Fresno State Athletics
Softball Travels to San Jose State
4/11/2012 12:00:00 AM | Softball
April 11, 2012
By Jason Clay
jaclay@csufresno.edu
GoBulldogs.com
Fresno State (27-16, 7-1 WAC) at San Jose State (21-19, 5-3 WAC)
Dates: April 13-14, 2012
Game Times: Friday: 3 p.m.; Saturday: 12 & 3 p.m.
Site: SJSU Softball Complex - San Jose, Calif.
Radio: None
TV: None
Live Stats: Gametracker Links
FRESNO, Calif. - The WAC-leading Fresno State Bulldogs travel to San Jose State this weekend to face the Spartans in a three-game series at the SJSU Softball Complex.
The Bulldogs and Spartans start the series on Friday with a single game at 3 p.m. and then play a doubleheader on Saturday starting at noon. Live stats are available at GoBulldogs.com via Gametracker.
Fresno State (27-16, 7-1 WAC) enters the series having won six-straight conference games and has a one-game lead on No. 14 Hawai'i atop the WAC standings. UH hosts Louisiana Tech this weekend, who is tied for thid in the WAC standings with San Jose State.
The Spartans (21-19, 5-3 WAC) enter the weekend having won four out of their last five games and are 11-4 at home this season.
Sophomore infielder Brooke Ortiz, who is the reigning WAC Hitter of the Week, leads the Bulldogs into the weekend. She is batting a team-high .344 this season and brings a career-best seven-game hitting streak into the series. Over her past seven games, Ortiz is 12-for-24 (.500) at the plate with eight runs scored, three driven in and she has connected for two doubles and one triple.
Senior designated player Courtney Moore currently also has a career-long hitting streak, as she's hit safely in each of the last eight games. Moore is 10-for-21 (.476) in her last eight games with eight RBIs, seven runs scored, one double and she's hit three home runs.
In the circle, senior pitcher/utility player Michelle Moses has been dominant in WAC play. She is 6-1 in conference games this year with a 1.89 ERA, having allowed only 12 runs in 40.2 innings pitched against WAC teams.
Last weekend in a series sweep over Utah State, Moses won all three games and allowed just two runs and 10 hits in her 19.0 innings of work. She is 17-11 overall on the year with a 1.99 ERA in 27 starts. Moses has 22 complete games this season, is tied for fourth nationally with nine shutouts and ranks No. 14 in the country with 187 strikeouts.
Fresno State and San Jose State are the two toughest teams in the league to strikeout. The Bulldogs' 140 strikeouts are the fewest in the league while SJSU is second with only 154 strikeouts.
The Bulldogs come into the weekend hitting .275 as a team, but .310 in WAC play. San Jose State is hitting .252 and averaging 4.3 runs per game this year , but scored 10 or more runs in two of the three games in its series victory over Nevada last weekend.
Fresno State's Series History Against San Jose State
Fresno State leads its series with San Jose State 79-8 and the Bulldogs have won 13 of the last 14 meetings with the Spartans. Fresno State has shut out San Jose State 42 times and in the last 17 years, with the exception of the 1996 season when the teams did not meet, the Bulldogs have held SJSU with out a run in at least one game in 14 of those years. The 2011 season was one where the Bulldogs did not shut out the Spartans, but the `Dogs did sweep the series with wins by the score of 4-1, 2-1 and 6-1. Fresno State out-hit SJSU 28-12 in the three-game series last year and outfielder Andrea Ortega led the team by going 7-for-10 at the plate with two doubles, one RBI and she scored five runs.
Bulldogs Sit Atop WAC Standings
Three weeks into league play, Fresno State is leading the WAC with a 7-1 conference record. No. 14 Hawai'i is a game back at 6-2 while San Jose State and Louisiana Tech trail at 5-3. La Tech and UH are slated for a three-game series in Honolulu this weekend. The Bulldogs, who were picked to win the WAC in the preseason coaches poll, have to face San Jose State this weekend, host New Mexico State the following and then head to Hawai'i, April 27-28, for what now appears to be a showdown for the conference championship. After that weekend, the Bulldogs close out the regular season with a home series against Louisiana Tech, May 4-5. Fresno State has won 10 WAC Championships, its last coming in 2009.
Ortiz Named WAC Hitter of the Week
Sophomore infielder Brooke Ortiz was named the Verizon WAC Hitter of the Week on Monday for the first time in her career and she becomes the first Bulldog this season to collect the honor. Mackenzie Oakes (Feb. 20) and Michelle Moses (Feb. 27) have both received the WAC Pitcher of the Week honor this year. Ortiz led the Bulldogs last week by hitting .533 in five games, going 8-for-15 at the plate to help Fresno State sweep the series from Utah State. She scored six runs, which accounted for 25 percent of Fresno State's 24 runs on the week and she also had three RBIs. Ortiz drew three walks, had a .733 slugging percentage and .611 on-base percentage during the week.
