Tuesday, March 8
Phoenix, Ariz.
5:00 p.m.
California State University at Northridge
at
Grand Canyon
Photo by: Braden Villanueva
Matadors Continue Road Trip with Midweek Games at GCU
3/7/2022 5:59:00 PM | Baseball
FULL GAME NOTES
NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Baseball (6-4) opens a busy week of action with a two-game series at Grand Canyon. The opener is set for Tuesday at 5 p.m. before the short series concludes on Wednesday at 1 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Following the two games at GCU, the Matadors will travel to Lake Charles, La. to face McNeese State in a weekend series starting Friday. From there, CSUN will play a midweek game next Tuesday, March 15 at Loyola Marymount, concluding a stretch where the Matadors play six games over an eight-day span.
Probable Pitching Matchups
CSUN at Grand Canyon
RHP Blaine Traxel (2-1, 4.05 ERA) vs. RHP Hunter Omlid (0-0, 5.87 ERA)
TBA vs. RHP Blake Reilly (0-0, 18.00 ERA)
CSUN owns a 15-2 all-time record over Grand Canyon in baseball. In a series dating back to 1990, the Matadors won the first 11 games in the series before the Lopes picked up their first win over CSUN in 1998. The teams have played four games over the past five seasons with the Matadors winning the last three. In 2020, CSUN played GCU twice in Phoenix and would post 5-3 and 6-2 wins.
In the start of a 12-game road trip, the Matadors gave No. 2 Stanford a battle throughout the teams' three-game series over the weekend. The Cardinal though would come away with a series victory, winning the last two games of the series. CSUN upset the Cardinal in the opener in the series with a 9-3 win behind 7.1 quality innings from Blaine Traxel and five RBI from Gabe Gonzalez. Stanford returned the favor with a 6-2 win in the middle game of the series and held on for a 3-2 win in the finale.
CSUN's win over Stanford in game one was the program's first win over a top-10 ranked team since 2013 when the Matadors defeated eighth-ranked UCLA. The team also posted their first victory over a team ranked No. 2 in the national polls since defeating No. 2 Cal State Fullerton in 2003.
Traxel picked up his second-straight victory last Friday after working seven-plus innings and allowing three runs, all of which scored in the fourth inning. The right-hander finished his outing on the mound by retiring the final seven batters he faced. At the plate, the Matadors pounded out 12 hits, highlighted by a three-run home run from Gonzalez and a three-hit effort from Andrew Sojka. Gonzalez would also pick up a two-run single while Mason Le and Graysen Tarlow had two hits apiece.
The Matadors also received a standout effort from Ryan Wentz in Sunday's series finale with the Cardinal. Although tagged with the loss, Wentz worked a career-high six innings, allowing four hits and two runs but only one of which was earned. Wentz also struck out a season-high six batters.
A Closer Look at Grand Canyon
The Lopes (7-4) have won five-straight games and are coming off a three-game sweep of California Baptist to open WAC play last weekend. GCU has also notched wins over Arizona (19-3) and UC Irvine (4-3) this season. In 2021, GCU won a share of the regular season WAC title before winning the conference tournament to punch a ticket to the NCAA Regionals. The Lopes won 39 games last season and played at the Tuscon Regional. Andy Stankiewicz is in his 11th season as the team's head coach.
In the early going this season, Elijah Buries is hitting a team-high .370 with 14 runs scored and six RBI while Homer Bush Jr. is batting .360 with 11 runs scored. Jacob Wilson has driven in 15 runs already this season to go with four homers and a .319 average. As a pitching staff, GCU pitchers have allowed a 3.88 ERA.
#UniteTheValley
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NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Baseball (6-4) opens a busy week of action with a two-game series at Grand Canyon. The opener is set for Tuesday at 5 p.m. before the short series concludes on Wednesday at 1 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Following the two games at GCU, the Matadors will travel to Lake Charles, La. to face McNeese State in a weekend series starting Friday. From there, CSUN will play a midweek game next Tuesday, March 15 at Loyola Marymount, concluding a stretch where the Matadors play six games over an eight-day span.
Probable Pitching Matchups
CSUN at Grand Canyon
RHP Blaine Traxel (2-1, 4.05 ERA) vs. RHP Hunter Omlid (0-0, 5.87 ERA)
TBA vs. RHP Blake Reilly (0-0, 18.00 ERA)
CSUN owns a 15-2 all-time record over Grand Canyon in baseball. In a series dating back to 1990, the Matadors won the first 11 games in the series before the Lopes picked up their first win over CSUN in 1998. The teams have played four games over the past five seasons with the Matadors winning the last three. In 2020, CSUN played GCU twice in Phoenix and would post 5-3 and 6-2 wins.
In the start of a 12-game road trip, the Matadors gave No. 2 Stanford a battle throughout the teams' three-game series over the weekend. The Cardinal though would come away with a series victory, winning the last two games of the series. CSUN upset the Cardinal in the opener in the series with a 9-3 win behind 7.1 quality innings from Blaine Traxel and five RBI from Gabe Gonzalez. Stanford returned the favor with a 6-2 win in the middle game of the series and held on for a 3-2 win in the finale.
CSUN's win over Stanford in game one was the program's first win over a top-10 ranked team since 2013 when the Matadors defeated eighth-ranked UCLA. The team also posted their first victory over a team ranked No. 2 in the national polls since defeating No. 2 Cal State Fullerton in 2003.
Traxel picked up his second-straight victory last Friday after working seven-plus innings and allowing three runs, all of which scored in the fourth inning. The right-hander finished his outing on the mound by retiring the final seven batters he faced. At the plate, the Matadors pounded out 12 hits, highlighted by a three-run home run from Gonzalez and a three-hit effort from Andrew Sojka. Gonzalez would also pick up a two-run single while Mason Le and Graysen Tarlow had two hits apiece.
The Matadors also received a standout effort from Ryan Wentz in Sunday's series finale with the Cardinal. Although tagged with the loss, Wentz worked a career-high six innings, allowing four hits and two runs but only one of which was earned. Wentz also struck out a season-high six batters.
A Closer Look at Grand Canyon
The Lopes (7-4) have won five-straight games and are coming off a three-game sweep of California Baptist to open WAC play last weekend. GCU has also notched wins over Arizona (19-3) and UC Irvine (4-3) this season. In 2021, GCU won a share of the regular season WAC title before winning the conference tournament to punch a ticket to the NCAA Regionals. The Lopes won 39 games last season and played at the Tuscon Regional. Andy Stankiewicz is in his 11th season as the team's head coach.
In the early going this season, Elijah Buries is hitting a team-high .370 with 14 runs scored and six RBI while Homer Bush Jr. is batting .360 with 11 runs scored. Jacob Wilson has driven in 15 runs already this season to go with four homers and a .319 average. As a pitching staff, GCU pitchers have allowed a 3.88 ERA.
#UniteTheValley
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