Friday, April 24
San Diego, CA
6:00 PM
Saint Mary's College of California
at
San Diego
Photo by: Saint Mary's Athletics / Tod Fierner
BSB | Saint Mary’s Battles 2025 WCC Regular Season Champs in San Diego
4/24/2026 8:09:00 AM | Baseball
SAN DIEGO, Calif. - The Saint Mary's baseball team will gear up for another crucial West Coast Conference series this week as they take on 2025 regular season champions San Diego starting on Friday, April 24. The Gaels are locked in a three-way tie for fourth place in the conference standings and will look to get back in the win column on the road this weekend at Fowler Park.
Despite suffering a conference sweep to Gonzaga last weekend, the Gaels went to Reno for their midweek game and completed the regular season sweep with a dominant 11-5 victory over the Wolf Pack. Saint Mary's tallied 11 runs off 16 hits to get back in the win column before flying down to San Diego for the weekend. The Gaels will look for their first regular season win over the Toreros since 2024 after beating USD in the WCC Tournament championship game for their second ever conference tournament title a season ago.
GAME COVERAGE AND INFORMATION
BSB | Saint Mary's at San Diego | Fowler Park
San Diego Calif. | April 24-26 | 6/5/1 p.m.
Live Stats | ESPN+ | Tickets
BSB | Saint Mary's vs. Cal | Louis Guisto Field at Br. Ronald Gallagher Stadium
Moraga, Calif. | April 28 | 6:00 p.m.
Live Stats | ESPN+ | Tickets
GAELS OUTLOOK
Gaels Slug in Reno to Complete Season Sweep of Wolf Pack…
Saint Mary's shook off a quiet offensive weekend against Gonzaga and exploded for 11 runs on 16 hits to defeat Nevada 11-5 and sweep the regular season series over the Wolf Pack. Seven different players had two hits in the ballgame including a two-hit and three RBI performance from center fielder Tanner Griffith. Sophomore catcher Brett Williams also made his 14th start behind the dish and had two hits and a pair of RBI to contribute to the Gaels' six-run victory.
After going down two runs in the opening frame, Saint Mary's (23-17) erupted for seven runs in the second inning off six hits. The Gaels would take the lead and never look back, scoring a run in the fourth and three more in the fifth to contribute to their 12th double-digit scoring game of the season.
Castellanos Extends Hit Streak to Season High 17 Games…
Diego Castellanos has been on a tear this season for the Gaels, leading the WCC in hits (61), runs scored (37) and ranking second in batting average (.377) through his 40 games played this season. Castellanos went 2-for-5 with an RBI in the team's 11-5 win over Nevada on Tuesday to push his hit streak to a season high 17 games, the longest hit streak of any Gael this season. Over his 17 games, the junior outfielder is hitting .389 with 28 hits and four home runs. More importantly, the Gaels are 11-6 over that stretch and have the second highest win total in the WCC with 23 wins this season. Castellanos was named All-WCC Honorable Mention last season and is certainly on his way to something more here in 2026.
John Damozonio Named College Baseball National Pitcher of the Year Semifinalist…
Senior right handed pitcher John Damozonio was named to the College Baseball Hall of Fame National Pitcher of the Year semifinalist list, representing one of 43 pitchers in NCAA Division I baseball selected to the list Wednesday afternoon.
Damozonio has been the Gaels' Friday ace and has put up career numbers just over the halfway point of the 2026 college baseball season. Through ten starts, Damozonio holds an impressive 6-2 record with a 2.75 ERA. His six wins leads the West Coast Conference and ranks 27th in the nation. Damozonio also leads the conference with 59.0 innings pitched including a current streak of three consecutive 7-inning outings in which he is 2-1 over that stretch. In the strikeouts department, Damozonio ranks third in the WCC with 63 punchouts including a career high eleven earlier this season in a dominant 7-inning performance and an ultimate 11-4 victory for the Gaels over Pacific.
Damozonio's name stands tall with some of the best hurlers in the country including Oregon State's Dax Whitney, UCLA's Logan Reddemann and UC Santa Barbara's Jackson Flora, who have all been named a National Pitcher of the Week this season. Damozonio is one of three WCC pitchers named to the semifinalist list including Santa Clara's Max Bayles and Portland's Will Labonte.
Gaels Remain Atop WCC in Several Offensive Categories…
Despite a quiet offensive weekend against Gonzaga, Saint Mary's still leads the WCC in nearly every major offensive category including batting average (.331), on-base (.409), slugging (.505), runs (285), hits (467), doubles (91) and RBI (267). The Gaels have recorded 12 games this season with double-digit runs and 29 with double-digit hits including their 16-hit performance on Tuesday against Nevada. Their .331 batting average ranks third in all of Division I and 467 hits ranks fourth to represent one of the best offenses in the country.
Individually, Diego Castellanos and Makoa Sniffen lead the WCC in hits with 61 each while Jacob Johnson and Sniffen rank 1-2 in total RBI. Tanner Griffith has also been one of the best leadoff hitters in the WCC, leading the conference with a .484 on-base percentage and 13 stolen bases.