Ortiz, who enters the weekend with a seven-game hitting streak, leads the team with her .344 batting average. She has scored 21 runs this year and driven in 14 and is one of three Bulldogs with 40 or more hits on the season.
Moore On Career-Best Hitting Streak
Senior designated player Courtney Moore has set a new personal-best with her current eight-game hitting streak. Over the past eight games, Moore is 10-for-21 (.476) with eight RBIs, seven runs scored and she's connected for three home runs and one double. Her current hot streak has raised her batting average up 48 points in the last eight games to its current standing at .312 for the season. Moore is second on the team with six home runs and third with 19 RBIs. Her .439 on-base percentage leads the team, as she's drawn 11 walks and been hit by a pitch a team-high 11 times in addition to her 29 hits this season.
Moses Sweeps Utah State
Senior pitcher/utility player Michelle Moses led the Bulldogs to a series sweep over Utah State by winning all three games in the series. She held Utah State to just 10 hits and only two runs in her 19 innings pitched against the Aggies. Moses started the series off by throwing a three-hit shutout in the 4-0 Bulldog win. She came back the next day and recorded her second-straight shutout in leading Fresno State to the 8-0, five inning run-rule victory over the Aggies where she allowed just one hit, had five strikeouts and no walks. After only throwing five innings in game one, she drew the start in game two and came close to her third-straight complete game shutout. Moses took a scoreless game into the sixth inning of game three of the series before giving up her first run in her last 17.2 innings pitched. She finished the third game of the weekend scattering six hits and only walked one batter. Moses is 17-11 this season with a 1.99 ERA. Her nine shutouts on the year have her tied for No. 4 nationally and she is ranked 14th in the country with 187 strikeouts.
Good Timing for Kelly Megee
Freshman infielder Kelly Megee got her first career hit in Monday's game against Cal Poly and it came at a good time for the Bulldogs. In a 1-1 game in the bottom of the sixth, Megee came on to pinch-hit with runners on second and third and one out. She was able to single to left field to bring home the two runs and give the `Dogs a 3-1 lead. Fresno State would relinquish the lead in the top of the seventh and eventually lost to the Mustangs in 10 innings.
Solomon Does A Bit of Everything
Freshman Michelle Solomon continues to be a player that has helped the team in a variety of ways this season. Solomon has started 33 games this year - 15 at third base, 16 in right field, one in left field and one as the designated player. She is batting .247 on the year, but has shown to have some power as she is second on the team with seven doubles and tied for third with four home runs. In fact, 11 of her 21 hits on the season have gone for extra bases and she is tied for eighth in the WAC in doubles. She had four RBIs last week for the Bulldogs when she started two games in right field and three at third base. She has 19 walks against 12 strikeouts this year and is tied for ninth in the WAC in walks.
Bulldog Tidbits
• Fresno State enters the weekend having won seven out of its last 10 games.
• This is Fresno State's first road trip in what will be 19 days. The Bulldogs last road game was on March 24 at Nevada.
• The Bulldogs are 14-0 this year when scoring six or more runs in a game and have a 26-8 record when holding opponents under six runs.
• In Fresno State's 8-0 win over Utah State in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader, all eight of Fresno State's runs were scored in the second inning. The Bulldogs produced those eight runs off of six hits and it was their highest-run total in any inning this season.
• The Bulldogs are third in the WAC in team batting (.227 average), second in slugging percentage (.445) and second in hits (293).
• Fresno State leads the WAC with 13 triples. Only Nevada with 10 triples is close to the Bulldogs. New Mexico State and La Tech stand at a distant third with five doubles. The Bulldogs are tied for 12th nationally in triples per game. Stesha Brazil and Brenna Moss are tied for 11th in the country with four triples apiece while Brooke Oritz is right behind with three. Senior Andrea Ortega rounds out the teams total as she has two triples on the year.
Mid-Major Rankings
Fresno State continues to sit in the No. 4 spot on this week's mid-major rankings. Louisiana (33-1), who the `Dogs fell to on March 16, is No. 1 in the mid-major poll. Hawai'i (32-4), whom Fresno State plays at the end of April, is No. 2 and Tulsa (26-8) is No. 3. The Mid-Major poll can be found at http://midmajorpoll.blogspot.com.
