Fresno State Athletics
WAC Title, NCAA Berth Up for Grabs
5/27/2012 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 27, 2012
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2012 WAC BASEBALL TOURNAMENT (Mesa, Ariz.)
Sunday, May 27 (If Necessary)
GAME 11: No. 5 Fresno State vs. No. 2 Sacramento State (Noon PT)
(Winner Receives Automatic Bid to NCAA Tournament)
Site: HoHoKam Stadium, Mesa, Ariz.
Radio: AM 940 KYNO (Paul Loeffler/Ray O'Canto)
TV: None
Live Statistics: Gametracker
Live Video: WAC.TV (subscription required)
By Stephen Trembley
strembley@csufresno.edu
GoBulldogs.com
MESA, Ariz. ---This is why baseball players across the country take grounders on pavement, push the waning sunlight to perfect their slider and stay for an extra few sessions in the batting cage after everyone else goes home.
It's Championship Sunday here in Mesa, Ariz., and the fifth-seeded Fresno State baseball team has a chance to head home with a piece of hardware that they have had their eyes on all season.
But it will take one more complete team effort in what figures to be another epic chapter of Bulldog lore.
This is the seventh straight year that Fresno State has made it to the championship round of the Western Athletic Conference Tournament. And while the 'Dogs won six titles in those appearances, the memory of coming up just short in 2010 lingers and fuels this team.
But the Bulldogs have earned respect for winning either the regular season tournament title in each of last seven seasons. Now, they have to defend it.
Fresno State (29-26) will lace up its cleats for one last shot at a WAC title on Sunday at noon against Sacramento State (31-27) before moving to the Mountain West next season.
The winner-take-all showdown between the Bulldogs and Hornets will be broadcast live on the radio by AM 940 KYNO. There is no television coverage of the title bout, but a live video feed (subscription required) is available at www.wac.tv.
The 'Dogs will finish as arguably one of the most dominant programs in the conference's history no matter what happens on Sunday.
Yet, these are the moments where champions separate themselves and as the six-time defending conference champion, the Bulldogs know what it takes and now need to execute one pitch at a time to add their own chapter of excellence for the San Joaquin Valley.
BULLDOG BONES
• Fresno State owns a 26-4 record in the WAC Tournament games since 2006.
• Fresno State is 84-31 during the month of May since 2006.
• Fresno State is 11-4 in May games this season, which is the program's best record for the crucial month since the 'Dogs went 10-3 in 2007 and 13-0 in 2006.
• Under head coach Mike Batesole, the Bulldogs are 40-14 in postseason play, including both the WAC and NCAA Tournaments combined.
2012 WAC BASEBALL TOURNAMENT (Mesa, Ariz.)
Wednesday, May 23
GAME 1: No. 5 Fresno State 8, No. 4 Hawai'i 2
GAME 2: No. 3 Nevada 4, No. 6 Louisiana Tech 3
Thursday, May 24
GAME 3: No. 6 Louisiana Tech 9, No. 4 Hawai'i 6 (Hawai'i Eliminated)
GAME 4: No. 2 Sacramento State 15, No. 3 Nevada 5 (8)
GAME 5: No. 5 Fresno State 15, No. 1 New Mexico State 8
Friday, May 25
GAME 6: No. 6 Louisiana Tech 15, No. 1 New Mexico State 12 (NMSU Eliminated)
GAME 7: No. 6 Louisiana Tech 18, No. 3 Nevada 5 (Nevada Eliminated)
GAME 8: No. 2 Sacramento State 8, No. 5 Fresno State 3
Saturday, May 26
GAME 9: No. 5 Fresno State 6, No. 6 Louisiana Tech 4 (LA Tech Eliminated)
GAME 10: No. 5 Fresno State 9, No. 2 Sacramento State 6
Sunday, May 27 (If Necessary)
GAME 11: No. 5 Fresno State vs. No. 2 Sacramento State (Noon PT)
(Winner Receives Automatic Bid to NCAA Tournament)
"Discover Fresno State Athletics!" - AM 940 KYNO is the flagship radio station for Bulldog Baseball.