Series History…
Saint Mary's enters the weekend series with San Diego with a 23-42 record dating back to the 2001 season. Despite the series history going the way of the Toreros, the Gaels have the sweetest victory most recently, defeating top seed San Diego 9-8 in the WCC Tournament championship game to claim their second tournament title in program history. USD swept the regular season series last year as Saint Mary's will look for its first regular season win since 2024.
Saint Mary's and Cal had their first non-conference matchup canceled earlier this season due to rain. The Golden Bears will hold up their end of the home-and-home series and come to Moraga on Tuesday for the Gaels' midweek. The two teams have split their last four meetings dating back to 2024 as the Gaels will look to make it two straight over the Golden Bears after winning the second matchup last season, 10-4. Their last home win over Cal came back in 2021.
ABOUT THE TOREROS (15-23, 7-8 WCC)
San Diego has emerged as a West Coast Conference powerhouse after winning its second consecutive league title in 2025 and its third over the last four seasons. The Toreros missed out on NCAA action though after being dethroned by Saint Mary's in the conference tournament championship game, seeing their 2025 season come to an end in Las Vegas.
This season, the Toreros have played some competitive baseball over their 38 games but sit eight games below .500 and are 7-8 in conference play. They sit in a logjam in spots 3-through-8 in the conference standings with all six teams separated by just two games including the Gaels at 8-7. USD started the season 6-1 including a key sweep at the Tony Gwynn Legacy tournament with wins over Utah, Creighton and host San Diego State. Fast forward to conference play, the Toreros have lost four of their five series including a series defeat most recently to first year WCC members Seattle U. USD has some nice momentum though with back-to-back walk-off wins in the series finale with the Redhawks and in its midweek win over UCSD on Tuesday.
ABOUT THE GOLDEN BEARS (21-18, 6-12 ACC)
Cal has won three of its last four games including an ACC series win over Louisville last weekend. The Golden Bears sit second to last in the conference standings at 6-12 but have wins over fellow WCC schools Santa Clara, San Francisco and a four-game sweep over San Diego back in early March.
Jacob French leads the team with a .373 batting average through his 30 games including ten doubles and four home runs. Daniel Murillo leads the team with nine homers while junior catcher Hideki Prather has a .341 average with eight home runs. Cal will head to Miami this weekend for ACC play before returning to Northern California to take on Saint Mary's for its midweek next Tuesday.
Be sure to follow your Gaels on Facebook, Instagram, and X to get all the latest Saint Mary's athletics updates and information.
#GaelsRise
Despite suffering a conference sweep to Gonzaga last weekend, the Gaels went to Reno for their midweek game and completed the regular season sweep with a dominant 11-5 victory over the Wolf Pack. Saint Mary's tallied 11 runs off 16 hits to get back in the win column before flying down to San Diego for the weekend. The Gaels will look for their first regular season win over the Toreros since 2024 after beating USD in the WCC Tournament championship game for their second ever conference tournament title a season ago.
GAME COVERAGE AND INFORMATION
BSB | Saint Mary's at San Diego | Fowler Park
San Diego Calif. | April 24-26 | 6/5/1 p.m.
Live Stats | ESPN+ | Tickets
BSB | Saint Mary's vs. Cal | Louis Guisto Field at Br. Ronald Gallagher Stadium
Moraga, Calif. | April 28 | 6:00 p.m.
Live Stats | ESPN+ | Tickets
GAELS OUTLOOK
Gaels Slug in Reno to Complete Season Sweep of Wolf Pack…
Saint Mary's shook off a quiet offensive weekend against Gonzaga and exploded for 11 runs on 16 hits to defeat Nevada 11-5 and sweep the regular season series over the Wolf Pack. Seven different players had two hits in the ballgame including a two-hit and three RBI performance from center fielder Tanner Griffith. Sophomore catcher Brett Williams also made his 14th start behind the dish and had two hits and a pair of RBI to contribute to the Gaels' six-run victory.
After going down two runs in the opening frame, Saint Mary's (23-17) erupted for seven runs in the second inning off six hits. The Gaels would take the lead and never look back, scoring a run in the fourth and three more in the fifth to contribute to their 12th double-digit scoring game of the season.
Castellanos Extends Hit Streak to Season High 17 Games…
Diego Castellanos has been on a tear this season for the Gaels, leading the WCC in hits (61), runs scored (37) and ranking second in batting average (.377) through his 40 games played this season. Castellanos went 2-for-5 with an RBI in the team's 11-5 win over Nevada on Tuesday to push his hit streak to a season high 17 games, the longest hit streak of any Gael this season. Over his 17 games, the junior outfielder is hitting .389 with 28 hits and four home runs. More importantly, the Gaels are 11-6 over that stretch and have the second highest win total in the WCC with 23 wins this season. Castellanos was named All-WCC Honorable Mention last season and is certainly on his way to something more here in 2026.
