Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Pepperdine
Diamond 'Dogs take first road tip to Malibu to face Pepperdine
3/6/2017 3:24:00 PM | Baseball
The Fresno State baseball team returns to action on Tuesday afternoon hitting the road for the first time this season traveling to Malibu to face Pepperdine. The game will be aired live on 940 AM ESPN and will be broadcasted on the TheW.TV.
FRESNO, Calif. -Â Coming off defeating Nevada twice over the weekend to win its first Mountain West series, the Fresno State baseball team returns to action on Tuesday afternoon hitting the road for the first time this season traveling to Malibu to face Pepperdine.
Game 12: Fresno State (6-5, 2-1 MW) at Pepperdine (6-4, 0-0 WCC)
First Pitch:Â Mar. 7 - Tue: 2:00 p.m.
Stadium:Â Eddy D. Field Stadium
Surface:Â Grass
Dimensions:Â 330 (LF), 400 (CF), 330 (RF)
All-Time Series:Â Fresno State leads 40-27
Last Meeting: Pepperdine defeated Fresno State 8-5 (June 3, 2012 in the NCAA Tournament at Stanford)
Radio:Â 940 AM ESPN
Play-by-play:Â Paul Loeffler
Video:Â TheW.TV
Live Stats:Â GoBulldogs.com
Twitter:Â @FresnoStateBSB
Bulldog Headlines
• The Bulldogs won their first Mountain West series of the season at home over the weekend edging Nevada 3-2 on Friday, fell 10-8 on Saturday and won the rubber match 9-5 on Sunday.
• It was the fourth time in five years the 'Dogs have won their Mountain West opener as well as the fourth time in five years they have won their first MW series of the season.
• The Bulldogs improve to 13-2 at home against Nevada since 2013.
• Junior left-handed pitcher Ricky Tyler Thomas continued his fantastic start to the season after tossing 8.1 innings last Friday only allowing five hits, two runs and struck out nine while throwing 123 pitches.
• Thomas currently ranks third in the nation in strikeouts (33), 20th in WHIP (0.61), 24th in hits allowed per 9IP (3.38) and are 30th in strikeouts per 9IP (13.92).
• The Bulldogs pitching staff currently ranks 13th in the nation in hits allowed per nine innings (6.67) and are 32nd in strikeouts per nine innings (9.8).
• The 'Dogs pitching staff combined for 29 team strikeouts on Feb. 24 setting a new school record and it was the second-most strikeouts in a single game in NCAA history.
Fresno State vs. Pepperdine - The Series
• Fresno State leads the all-time series against Pepperdine 40-27.
• The two teams have not met since June 3, 2012 when the second-seeded Waves edged the fourth-seeded 'Dogs 8-5 in an elimination game in the NCAA Tournament at Stanford.
• Since Coach Batesole arrived in 2003, Fresno State is 6-10 against Pepperdine, with a 1-8 mark in Malibu.
SERIES HISTORY
All-Time:Â Fresno State leads 40-27
Last Meeting:Â June 3, 2012 (Stanford, Calif.) - L, 8-5
Current Streak: L2
Last Fresno State Win: Feb. 25, 2012 (8-4) in Malibu, Calif.
Last Pepperdine Win: June 3, 2012 Â (8-5) in Stanford, Calif.
