THIS WEEK
The Roadrunners head to Reno, Nev., for a three-game series at the University of Nevada. First pitch for game-one is Friday, Apr. 24 at 6 p.m. at Pecolle Park. Game-two begins Saturday, Apr. 25 at 1 p.m. and the series concludes Sunday, Apr. 26 at 1 p.m.
LIVE STATS, AUDIO & VIDEO
Live statistics, audio and video will all be available for Bakersfield's three-game series at the University of Nevada. All three options can be found by navigating to the baseball schedule page at nevadawolfpack.com.
PROJECTED PITCHING MATCH-UPS
FRIDAY, APR. 24, 2009
CSUB: Martin Medina (RHP)
NEVADA: Brock Stassi (LHP)
SATURDAY, APR. 25, 2009
CSUB: Jonathan Montoya (LHP)
NEVADA: Chris Garcia (LHP)
SUNDAY, APR. 26, 2009
CSUB: Mickey Jannis (RHP)
NEVADA: Derek Achelpohl (RHP)
'RUNNER RECAP
Since claiming a 9-7, 15-inning win over UC Riverside on Apr. 11, the Roadrunners have faltered a bit, dropping three straight, including a 3-1 decision at Cal State Northridge and 8-7 and 17-2 finals to UC Santa Barbara.
Both the match-up against Cal State Northridge and the first meeting with UC Santa Barbara were within reach for Bakersfield. But a pair of costly errors let to two unearned runs against the Matadors, while seven unanswered runs by the Gauchos led to the one-run loss at UCSB.
KEEP IT COMING, KUDLOCK
On April 7 against Fresno State, Jason Kudlock went 3-for-5 with a double, home run, five RBIs and three runs. Despite going hitless the following day, April 7 was a sign of things to come, as Kudlock has since gone 7-for-22 (.318)with four runs and four RBIs in the last six games. His six-game hit streak was bolstered by a 15th-inning walk-off home run that gave Bakersfield a 9-7 win against UC Riverside on Apr. 11.
MIGHTY MILLS
Junior center fielder Joey Mills has been a bright spot in the Roadrunner lineup as of late, currently holding a six-game hitting streak. After going hitless in the final two games of the series against Fresno State, Mills broke out with a 3-for-4 performance against UC Riverside (4/9/09), and has collected at least one hit in every game since. Over the six-game streak, Mills is batting .500 (10-for-20) with two doubles, two triples, two RBIs and three runs.
DON'T MESS(MORE) WITH SPENSER
Freshman hurler Spenser Messmore continued his streak of solid relief appearances Tuesday against UC Santa Barbara, fanning all four batters he faced, including striking out the side in the seventh inning. In 17 total appearances (28 1/3 innings), Messmore has 17 strikeouts to go along with just five walks. In his last five appearances (10 innings), he has struck out 12 while allowing just one walk, six hits and two runs for a 1.80 ERA.
SCOUTING NEVADA
The University of Nevada enters the series against Bakersfield with an 18-20 overall record. The Wolf Pack are coming off of a 10-7 home loss to Pacific on Tuesday. Pacific jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the top of the third, and despite a Nevada rally midway through, Pacific added four runs late to reclaim the lead and victory.
Freshman outfielder Nick Melino leads the Wolf Pack offense, batting .362 with 38 hits, including 11 doubles, one triple and one home run. Junior infielder Shaun Kort holds a .327 average with a team-best 49 hits, including 11 doubles and four home runs. He also leads Nevada with 40 RBIs. Overall, the Wolf Pack has six players batting over .300 and hit .283 as a team.
On the mound, the Roadrunners will face LHP Brock Stassi, LHP Chris Garcia and RHP Derek Achelpohl. Stassi, a sophomore, is 5-3 with a 4.82 ERA in nine starts. He leads the pitching staff in strikeouts (40) and innings (52.1). Garcia is 2-4 with a 6.85 ERA in nine starts. The junior has struck out 31 while giving up 36 walks and 47 hits in 46 innings of work. Achelpohl is 3-3 with a 3.95 RA in eight starts and 10 total appearances. The senior has 36 strikeouts to go along with just 10 walks in 43 1/3 innings of work. Of the 58 hits he has allowed, just 14 have been for extra bases.
SERIES HISTORY
This weekend's series will be the first meetings between the Roadrunners and Wolf Pack.
MEDINA MUSCLES THROUGH
Along with Jason Kudlock's heroics in the Roadrunners' win over UC Riverside on Saturday, freshman Martin Medina played a huge role on the outcome as well. The freshman started the game at first base, moved to third in the seventh and then to the mound with one out in the 10th. He then went on to pitch the final 5 2/3 innings of the game, recording seven strikeouts and scattering four hits without allowing a walk or a run to score. He threw 77 pitches, 52 for strikes, and worked his way out jams in the 10th and 15th when the Highlanders had a runner reach third. He ended the first rally with a strikeout and the second with a fielder's choice ground out. In addition, at the plate Medina went 3-for-7 with two doubles and a run.
MONTOYA'S COMPLETE GAME
Freshman southpaw Jonathan Montoya pitched Bakersfield's first-ever complete game in a 4-3 win over Fresno State. He fanned seven, walked four and allowed just five hits for three runs against the defending national champion Bulldogs, picking up his third win of the season. Now 3-3 with a 5.74 ERA, the freshman has tallied 34 strikeouts to go along with 55 hits in 53 1/3 innings.
ON DECK
The Roadrunners follow their trip to Reno with a final trip to UC Santa Barbara Tuesday, Apr. 28. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. Less than 24 hours later, the Roadrunners return to their home field to host Loyola Marymount in a 2 p.m. start on Wednesday, Apr. 29.
TOUGH SCHEDULE
Bakersfield's inaugural schedule was listed as the 29th toughest in the nation, according to a preseason strength of schedule ranking by boydsworld.com. CSUB has 21 games against 10 opponents ranked above them on the strength of schedule list, including No. 8 Cal Poly, No. 11 Pacific, No. 13 UC Davis, No. 14 UC Riverside, No. 16 Loyola Marymount, No. 18 UC Santa Barbara, No. 21 San Francisco, No. 22 Saint Mary's and No. 24 Cal State Northridge.
TOGETHER AGAIN
Bakersfield is the fourth school coaches Bill Kernen and Jody Robinson have worked at together. The two were assistants at Cal State Fullerton in the late 1970's through 1981. During that time, the Titans, who had just made the transition to Division I in 1975, earned five NCAA Tournament appearances, including two trips to the College World Series and a national championship title in 1979. They also teamed up briefly in 1988, both serving as assistants to former Titan Head Coach Augie Garrido, this time at the University of Illinois. In 1991, Kernen was in his second season as the head coach at Cal State Northridge, leading the Matadors through the transition from DII to DI play. Robinson joined the staff as an assistant coach, helping CSUN to a 44?18?1 record, the West Regional championship game and a top 10 ranking in the final NCAA Division I poll in its first season of DI play.
HARDT FIELD
Coming from the 99 Freeway (north or south) exit at Ming Ave. and proceed WEST to Haggin Oaks Blvd. (approximately four miles). Turn right on Haggin Oaks to Camino Media. Turn left on Camino Media. Turn right into campus on Roadrunner Drive and park in Lot E or I. Hardt Field is located west of Lot E.
TICKETS, PLEASE
Ticket information for all Roadrunner home baseball games may be found online at GoRunners.com or by calling the CSUB Athletics Ticket Office at (661) 654-BLUE.
NEED MORE INFO?
For all of the most up-to-date information about CSUB Baseball and all other Roadrunner sports, check out the CSUB Athletics Web site at: GoRunners.com.
