Friday, May 7
Davis, Calif
2:30 p.m.
California State University at Northridge
at
UC Davis
Photo by: Braden Villanueva
CSUN Travels to UC Davis for Weekend Series
5/6/2021 3:25:00 PM | Baseball
FULL GAME NOTES
NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Baseball (13-15, 13-15 Big West) wraps up an eight-game road swing this weekend at UC Davis. The first of a four-game series is set for Friday at 2:30 p.m. The series continues on Saturday with a doubleheader starting at noon and the teams wrap up the four-game set on Sunday at 1 p.m. All four games will stream on BigWest.TV.
Probable Pitching Matchups
CSUN at UC Davis
RHP Blake Sodersten (2-1, 4.23 ERA) vs. RHP Jake Spillane (2-6, 5.61 ERA)
RHP Gavin Lizik (0-2, 8.34 ERA) vs. RHP Tim Wieser (2-5, 5.65 ERA)
RHP Jeremy Hassel (2-0, 2.31 ERA) vs. TBA
RHP Blaine Traxel (4-1, 4.35 ERA) vs. Brett Erwin (1-2, 4.42 ERA)
The Matadors are coming off an impressive four-game sweep of CSU Bakersfield last weekend. CSUN took the opener 9-4 last Friday and swept a Saturday doubleheader, 8-5 and 10-2. Behind a pitching gem from Blaine Traxel, the Matadors completed the sweep on Sunday with a 5-1 triumph. The road sweep was the Matadors' first in conference play since sweeping UC Davis in 2013.
CSUN battled back from two early deficits in the opener of the CSUB series before Jayson Newman gave the Matadors the lead for good with a go-ahead three-run homer in the fifth inning. The Matadors also picked up home runs from Denzel Clarke and Mason Le as they pulled away in the late innings. Blake Sodersten earned his second-straight victory by tossing 5.1 innings, allowing four runs while Jackson Cunningham gave the team a lift with 2.1 shutout innings out of the bullpen.
In game one of the doubleheader, CSUN would build a 5-1 lead until the Roadrunners stormed back for four runs to tie the game in the sixth. However, the Matadors again turned to Newman, who belted another go-ahead three-run homer in the seventh inning. Blaine Traxel pitched in relief and recorded the final four outs to nail down an 8-5 win. It would be all CSUN in game two as the Matadors erased an early 1-0 deficit and scored 10 unanswered runs in an eventual 10-2 victory. Newman homered again in the nightcap while Denzel Clarke went 3-for-3 at the plate in support of Jeremy Hassel who tossed six innings, allowing one run.
Traxel returned to the mound on Sunday and dazzled in a complete game win. The right-hander surrendered just four hits and one unearned run while he retired 18 batters in a row at one point. CSUN scored four of its five runs in the first three innings, highlighted by a two-run homer from Clarke. Traxel's complete game was his third over the last four weeks and finished off a series where he allowed no earned runs in 10.1 innings of work.
The Matadors' offense scored a season-high 32 runs in the CSUB series, eclipsing their previous series high of 30 last week against Cal State Fullerton. CSUN is averaging 6.1 runs per game through 28 contests this season. Leading the offense, Kai Moody is fourth in the Big West in batting average (.376) and 10th in on-base percentage (.444). Moody has 11 multiple-hit games and hit safely in 25 of 28 contests.
Also swinging a hot bat, Denzel Clarke is now up to fifth in the Big West in home runs (6) and on-base percentage (.458) while he is sixth in stolen bases (10). After sitting on a .192 batting average on Apr. 4, Clarke is batting .330 after going 22-for-45 at the plate over the last 14 games (.489). Over that hitting spree, Clarke has 13 runs, 12 RBI, 11 walks, seven stolen bases and four home runs.
Since returning to the everyday lineup on Apr. 23, Newman has been the team's top run producer with 15 RBI over the last eight games. Newman has batted .344 over that span (11-for-32) and belted four home runs. On the season, Newman leads the Matadors in RBI with 21 to go with a .294 batting average and six homers.
UC Davis leads CSUN 26-20 in the all-time series but the Matadors have posted victories in 10 of the last 13 meetings. CSUN has won the last two series including the teams' last series in 2019. Despite their recent success, the Matadors have dropped seven of nine all-time series in Davis. CSUN picked up just its second series win at UC Davis in team history in 2019 when it won two of three games. Traxel tossed six shutout innings over two appearances in that series while Clarke went 3-for-10 with three RBI.
A Closer Look at UC Davis
The Aggies are 11-30 overall and 5-19 in Big West play this season. While they are currently in 11th place in the Big West, the Aggies have played in a number of close games in conference play as UC Davis has played in nine games decided by three runs or fewer including two extra-inning games. Last week, UC Davis played a non-conference series against San Jose State and dropped two of three games at Dobbins Stadium. Matt Vaughn is in his 10th season as head coach of the program.
Jalen Smith leads the Aggies in batting with a .323 average while he is second in the Big West in stolen bases (13), fourth in hits (54) and eighth in runs (33). Jake Brandel has a team-high 23 RBI to go with a .310 average at the plate. On the pitching side, Jake Spillane (2-6) is tops on the team in innings pitched (61.0) and strikeouts (47) and sports a 5.61 ERA. As a team, UC Davis is second in the league in stolen bases (49).
