CSUN Closes Opening Homestand Against Portland

Wednesday, February 18

Northridge, Calif.

5:30 p.m.

California State University at Northridge

Portland

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Photo by: Chuck Marvel

CSUN Closes Opening Homestand Against Portland

2/17/2026 5:06:00 PM | Baseball

BASE Game Notes - Feb. 17

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Baseball wraps up a four-game homestand on Wednesday taking on Portland. Weather permitting, the Matadors will face the Pilots at 5:30 p.m. at Robert J. Hiegert Field with an audio only broadcast scheduled at GoMatadors.com/Radio with Ghizal Hasan on the call. Stay tuned to GoMatadors.com for further updates about the game.

FOR STARTERS
Senior right handed pitcher Zach Johnson (1-0) earns the starting nod on Wednesday for the Matadors. A transfer from Linfield University, Johnson made his Matador debut on Friday against Seattle U out of the bullpen where he worked three innings and allowed three runs. Johnson was credited with the win as he struck out three batters on the mound.

ABOUT LAST WEEKEND
CSUN opened the 2026 season with a three-game sweep of Seattle University this past weekend at Robert J. Hiegert Field. The Matadors outscored the Redhawaks 29-14 in the series as they pounded out seven homers. The CSUN pitching staff totaled 30 combined strikeouts.

In the opener, CSUN won by a 10-5 margin behind a seven-run first inning. The Matadors erased a 2-0 deficit by collecting three homers in the seven-run outburst, as Kyle Panganiban hit a three-run homer, Xavier Rios had a two-run blast and Matthew Thomas had a solo homer. Panbanigan followed with another homer later in the game and he finished with five RBI. Adam Christopher tossed four innings in his first career start while Zach Johnson and Jaiden Turner combined to pitch the final five innings.

CSUN took game two by a 4-3 margin, scoring all four runs over the first two innings. Matthew Pena blasted a two-run homer in the first, but CSUN pitching was the story with three pitchers combining to strike out 13 batters. Traig Oughton picked up the win, working five innings with three runs allowed while the CSUN bullpen tossed four shutout innings. Freshman James Voorhies fanned seven over three clean frames to nail down the save.

In the finale, the Matadors again quickly jumped ahead, scoring nine over the first two innings including six in the second inning en route to a 15-6 victory. Pena would drive in seven runs including smacking two three-run homers. Vaughn Coleman had three hits while Panganiban and Thomas scored three times each. Right hander Gabriel Hernandez made his first appearance on the mound in 11 months, tossing five innings with two runs on three hits allowed for his first win of the year.

MATADOR QUICK HITS
The Matadors' three-game sweep of Seattle U was their first to open a season since 2023 ... Matthew Pena hit .500 in the opening series (3-for-6) while Kyle Panganiban batted .444 (4-for-9) ... Pena became the first Matador since Justin Toerner in 2018 to record at least seven RBI in a single game on Sunday ... Outfielder Matthew Thomas would hit a solo homer in the opener, becoming the first Matador since Kyle Barret in 2018 to record a homer in his first career CSUN bat ... Newcomers Vaughn Coleman and Thomas each hit safely in all three games this past weekend ... Sophomore left hander Kody King was among the 10 CSUN pitchers to see action against Seattle U. He would toss a shutout frame on Saturday, holding a CSUN 4-3 lead, while he struck out the side ... In total, 12 CSUN newcomers made their debut with the team during the opening series.

SCOUTING PORTLAND
The Pilots went 1-2 last weekend, dropping a series at Purdue, although two of the losses were by three runs or fewer. Brady Bean led the Pilots offense, hitting .417 in the opening series while Nolan Miller hit .400 with a homer and four RBI. Infielder Jonas Salk was named to the Preseason All-WCC Team after hitting 13 homers driving in 44 runs in 2025. On the mound against CSUN, Portland will start Carter Gaston, who faced one batter against Purdue over the weekend.

The team was picked to finish fourth in the WCC this season by the league's head coaches. In 2025, Portland went 22-30 overall and 13-11 in the WCC to take fifth place. The Pilots led the WCC last season in shutouts (3), WHIP (1.52) and walks drawn (257).

Series History: CSUN holds an 11-9-1 edge over Portland in the all-time series. The teams squared off last season in Northridge with the Pilots prevailing by a 14-6 margin. The Matadors are 7-4-1 against the Pilots in home games.

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