John Damozonio Named College Baseball National Pitcher of the Year Semifinalist…
Senior right handed pitcher John Damozonio was named to the College Baseball Hall of Fame National Pitcher of the Year semifinalist list, representing one of 43 pitchers in NCAA Division I baseball selected to the list Wednesday afternoon.
Damozonio has been the Gaels' Friday ace and has put up career numbers just over the halfway point of the 2026 college baseball season. Through ten starts, Damozonio holds an impressive 6-2 record with a 2.75 ERA. His six wins leads the West Coast Conference and ranks 27th in the nation. Damozonio also leads the conference with 59.0 innings pitched including a current streak of three consecutive 7-inning outings in which he is 2-1 over that stretch. In the strikeouts department, Damozonio ranks third in the WCC with 63 punchouts including a career high eleven earlier this season in a dominant 7-inning performance and an ultimate 11-4 victory for the Gaels over Pacific.
Damozonio's name stands tall with some of the best hurlers in the country including Oregon State's Dax Whitney, UCLA's Logan Reddemann and UC Santa Barbara's Jackson Flora, who have all been named a National Pitcher of the Week this season. Damozonio is one of three WCC pitchers named to the semifinalist list including Santa Clara's Max Bayles and Portland's Will Labonte.
Gaels Remain Atop WCC in Several Offensive Categories…
Despite a quiet offensive weekend against Gonzaga, Saint Mary's still leads the WCC in nearly every major offensive category including batting average (.331), on-base (.409), slugging (.505), runs (285), hits (467), doubles (91) and RBI (267). The Gaels have recorded 12 games this season with double-digit runs and 29 with double-digit hits including their 16-hit performance on Tuesday against Nevada. Their .331 batting average ranks third in all of Division I and 467 hits ranks fourth to represent one of the best offenses in the country.
Individually, Diego Castellanos and Makoa Sniffen lead the WCC in hits with 61 each while Jacob Johnson and Sniffen rank 1-2 in total RBI. Tanner Griffith has also been one of the best leadoff hitters in the WCC, leading the conference with a .484 on-base percentage and 13 stolen bases.
Series History…
Saint Mary's enters the weekend series with San Diego with a 23-42 record dating back to the 2001 season. Despite the series history going the way of the Toreros, the Gaels have the sweetest victory most recently, defeating top seed San Diego 9-8 in the WCC Tournament championship game to claim their second tournament title in program history. USD swept the regular season series last year as Saint Mary's will look for its first regular season win since 2024.
Saint Mary's and Cal had their first non-conference matchup canceled earlier this season due to rain. The Golden Bears will hold up their end of the home-and-home series and come to Moraga on Tuesday for the Gaels' midweek. The two teams have split their last four meetings dating back to 2024 as the Gaels will look to make it two straight over the Golden Bears after winning the second matchup last season, 10-4. Their last home win over Cal came back in 2021.
ABOUT THE TOREROS (15-23, 7-8 WCC)
San Diego has emerged as a West Coast Conference powerhouse after winning its second consecutive league title in 2025 and its third over the last four seasons. The Toreros missed out on NCAA action though after being dethroned by Saint Mary's in the conference tournament championship game, seeing their 2025 season come to an end in Las Vegas.
This season, the Toreros have played some competitive baseball over their 38 games but sit eight games below .500 and are 7-8 in conference play. They sit in a logjam in spots 3-through-8 in the conference standings with all six teams separated by just two games including the Gaels at 8-7. USD started the season 6-1 including a key sweep at the Tony Gwynn Legacy tournament with wins over Utah, Creighton and host San Diego State. Fast forward to conference play, the Toreros have lost four of their five series including a series defeat most recently to first year WCC members Seattle U. USD has some nice momentum though with back-to-back walk-off wins in the series finale with the Redhawks and in its midweek win over UCSD on Tuesday.
ABOUT THE GOLDEN BEARS (21-18, 6-12 ACC)
Cal has won three of its last four games including an ACC series win over Louisville last weekend. The Golden Bears sit second to last in the conference standings at 6-12 but have wins over fellow WCC schools Santa Clara, San Francisco and a four-game sweep over San Diego back in early March.
Jacob French leads the team with a .373 batting average through his 30 games including ten doubles and four home runs. Daniel Murillo leads the team with nine homers while junior catcher Hideki Prather has a .341 average with eight home runs. Cal will head to Miami this weekend for ACC play before returning to Northern California to take on Saint Mary's for its midweek next Tuesday.
Be sure to follow your Gaels on Facebook, Instagram, and X to get all the latest Saint Mary's athletics updates and information.
#GaelsRise
Players Mentioned
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/ BaseballBSB | Saint Mary's at Nevada Highlights, 4-21-26
Tuesday, April 21
BSB | Saint Mary's vs. Gonzaga Highlights, 4-19-26
Sunday, April 19
BSB | Saint Mary's vs. Gonzaga Highlights, 4-18-26
Saturday, April 18
BSB | Saint Mary's vs. Gonzaga Highlights, 4-17-26
Friday, April 17
