CSUN Wraps Up Homestand on Tuesday with Columbia

GAME NOTES

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Baseball wraps up a four-game homestand on Tuesday afternoon against Columbia at Robert J. Hiegert Field. First pitch on ESPN+ is set for 3:05 p.m. with Ghizal Hasan on the call.

FOR STARTERS
CSUN is hosting its first of three total midweek games this season when it takes on Columbia. The Matadors will return to Big West play this weekend to face Cal State Bakersfield on the road. After those three games, CSUN will have played 13 of 20 games on the road to start the 2025 campaign. The schedule will be a little more home heavy after this weekend with CSUN set to host six of its next eight at Robert J. Hiegert Field.

ABOUT LAST WEEKEND
CSUN dropped three games to UC Irvine over the weekend at home. The power-hitting Anteaters swept a Saturday doubleheader, winning 11-3 and 15-2, before claiming a tight 6-2 decision in the finale on Sunday. The Matadors only trailed 5-3 as late as the eighth inning of game one on Saturday before UCI scored six over the last two frames. CSUN would leave 12 base runners in the loss. After UCI clinched a series win in game two, CSUN gave the Anteaters a battle in game three, but again struggled driving in runs as 13 more runners were left on. Diego Gutierrez gave CSUN a strong start in the finale, working a career-high 6.2 innings and striking out five with four runs allowed.

BECKER RED HOT AT THE PLATE
CSUN's young team has been led by a freshman in Andrew Becker on offense. The Solana Beach native has hit safely in 10 of the last 11 games while he sports a12-game on base streak. He tops CSUN in batting in the early going with a .386 batting average to go with 17 hits, eight runs scored and five RBI. In Big West play, Becker has been especially impressive, registering a .480 batting average with 12 hits through six games. Over the weekend, Becker picked up a pair of two-hit games against UC Irvine while he also had a four-hit game this season at nationally-ranked UC Santa Barbara.

MENDES GETS THE CALL
Tuesday's game will be freshman Max Mendes' first career start on the mound for the Matadors. Thus far on the year, Mendes has appeared in seven games in relief, working 7.1 total innings with nine strikeouts and a 6.14 ERA. He would receive the victory in his relief appearance against BYU on Feb. 22 where he allowed just one hit over 1.1 innings of work.

SCOUTING COLUMBIA
The Lions are 4-10 on the season and on the final game of a 14-game road trip to begin the season. After losing 10 in a row this season, Columbia has won three straight including taking three of four from San Diego this past weekend. During the losing streak, the Lions played top-20 teams Oregon and Georgia. Columbia won the Ivy League regular season title last season after going 26-18 overall and 17-4 in league play. Ben Fishel sports a team-high .423 batting average to go with one homer and seven RBI while Sam Miller is batting .311 with three homers, 10 runs and 12 RBI. Anton Lazits leads the Lions with six homers, 15 runs scored and 18 RBI.

Series History: CSUN is 3-1 against Columbia in the all-time series. The teams squared off in 2009 in a four-game series in Northridge with CSUN claiming the third and four games to register a series win.

#GoMatadors

CSUN Wraps Up Homestand on Tuesday with Columbia

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Players Mentioned

Andrew Becker

Diego Gutierrez

Max Mendes