Fresno State Athletics
no. 12 Dogs Head to Sacramento
4/21/2011 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 21, 2011
FRESNO, Calif. - No. 12 Fresno State baseball continues its five-game road trip over spring break with four games at Sacramento State April 21-23. It is the second WAC road trip for the Bulldogs and third conference series of 2011.
Fresno State vs. Sacramento State
The Bulldogs lead the overall series 105-26 over Sacramento State. The Dogs have a three-game winning streak heading into the weekend. Fresno State won three of four game between the teams last year. The first meeting between the Bulldogs and Hornets was in 1951 with the Dogs winning, 5-0.
About the Hornets
Sacramento State is 12-25 on the season and 0-4 in Western Athletic Conference play. The Hornets opened the 2011 WAC season against Hawai'i. Sacramento State is hitting .227 with 60 doubles, three triples, 13 home runs and 120 RBIs. Blake Miller is hitting .275, which is the highest of the starters. He has recorded 30 hits with three home runs and 12 RBIs. The pitching staff has an ERA of 4.94 and have struck out 167 batters.
Bulldog Winning Ways
The Bulldogs are among Top 25 teams that have the fewest losses in the nation. Fresno State has the third best winning percentage in college baseball with a 25-6 record (.833). Virginia leads the nation with a record of 36-3 (.923). Virginia is the only team in the nation with less losses than the Bulldogs. Vanderbilt is tied with the Dogs and have five losses on the season. The teams that are ranked higher than the Dogs in the Top 10 range between three and 13 losses on the season.
How the Dogs Stack Up Nationally
The Bulldogs rank among the top 20 in the nation in several statistical categories. As a team, the Dogs have the ninth best ERA (2.43) in the country, the third best winning percentage (.833) and the 17th best fielding percentage (.977). Dusty Robinson is 20th in home runs per game (.30). Charlie Robertson is third in the nation in saves (11). Greg Gonzalez is 15th in the nation in hits allowed per nine innings (5.43). Josh Poytress is 19th in the country in walks allowed per nine innings (1.01).
Ranking the Dogs
Currently, Fresno State is ranked in all four major baseball polls. The Dogs are No. 12 in Baseball America and No. 13 in Collegiate Baseball's polls. The Bulldogs stayed at No. 13 in the USA Today Coaches poll. The fourth poll the Bulldogs are ranked in is the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association at No. 14.
Bulldogs Versus Ranked Opponents
The Bulldogs compiled a record of 11-3 against teams that are currently or were in the top 30 polls. Fresno State split a four-game series with San Jose State, who was at one point ranked No. 30 in Collegiate Baseball Newspaper poll. The Dogs swept a three-game series over San Diego, who was ranked No. 28 in a preseason poll. Both CSU Bakersfield and Nebraska broke into the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper poll the week that they faced the Dogs. The Roadrunners were ranked No. 30 and the Huskers were ranked No. 29. Fresno State also had two wins over now ranked No. 10 Oregon State and a win over No. 24 Gonzaga.
Best in the WAC
As a team the Bulldogs lead the WAC in ERA (2.43), earned runs allowed (76), triples (12) and saves (13). Fresno State is second in the WAC in opposing batting average (.239), wins (25), slugging percentage (.430), home runs (22) and sacrifice bunts (32). Dusty Robinson leads the WAC in home runs with nine and slugging percentage at .684. Greg Gonzalez has the best ERA in the conference (1.51) and has struck out a conference-high 65 batters. Charlie Robertson leads the league in saves with 11. Josh Poytress has allowed the fewest earned runs in the league with only nine. Austin Wynns leads the league in runners caught stealing with 12.
"We Are Your Team!" The Bulldogs continue their road trip with a four-game series against Sacramento State April 21-23. The Dogs return home to face Hawai'i April 29- May 1. For tickets call 278-DOGS or log on to gobulldogs.com.
