CSUN Opens Big West Play at UC Irvine on Friday

Friday, March 6

Irvine, Calif.

6:00 p.m.

California State University at Northridge

UC Irvine

Photo by: Chuck Marvel

CSUN Opens Big West Play at UC Irvine on Friday

3/5/2026 3:45:00 PM | Baseball

BASE Game Notes - March 5

NORTRHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Baseball opens the Big West season this weekend with a road test at defending Big West regular season champion UC Irvine. The opener is set for Friday at 6 p.m. while the series continues on Saturday at 1 p.m. and concludes on Sunday at 1 p.m. All three games will be broadcast on ESPN+.

FOR STARTERS
The Matadors enter league action at 7-5 overall through the first three weeks of the 2026 campaign. After opening the year with a three-game sweep of Seattle U, CSUN has gone 4-5 but with notable wins over California Baptist and Michigan in midweek games. After this weekend's conference-opening series, the Matadors will return to Robert J. Hiegert Field for a four-game homestand, beginning with a Monday matchup with Pepperdine along with a three-game series with UC San Diego next weekend.

ON THE MOUND
CSUN will send junior right hander Traig Oughton in the series opener with UC Irvine followed by sophomore right hander Gabriel Hernandez on Saturday. Oughton, who is making his first Friday start of the season, holds a 5.65 ERA with a perfect 2-0 record over 14.1 innings in 2026. Hernandez sports a 7.62 ERA in 13 innings to go with a 1-1 record over three starts. CSUN's Sunday starter is to be determined.

LAST TIME OUT
CSUN would post a dramatic 9-8 victory in 12 innings against Michigan last Tuesday at Robert J. Hiegert Field. The Matadors trailed 8-1 entering the bottom of the fifth before getting a single tally on a solo homer from Andrew Becker in the fifth and erupting with a five-run sixth, all of which with two outs. CSUN produced three triples in the sixth inning while Mateo Rickman made it 8-7 on a pitch-hit RBI double. Two innings later, Trent Abel evened the game with a solo homer. From there each side had chances to bring home the tying run, but the Matadors came up with the clutch hit in the 12th as Vaughn Coleman plated Becker with a walk-off RBI single.

The CSUN bullpen combined to toss eight straight shutout innings to end the game, led by Jaiden Turner who went 3.2 shutout frames with two hits allowed. Jackson Banuelos earned the win with two shutout innings in extras. On the hitting side, Becker had four hits and drove in two runs. Matthew Thomas also homered for the third straight game, finishing with two hits and two RBI.

THOMAS' HOT START
A transfer from Cal, Matthew Thomas has enjoyed a red-hot start to the season offensively for CSUN, slashing .372/.49/1.093. Thomas enters play this weekend fourth in the nation in slugging percentage (1.093) along with seventh in home runs (7). In the Big West, Thomas is ranked in the top 10 in a host of categories including first in OPS (1.584), first in runs (18), second in doubles (6), fifth in hits (16) and sixth in RBI (13). Thomas is up to 15 extra base hits out of his 16 total hits while his six multi-hit games and four multi-RBI games are also team bests.

MATADOR QUICK HITS
CSUN has flexed its muscles in the early going this season, leading the Big West and ranking sixth in the nation with 25 home runs through the first 12 games of the season ... The Matadors also lead the Big West in slugging percentage at a .526 clip ... Matthew Pena enters the week second in the Big West with six homers, one short of his career high, while Kyle Panganiban is third in the conference with five homers ... When CSUN has scored in the first inning this season the team has gone 6-1. The team is also 5-1 when scoring first in games ... On the pitching side, freshman James Voorhies has turned heads over his first three collegiate appearances out of the bullpen. Assuming the CSUN closer role in the early going, Voorhies already has two saves along with a win while boasting a 1.04 ERA and 14 strikeouts in just 8.2 innings.

SCOUTING UC IRVINE
The Anteaters are 8-5 on the season after falling to 20th-ranked USC 6-4 last Tuesday. UCI though earned a pair of wins over ranked opponents last weekend in Las Vegas, knocking off Vanderbilt 9-4 and Oregon 8-6. Last season, UCI went 43-17 overall along with 24-6 in Big West play to win the regular season crown. The team was selected to compete in the NCAA Los Angeles Regional after falling in the Big West Championship game.

On the season, UCI leads the Big West in fielding percentage (.981) while the team is ranked fourth in team earned run average at 3.88. UCI hitters are hitting .225 as a group. Alonso Reyes leads the team with a .395 batting average and 11 RBI while Zach Fjelstad sports a season .370 average at the dish to go with nine homers. A Preseason All-Big West honoree, Trevor Hansen comes in with a spotless 3-0 record and 2.79 ERA along with a team-high 25 strikeouts. Ricky Ojeda (1-1), another preseason all-conference selection, holds a 3.38 ERA and 15 strikeouts in 16 innings. Finnegan Wall pitches on Sunday for UCI as he boasts 1-0 record and 3.00 ERA.

Series History: The Anteaters are 57-40 against CSUN in the all-time series with wins in four straight including a three-game sweep in Northridge in 2025. UCI has won the past two series as the Matadors are looking for their first series win since winning two of three in 2023.

#GoMatadors