Fresno State Athletics
Baseball Preview: vs. Sacramento State [March 3]
3/2/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
By: Matt Burkholder
mburkholder@csufresno.edu
GoBulldogs.com
Game 12: Sacramento State Hornets (6-3, 0-0 WAC) at Fresno State Bulldogs (6-5, 3-3 MW)
First Pitch: March 3 - Tues: 6:35pm
Stadium: Beiden Field
Surface: Grass
Dimensions: 330 (LF), 400 (CF), 330 (RF)
All-Time Series: Fresno State leads 113-31
Last Meeting: SAC defeated FS, 2-1 [10] (2014)
Radio: AM 940 ESPN
Play-by-play: Paul Loeffler
Analyst: TBA
Video: Mountain West Network
Live Stats: GoBulldogs.com
Twitter: @FresnoStateBSB
The Fresno State baseball team returns to Beiden Field on Tuesday evening to host Sacramento State, first pitch is 6:35 pm. The game marks the third Two-for-Tuesday ticket promotion of the season, as fans can receive two tickets for the price of one at all Tuesday home games this season. Last Tuesday against USC, Beiden Field saw a season-high 1,919 fans at the ballpark, the most since March 2, 2013.
Fresno State (6-5, 3-3 MW) is 6-2 at home since completing a three-game sweep against Mountain West foe UNLV last weekend. The Bulldogs used a balanced attack of solid pitching and timely hitting to secure its second series sweep of the 2015 season.
All three Fresno State starting pitchers earned their first wins of the season - Jimmy Lambert, Dylan Lee and Garrett Mundell. Lee and Mundell each tossed a quality start, while Lambert was on the mound a career-high 7.1 innings and fanned a career-high seven batters. Additionally, Lee earned his first Division I win in his third start, while Mundell paced the `Dogs for a career-high 6.0 innings in a three-hit shutout.
Taylor Ward provided much of the Bulldogs offense, posting three home runs in the series against the Rebels, one bomb in each game. On the season, the junior catcher is hitting .349 (No. 8 in MW) with five home runs (No. 1 in MW), 36 total bases (No. 1 in MW), 14 RBIs (No. 2 in MW), and 11 runs scored (No. 4 in MW).
As a team, the Bulldogs are hitting for a .293 average, which is the second best average in the MW behind San Diego State (.320). Aiding Fresno State from the batters' box are four Bulldog hitters who are hitting better than .300 for the season through 11 games - Ward, Guibor (.444), Tempel (.400) and Argomaniz (.311).
Last season, Fresno State paired with Sacramento State for two games - one at Beiden Field and the other at Raley Field, home of the Sacramento RiverCats. The Bulldogs dropped both games, the home matchup 6-4 on Feb. 19, 2014 and 2-1 on the road in 10 innings on March 5, 2014.
The Hornets finished with a 40-24 record in 2014, their most wins since 1991, and won the Western Athletic Conference regular season and tournament championships. The 2015 squad is currently 6-3.
Following the Bulldogs' midweek matchup, they will head to Corvallis, Ore. to take on Oregon State starting Friday, March 6 for a four-game series. Fresno State will play one game Friday, two on Saturday and its finale on Sunday.
"Be Bold!" - The official home of the Fresno State Bulldogs is 940 AM ESPN Radio.
