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Baseball CSU Bakersfield Athletic Communications

Baseball Notebook vs. Nebraska

THIS WEEK
Bakersfield makes the long trip to Lincoln, Neb., this week for a three-game series against Big 12 member, the University of Nebraska. The series begins Friday, May 8 with a 4:05 p.m. PST start under the lights at Hawks Field. Saturday's game gets underway at 12:05 p.m. PST and first pitch on Sunday is 11:05 a.m. PST.

LIVE STATS, AUDIO & VIDEO
Live statistics, audio and video are available for Bakersfield's three-game series at Nebraska. All online options can be found by navigating to the baseball schedule page at huskers.com. In addition, Sunday's game will be shown across Nebraska on NET (Ch. 12 and Ch. 112 in HD) with Kevin Kugler and Adrian Fiala providing the commentary.

PROJECTED PITCHING MATCH-UPS
FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2009
CSUB: Martin Medina (RHP)
NEBRASKA: Mark Nesseth (RHP)

SATURDAY, MAY 9, 2009
CSUB: Spenser Messmore (RHP)
NEBRASKA: TBA

SUNDAY, MAY 10, 2009
CSUB: Jonathan Montoya (LHP)
NEBRASKA: Sean Yost (RHP)

?RUNNER RECAP
Following a pair of games on Apr. 28 and 29, the Roadrunners took a five-day break from action before resuming play against UCLA on May 5.

After returning from a weekend trip to Nevada, the ?Runners earned an 8-6 win over UC Santa Barbara (Apr. 28). Spenser Messmore tossed a complete game, striking out six and scattering 14 hits. A two-run home run by Richard Escalera in the fifth to give CSUB the lead for good. One day later, Bakersfield fell 13-2 to Loyola Marymount after the Lions collected seven runs on seven hits in the first two innings. Derek Geisinger had an RBI single and Ryan McIntyre had a solo home run to account for Bakersfield's two runs.

Despite the time off, the ?Runners struggled against UCLA on Tuesday, dropping a 15-2 decision. The Bruins exploded for 19 hits, including four home runs, while Bakersfield managed just five hits. Joey Mills scored both runs for CSUB, crossing the plate on RBI hits by Eric Sanchez and Jeremy Rodriguez.

SCOUTING NEBRASKA
Nebraska currently holds a 21-26-1 overall mark and a 5-19 record in Big 12 play. The Cornhuskers are coming off a three-game series loss to Big 12 rival Missouri. The Huskers have four players batting over .300, including Tyler Farst at .333, Cody Asche at .319, Jeff Tezak at .315 and Adam Bailey at .314. Farst leads the team in doubles (14) and RBI's (32), while Bailey has added 13 doubles and a team-high nine home runs.

Friday's starting pitcher, Mark Nesseth (RHP)  is 3-4 with a 4.83 ERA  in six starts and 18 total appearances. In 51 1/3 innings, he has struck out a team-best 58 batters while issuing 28 walks and 47 hits.

Sunday's starter, Sean Yost (RHP), is 1-4 with a 6.54 ERA in 16 appearances, including six starts. Yost has 41 strikeouts to go along with 44 hits and 19 walks in 42 2/3 innings.

SERIES HISTORY
This marks the first-ever meeting between the Roadrunners and Cornhuskers in baseball.

UTILITY MAN
Freshman Martin Medina has shown his versaility all year long, splitting time between third base, first base, pitcher and designated hitter. On Apr. 29 against Loyola Marymount, Medina added a fifth position to the list, earning the start at second base. Through 40 games, he has started 20 times at third base, 10 times at first, seven times as the designated hitter, twice as the starting pitcher and once at second. In 12 games, Medina played multiple positions, headlined by the 15-inning thriller against UC Riverside when he started at third, moved to first and then moved to the mound where he was the winning pitcher of record, striking out seven and not allowing a run in the final 5 2/3 innings.