Where Fresno State Ranks Offensively in the Mountain West in 2017 (as of 3/6/17)
• .279 Batting Average: No. 5 [Leader, UNM - .337]
• .398 Slugging Pct: No. 5 [Leader, UNM- .558]
• .357 On base Pct: No. 5 [Leader, UNM - .426]
• 11 sacrifice bunts: No. 2 [Leader, NEV - 14]
• 62 Runs: No. 5 [Leader, UNM - 104]
• 112 Hits: No. 4 [Leader, UNLV - 131]
• 56 RBI: No. 5 [Leader, UNM - 95]
• 24 Doubles: No. 3 [Leader, UNM - 33]
• 6 Triples: No. 1
• 4 Home Runs: No. 6 [Leader, UNM- 15]
Where Fresno State Ranks Pitching in the Mountain West in 2017 (as of 3/6/17)
• 3.92 ERA: No. 3 [Leader, SJSU - 3.50]
• .212 Opposing bat average: No. 1
• 4 saves: No. 1
• 118 strikeouts: No. 1
• 47 Earned runs allowed: No. 3 [Leader, SJSU - 36]
• 80 Hits allowed: No. 1
• 64 walks allowed: No. 7 [Leader, UNM - 35]
• 8 doubles allowed: No. 1
• 2 triples allowed: No. T-2 [Leader, SDSU - 1]
• 6 home runs allowed: No. 1
Where Fresno State Ranks Fielding in the Mountain West in 2017 (as of 3/6/17)
• .978 Fielding Percentage: No. 1
•  131 Assists: No. 2 [Leader, UNLV - 143]
Where Fresno State Players Rank in the Mountain West/NCAA in 2017Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Batting Average: Austin Guibor - 6th (.362)Â
             Jesse Medrano - T-8th (.356)
On-Base percentage: Austin Guibor - 8th (.444)
Hits: Guibor - T-5th (17); Medrano - T-7th (16)
RBI: Guibor - T-7th (10)
Runs: Guibor - T-6th (11)
Doubles: Scott Silva - T-3rd (4)
Sacrifice bunts: Â Korby Batesole - T-2nd (3)
ERA: Ricky Tyler Thomas - 2nd (1.27)
Opposing batting average: Thomas - 1st (.114)
Hits allowed: Thomas - 1st (8)
Earned runs allowed: Thomas - T-1st (3)
Innings pitched: Thomas - 2nd (21.1)
       Rickey Ramirez - T-3rd (19.0)
Strikeouts: Thomas - 1st (33) (3rd in the nation)
         Ramirez - T-3rd (20)
Saves: Edgar Gonzalez - T-2nd (2)
Taking a look at the Pepperdine Waves
Pepperdine is off to a 6-4 start to the season with a 3-0 record at home and a 3-4 mark on the road. The Waves opened up the season at home with a three-game sweep over Saint Joseph's, defeated SEC member Texas A&M and took two of three this past weekend at Rice.
The Waves are currently hitting .242 as a team from the plate as senior outfielder Matt Gelalich leads the club with a .379 average and has two home runs and a pair of stolen bases to go along with a team-high .621 slugging percentage and a .472 on-base percentage. Nine different position players have started at least seven games on the season with only five of them hitting better than .200. Freshman infielder Quincy McAfee leads the team in hits (12), at-bats (38), doubles (4) and total bases (19).
On the mound, Tuesday's starter sophomore Jonathan Pendergast comes into the game 1-0 with a 1.23 ERA in three relief appearances. He has thrown 7.1 innings allowing six hits, one earned run, six walks and has struck out 10. The Waves have a staff ERA of 4.07 and are holding opponents to a .258 average while ranking 96th in the country in strikeouts per nine innings (8.5).
Pepperdine finished 29-24 in head coach Rick Hirtensteiner's first season as head coach in 2016. The Waves placed fourth in the West Coast Conference with a 16-11 conference mark and went 1-2 in the WCC Tournament falling 5-4 in 10 innings to eventual champion Gonzaga.
2017 WCC Preseason Baseball Coaches Poll
Team (First Place Vote) Â Â Â Â Â Â Pts.
1. San Diego (5)Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 77
2. Gonzaga (3)Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 73*
3. Pepperdine (2)Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 63*
4. BYUÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 59
5. Saint Mary's                       49
6. San Francisco                      40*
7. Loyola Marymount                 37
8. Pacific                               21*
9. Santa Clara                          20
10. Portland                             13
* Bulldog opponent in 2017
Starting debut: Freshman right-hander Adam Medrano is scheduled to make his Bulldog starting debut on Tuesday afternoon after making four relief appearances so far this season. He will be the sixth Bulldog to start a game this season and is 1-0 with a 7.71 ERA and has thrown 4.2 innings allowing two hits, four runs, six strikeouts while holding opponents to a .182 average.
First RPI Released: The first NCAA Baseball RPI was released on Monday morning with the 'Dogs checking in 135. New Mexico was the top MW program checking in third followed by San Diego State (130), Fresno State, Nevada (142), San Jose State (198), Air Force (217) and UNLV (247).
Up next:Â The Bulldogs return home this weekend to host MAC opponent Eastern Michigan (2-11) for Ag Fest Weekend at Pete Beiden Field at Bob Bennett Stadium. The 'Dogs and Eagles will play at 6:05 p.m. on Friday and Saturday before wrapping up the series on Sunday at 1:05 p.m.
"Just the Ticket to Build Our Community" – The Bulldog Scholarship Fund gives Bulldog alumni, fans and friends the opportunity to support Fresno State Athletics and the student-athletes who inspire them. For information about how you can support the Bulldog Scholarship Fund, please visit www.bulldogscholarshipfund.com or call 559-278-7160.
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