#UniteTheValley
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NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Baseball (13-15, 13-15 Big West) wraps up an eight-game road swing this weekend at UC Davis. The first of a four-game series is set for Friday at 2:30 p.m. The series continues on Saturday with a doubleheader starting at noon and the teams wrap up the four-game set on Sunday at 1 p.m. All four games will stream on BigWest.TV.
Probable Pitching Matchups
CSUN at UC Davis
RHP Blake Sodersten (2-1, 4.23 ERA) vs. RHP Jake Spillane (2-6, 5.61 ERA)
RHP Gavin Lizik (0-2, 8.34 ERA) vs. RHP Tim Wieser (2-5, 5.65 ERA)
RHP Jeremy Hassel (2-0, 2.31 ERA) vs. TBA
RHP Blaine Traxel (4-1, 4.35 ERA) vs. Brett Erwin (1-2, 4.42 ERA)
The Matadors are coming off an impressive four-game sweep of CSU Bakersfield last weekend. CSUN took the opener 9-4 last Friday and swept a Saturday doubleheader, 8-5 and 10-2. Behind a pitching gem from Blaine Traxel, the Matadors completed the sweep on Sunday with a 5-1 triumph. The road sweep was the Matadors' first in conference play since sweeping UC Davis in 2013.
CSUN battled back from two early deficits in the opener of the CSUB series before Jayson Newman gave the Matadors the lead for good with a go-ahead three-run homer in the fifth inning. The Matadors also picked up home runs from Denzel Clarke and Mason Le as they pulled away in the late innings. Blake Sodersten earned his second-straight victory by tossing 5.1 innings, allowing four runs while Jackson Cunningham gave the team a lift with 2.1 shutout innings out of the bullpen.
In game one of the doubleheader, CSUN would build a 5-1 lead until the Roadrunners stormed back for four runs to tie the game in the sixth. However, the Matadors again turned to Newman, who belted another go-ahead three-run homer in the seventh inning. Blaine Traxel pitched in relief and recorded the final four outs to nail down an 8-5 win. It would be all CSUN in game two as the Matadors erased an early 1-0 deficit and scored 10 unanswered runs in an eventual 10-2 victory. Newman homered again in the nightcap while Denzel Clarke went 3-for-3 at the plate in support of Jeremy Hassel who tossed six innings, allowing one run.
Traxel returned to the mound on Sunday and dazzled in a complete game win. The right-hander surrendered just four hits and one unearned run while he retired 18 batters in a row at one point. CSUN scored four of its five runs in the first three innings, highlighted by a two-run homer from Clarke. Traxel's complete game was his third over the last four weeks and finished off a series where he allowed no earned runs in 10.1 innings of work.
The Matadors' offense scored a season-high 32 runs in the CSUB series, eclipsing their previous series high of 30 last week against Cal State Fullerton. CSUN is averaging 6.1 runs per game through 28 contests this season. Leading the offense, Kai Moody is fourth in the Big West in batting average (.376) and 10th in on-base percentage (.444). Moody has 11 multiple-hit games and hit safely in 25 of 28 contests.
Also swinging a hot bat, Denzel Clarke is now up to fifth in the Big West in home runs (6) and on-base percentage (.458) while he is sixth in stolen bases (10). After sitting on a .192 batting average on Apr. 4, Clarke is batting .330 after going 22-for-45 at the plate over the last 14 games (.489). Over that hitting spree, Clarke has 13 runs, 12 RBI, 11 walks, seven stolen bases and four home runs.
Since returning to the everyday lineup on Apr. 23, Newman has been the team's top run producer with 15 RBI over the last eight games. Newman has batted .344 over that span (11-for-32) and belted four home runs. On the season, Newman leads the Matadors in RBI with 21 to go with a .294 batting average and six homers.
UC Davis leads CSUN 26-20 in the all-time series but the Matadors have posted victories in 10 of the last 13 meetings. CSUN has won the last two series including the teams' last series in 2019. Despite their recent success, the Matadors have dropped seven of nine all-time series in Davis. CSUN picked up just its second series win at UC Davis in team history in 2019 when it won two of three games. Traxel tossed six shutout innings over two appearances in that series while Clarke went 3-for-10 with three RBI.
A Closer Look at UC Davis
The Aggies are 11-30 overall and 5-19 in Big West play this season. While they are currently in 11th place in the Big West, the Aggies have played in a number of close games in conference play as UC Davis has played in nine games decided by three runs or fewer including two extra-inning games. Last week, UC Davis played a non-conference series against San Jose State and dropped two of three games at Dobbins Stadium. Matt Vaughn is in his 10th season as head coach of the program.
Jalen Smith leads the Aggies in batting with a .323 average while he is second in the Big West in stolen bases (13), fourth in hits (54) and eighth in runs (33). Jake Brandel has a team-high 23 RBI to go with a .310 average at the plate. On the pitching side, Jake Spillane (2-6) is tops on the team in innings pitched (61.0) and strikeouts (47) and sports a 5.61 ERA. As a team, UC Davis is second in the league in stolen bases (49).
#UniteTheValley
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