RICHARDSON RISING
Kyle Richardson started the season hot, hitting .471 (8-for-17) with two doubles, one triple and one home run on opening weekend. After struggling to find his mark midway through the season, the junior shortstop's numbers are climbing again. He has safely hit in six of the last seven games, including four multi-hit performances. During that recent span, he is 11-for-22 (.500), with three doubles and two runs.

SOME NEW BRIGHT SPOTS
While some of Bakersfield's hotter bats have cooled in recent games, others have stepped in to provide some offensive boost.

After entering the Nevada series hitting .245 with 10 hits and one RBI, first baseman Richard Escalera has gone 6-for-19 (.316) with seven RBIs and four runs. Included in his six hits was his first home run of the season, a two-run shot that gave the ?Runners a 7-5 lead in their eventual 8-6 win over UC Santa Barbara (Apr. 29).

JJ Henry got the starting nod at third base in two games at Nevada, and appeared in all three, going 3-for-10 with one run and one RBI. He had his first multi-hit outing on Saturday, going 2-for-4 with one run. The junior also turned in a solid defensive effort all weekend, collecting five assists and four putouts, including a diving catch into foul territory to slow a Wolf Pack rally during game-two.

4-FOR-4
Jeremy Rodriguez collected Bakersfield's fifth four-hit outing of the season Apr. 24 against Nevada. The freshman catcher went a perfect 4-for-4 with one RBI and three runs. He hit .462 (6-for-13) in the three-game series, is batting .409 (9-for-22) in the past six games  and is currently .300 for the season.

MEDINA MUSCLES THROUGH
Along with Jason Kudlock's heroics in the Roadrunners' win over UC Riverside (Apr. 11), freshman Martin Medina played a huge role in 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 3-5 with a 6.89 ERA, the freshman has tallied 46 strikeouts to go along with 75 hits in 65 1/3 innings.

ON DECK
Another trip to the midwest awaits the Roadrunners next week. After returning to Bakersfield for three days, CSUB hits the road for a three-game series at the University of Missouri in Columbia. The team flies out of LAX Thursday for games on Friday, May 15 through Sunday, May 17. Start times in Missouri are 4:30 p.m., noon and 11:00 a.m. PST.

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.
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Players Mentioned

Derek Geisinger

#16 Derek Geisinger

1B
6' 1"
Junior
JJ Henry

#26 JJ Henry

3B
5' 10"
Junior
Jason Kudlock

#34 Jason Kudlock

RHP/INF
6' 2"
Junior
Ryan McIntyre

#5 Ryan McIntyre

OF
5' 9"
Freshman
Martin Medina

#30 Martin Medina

RHP/INF
5' 10"
Freshman
Spenser Messmore

#28 Spenser Messmore

RHP
5' 11"
Freshman
Joey Mills

#1 Joey Mills

OF
6' 0"
Junior
Jonathan Montoya

#19 Jonathan Montoya

LHP
5' 6"
Freshman
Kyle Richardson

#14 Kyle Richardson

SS/2B
5' 9"
Junior
Jeremy Rodriguez

#7 Jeremy Rodriguez

C
5' 7"
Freshman
Eric Sanchez

#2 Eric Sanchez

SS/2B
5' 11"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Derek Geisinger

#16 Derek Geisinger

6' 1"
Junior
1B
JJ Henry

#26 JJ Henry

5' 10"
Junior
3B
Jason Kudlock

#34 Jason Kudlock

6' 2"
Junior
RHP/INF
Ryan McIntyre

#5 Ryan McIntyre

5' 9"
Freshman
OF
Martin Medina

#30 Martin Medina

5' 10"
Freshman
RHP/INF
Spenser Messmore

#28 Spenser Messmore

5' 11"
Freshman
RHP
Joey Mills

#1 Joey Mills

6' 0"
Junior
OF
Jonathan Montoya

#19 Jonathan Montoya

5' 6"
Freshman
LHP
Kyle Richardson

#14 Kyle Richardson

5' 9"
Junior
SS/2B
Jeremy Rodriguez

#7 Jeremy Rodriguez

5' 7"
Freshman
C
Eric Sanchez

#2 Eric Sanchez

5' 11"
Freshman
SS/2B
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