CSUN Opens Five-Game Homestand vs. LMU on Tuesday

Tuesday, April 14

Northridge, Calif.

5:00 p.m.

California State University at Northridge

LMU

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Photo by: Connor Clark

CSUN Opens Five-Game Homestand vs. LMU on Tuesday

4/13/2026 4:01:00 PM | Baseball

BASE Game Notes - April 13

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Baseball returns home for the start of a five-game homestand on Tuesday evening against LMU. First pitch is set for 5 p.m.. Ghizal Hasan will call the action in an audio broadcast at GoMatadors.com/Radio.

FOR STARTERS
The Matadors have reached a home-heavy stretch of their schedule with six of their next nine games played at Robert J. Hiegert Field including five straight. CSUN has had its share of success in midweek games this season, posting a 5-2 record including 3-1 in home games. Following CSUN's meeting with LMU, the Matadors host a three-game Big West series against UC Davis this weekend before taking on San Diego State next Tuesday, April 21 to conclude the homestand.

LEADING THE BIG WEST
CSUN's offense continues to be one of the most explosive in the Big West this season. The Matadors' 53 homers top the conference and rank 35th in the nation on the campaign. In addition, CSUN has moved up to first in the Big West in batting average (.297), runs scored (230), doubles (85), total bases (588), slugging percentage (.510) and on base percentage (.381).

A two-time Big West Field Player of the Week, junior Matthew Thomas has emerged as one of the top newcomers in the Big West in 2026 as he leads the league in several categories including batting average (.380), OPS (1.275), runs scored (39) and slugging percentage (.814). His teammate, junior Matthew Pena, is the league leader in home runs with 13 and in RBI with 38 while Thomas is a close second in homers (12) and ranked fourth in the conference in RBI (32).

MATADOR QUICK HITS
Four Matadors are ranked in the Big West's top-10 batting list led by Matthew Thomas who sports a conference-best .380 batting average. Andrew Becker is seventh on the list at a .349 average followed by Colton Boardman in eighth place (.344) and Mateo Rickman in ninth place (.337) ... Thomas' slugging percentage of .810 ranks 10th in the nation ... Matthew Pena is ranked 21st in the nation in home runs per game (0.39) and 25th in total homers (13) ... Kyle Panganiban, who has missed the past eight games, has enjoyed a great start to the season, hitting .324 with eight homers and 28 RBI. In Big West play though, Panganiban has hit a red-hot .354 in 12 games ... As a team, CSUN is hitting .307 in 18 Big West games with 23 home runs as a group ... Freshman James Voorhies notched his third save for CSUN against Pepperdine on April 7 in his move back to the bullpen after a quick stint in the rotation. Voorhies has 29 strikeouts in 29 innings with hitters managing just a .200 average this season ... The duo of Gabriel Hernandez and Lucas Alaniz share the team lead with 32 strikeouts this season.

ABOUT LAST WEEKEND
CSUN is coming off a series loss at UC Riverside over the weekend. The Matadors took the opener by a 9-6 score, highlighted by a seven-run top of the sixth inning where they erased a one-run deficit. The Highlanders evened the series on Friday, holding CSUN to just one run on nine hits in a 3-1 victory. In the rubber game, CSUN surrendered two runs in the bottom of the ninth to fall 9-8 to UC Riverside.

Matthew Thomas was one of the bright sports for the Matadors throughout the series, accumulating seven hits including a solo homer in the game three. Freshman Vaughn Coleman added six hits in the series as well as a ninth-inning go-ahead RBI single for CSUN in the top of the ninth of the finale of the series. On the mound, Gabriel Hernandez earned his fourth win of the season in the opener, producing a quality start of 6.2 innings and three runs allowed.

SCOUTING LMU
The Lions are 10-27 on the season with a 2-10 mark in WCC play. LMU suffered a three-game sweep over the weekend at Seattle U. On the road this season, LMU has gone 3-17 including dropping 10 straight. As a team, LMU is ranked first in the WCC in stolen bases (55) and second in home runs (38) and walks (159). Jaxson Wall tops the team with a .322 average at the plate and 27 runs scored to go with four homers. DJ Ghiorso sports a .310 batting average with 40 base hits and 16 RBI. Other top home runs hitters on the team include Zach Wadas (8) and Travis Friend (6). As a pitching staff, the Lions hold a 8.78 ERA.

Series History: CSUN leads LMU 59-55 in the all-time series while the Matadors are an even 27-27 at home in the series. The teams have squared off though just twice over the last nine seasons. Last season, LMU came out on top against CSUN by a 7-1 score. In the teams' last matchup in Northridge, LMU also prevailed 18-10 during the 2017 season.

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