pitch for Friday's game is slated for 3:00 PM at Br. Ronald Gallagher Stadium.    

GAME COVERAGE

BSB | Saint Mary's vs. San Diego | Br. Ronald Gallagher Stadium
Moraga, Calif. | April 11-13 | 3/1/1 PM
Live Stats | ESPN+ | Tickets

GAELS OUTLOOK

Extra Inning Drama…

Saint Mary's went toe-to-toe with conference leaders Portland last weekend, falling in back-to-back 11-inning games. The Gaels came from behind in both games, down as many as four runs in game one and then scored two in the bottom of the ninth in game two to force extras. They would score in the bottom of the eleventh in both games but come up just short as Portland held on for the win in both games. The bullpen was solid in games one and two for Saint Mary's but the Gaels offense struggled to cash in with runners on, leaving a combined 20 runners on base in the two games. 

The Gaels also committed six errors in the two games combined, leaving the door open for Portland to retake the lead in extras. Saint Mary's entered the weekend series top-20 in the nation in fielding percentage but committed a season high four errors in game two on Saturday. The Gaels are now 1-2 in extra-inning games this season with a win over San Francisco and two losses to Portland.

Freshmen Standouts…

Head coach Eric Valenzuela shook up the lineup a bit on Tuesday and started four freshmen. The move would pay off as three of the four combined for six hits and five RBI on the night as the Gaels rallied from four down to win 8-4 and sweep the season series with Fresno State. Makoa Sniffen tied the game up with a bases clearing double for his first career extra-base hit and then Justin Heffler gave the Gaels the lead in the fourth with a two-out double, also his first career extra-base hit. 

Catcher Brett Williams also made his fifth start of the season and went 2-for-3 with a run scored. Williams also caught eight different pitchers and helped contribute to seven consecutive scoreless innings to give Saint Mary's the 8-4 victory. Expect to see familiar faces back in the lineup for the weekend series but Valenzuela showed off some of his young talent Tuesday night and the freshmen took advantage with career performances.

Series Rotation…

Friday: #8 Dylan Delvecchio (2-1, 5.34 ERA)  
The senior lefty will make his ninth start of the 2025 season and enters the weekend with a 2-1 record. Delvecchio has been the team's primary Friday starter and is coming off of a no-decision against Portland. Delvecchio went six innings allowing four runs while striking out six. He leads the team with 42 strikeouts and has 6+ strikeouts in five of his eight starts.

Saturday: #30 Donovan Chriss (2-1, 4.99 ERA)
The junior transfer continues to anchor the Gaels staff, leading the rotation with a 4.99 ERA and a 2-1 record. Chriss also took a no-decision last week against Portland, throwing 5.1 innings and allowing just three runs. Chriss pitches to contact and holds opposing hitters to just a .257 batting average. 

Sunday: TBA

Series History…

Saint Mary's took two of three last season over San Diego and have won three of their last four games over the Toreros dating back to the 2023 WCC Tournament. San Diego has stood as the top team in the WCC though, winning two of the last three conference tournaments. 

Despite the Gaels recent success, the Toreros own the series history with a 41-24 record dating back to 2004. San Diego was picked to win the West Coast Conference in this year's preseason poll with Saint Mary's picked to finish third.  

ABOUT THE TOREROS (WCC)

The San Diego Toreros were picked to finish first in the 2025 WCC Preseason Poll for the first time since 2017. Jack Gurevitch, Austin Smith and Logan Reddemann were all named to the conference's preseason team. Gurevitch has backed that up since the start of the season, leading the team with a .371 batting average and seven home runs. 

Smith has been equally as good from the plate, entering the weekend with a .351 average, 46 hits and five homers. Despite what their record says, the Toreros have played the toughest non-conference schedule out of the entire WCC. USD has faced off against five teams with an RPI inside the top-25 including 8th ranked Oregon State and 14th ranked UCLA. 

After dropping two of three to LMU to open up conference play, USD bounced back with a series win over Pepperdine and currently sit in third place with a 3-3 WCC record. Through nine conference games, San Diego ranks fifth in team batting average (.274) and fifth in team ERA (5.74). Sophomore right hander Logan Reddemann will get the start for the Toreros on Friday, entering the weekend with an impressive 1.83 ERA and a 1-1 record. Reddemann leads the team with 34.1 innings pitched and has gone 5+ innings in five of his seven appearances on the season. 

First pitch of game one on Friday is slated for 3:00 PM at Br. Ronald Gallagher Stadium. The weekend series will be streamed live on ESPN+ and tickets can be bought online at smcgaels.com/tickets. Be sure to follow your Gaels on Facebook, Instagram, and X to get all the latest Saint Mary's athletics updates and information. 

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