Bulldogs to battle Broncos in Boise for MW lead

Fresno State (29-16, 12-3 MW) at Boise State (32-13, 10-5 MW)
April 27-29, 2018 | Boise, Idaho. | Dona Larsen Park (380)
First Pitch (PT): Fri: 3:00 p.m., Sat: 3:00 p.m., Sun: 11:00 a.m.
Watch: Mountain West Network
Radio: None
Live Stats: Friday | Saturday | Sunday
Series History: Fresno State leads 21-7
Streak: Boise State Won 1

Complete Game Notes (PDF)

Bulldog Bones
• The Bulldogs and Broncos meet with the MW lead at steak. The teams are the top two in the MW in runs, home runs, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage as well as pitcher strikeouts.
• Fresno State earned votes in this week's USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll. The 'Dogs are the 10th team receiving votes, making them essentially ranked No. 35 in the nation. BSU also received votes.
• At 12-3 in MW games the Bulldogs open the week with a two game lead over Boise State (10-5) and San Jose State (11-6) atop the conference standings with three weeks to go in the regular season.
• Fresno State ranks in the top-25 in NCAA Div. I in hit-by-pitches (2nd-56), on-base percentage (6th-.415), double plays (T11th-24), triples (T12th-15), and slugging percentage (21st-.484)
• Senior Katie Castellon is tied for the NCAA Div. I lead with 15 sacrifice bunts but also leads the MW in slugging percentage (.814) and is third in batting average and on-base percentage in MW games.

Scouting Boise State (13-26, 4-8 MW)
• Boise State leads NCAA Div. I scoring 7.11 runs per game and with a .360 team batting average overall this season. The Broncos are also fifth in the nation in slugging percentage.
• The team has also pitched well, ranking second in the MW with a 3.26 team ERA and leading the league with 252 strikeouts. The squad has a 3.40 ERA and .246 opp. average in MW games.
• The Broncos were picked 7th in the preseason MW Coaches Poll after going 33-20 overall and 12-12 in the MW last season. BSU was second in the MW with a .327 batting average in 2017.
• Boise State has been nearly unbeatable with a 15-2 record in road games but is just 5-4 at home. The team has won five straight games with a sweep of Nevada in Reno last week.
• The Broncos have the top three hitters in the MW as Alison Seng is eighth in Div. I in batting average (.462) and Rebekah Cervantes is hitting .431 and is second in the MW with 47 RBIs. Micaela Leal is 6-0 with a MW-best 1.77 ERA and Kelsey Broadus is 10-6 with a 2.51 ERA.

National Recognition
• Fresno State earned votes in this week's USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll. The 'Dogs are the 10th team receiving votes, making the team essentially ranked No. 35 in the nation.
• The 'Dogs earned four votes while their opponent this week, Boise State, received five.
• The Bulldogs have received votes in the Coaches Poll in three weeks this season and appeared in the national rankings on Feb. 20 as D1softballnews.com chose Fresno State as the No. 25 team in the nation.

Atop the Mountain
• At 12-3 in MW games the Bulldogs open the week with a two game lead over Boise State (10-5) and San Jose State (11-6) atop the conference standings.
• Fresno State owns the tiebreaker over San Jose State with a series sweep two weeks ago. The Spartans, who have played two more MW games than both the 'Dogs and Broncos, won 2-of-3 games against Boise State.
• In MW games the Bulldogs lead the league with a 2.32 team ERA and in triples and on-base percentage while hitting .313.

Going Streaking
• Fresno State had a 10-game winning streak, including eight straight MW wins, and has won 12 of its last 13 games.
• In the last 13 games the Bulldogs have hit .342 and have outscored their opposition 94-27 with a 1.79 team ERA.
• The 10-game winning streak was the longest recorded by the Bulldogs since a program-record 23-game winning streak in 2016.

30 for 37
• Fresno State is one win away from its 37th consecutive 30-win season. The 'Dogs have already clinched an overall winning record in 2018, something that the program has achieved in all 41 years of its existence.
• The Bulldogs are looking to qualify for the NCAA Regionals for the fourth straight year and the 31st time in the last 34 seasons.
• In its storied history Fresno State has won 23 conference titles, 59 NCAA Regional games, and 93 total postseason games, reaching the Women's College World Series 12 times with four runner-up finishes and winning the 1998 NCAA title.

Dominant Duo
• In MW play LHP Danielle East and RHP Samantha Mejia have confounded hitters from both arms as the pair has combined for a 1.57 ERA over 80.1 innings pitched.
• The two are a combined 12-2 in MW games and have 95 total strikeouts and four shutouts. Mejia leads the league with a 0.49 ERA in conference while East is third at 2.15.

On Base a Lot
• As a team the Bulldogs lead the MW and rank 6th in NCAA Div. I with a .415 on-base percentage. The number has skyrocketed in MW play as the 'Dogs have a .437 OBP in league games after having a .399 on-base percent in non-conference play.
• Hayleigh Galvan leads the MW and is 22nd in Div. I with a .523 on-base percentage this year while five other Bulldog starters have an on-base percentage above .400.

Doing it All
• Hitting second in the lineup, Katie Castellon is tied for the NCAA Div. I lead with 15 sacrifice bunts this season.
• When she doesn't bunt she's been tearing the cover off the ball as, in MW play, she leads the league with an .814 slugging percentage and ranks third in batting average (.442) and on-base percentage (.529). She has two homers, two triples, and six doubles with 14 RBIs in 15 league games.
• Castellon has had at least one hit, walk, hbp, and/or sacrifice in all but one MW game and in 38 of the 45 total games the team has played this year.

Samtastic
• In MW play Samantha Mejia is 5-0 with a 0.49 ERA, allowing just two earned runs and 16 hits in 28.1 innings. She has started the last two Saturday's and earned complete game wins while allowing just one earned run in each.
• In her last nine pitching appearances (35.0 innings) Mejia has allowed just 19 hits (18 singles) with a 0.40 ERA and .160 opposing batting average. In three relief appearances in MW play Mejia is 3-0, throwing 14.1 scoreless innings with a .091 opposing average.

Taking Several for the Team
• Fresno State batters rank second in NCAA Div. I with 56 hit-by-pitches this season, trailing only South Carolina (63 HBP). No other MW team has been hit more than 25 times.
• The 'Dogs broke the MW single season hit-by-pitch record on March 31, just 34 games into the season, topping the previous record of 47 set last year by San Jose State.

East Meets (Mountain) West
• In her first nine starts against MW opponents, freshman Danielle East is 7-2 with a 2.15 ERA and a .199 opposing batting average.
• East has recorded 78 strikeouts in 52.0 innings pitched against MW batters, averaging 1.5 strikeouts per inning. She has tallied double-digit strikeouts in five MW games and has three shutouts in conference.
• East's 78 strikeouts in MW games have broken the MW record for freshman strikeouts in league play, which had been 75 by New Mexico's Hayley Punter in 2001. The overall record is 128 and the MW freshman strike out record for all games is 180 (East has 136).

Galvan-izing the Offense
• Sophomore Hayleigh Galvan reached base in 20 consecutive games and had an 18-game hitting streak, the fifth-longest streak in program history.
• Hitting in the clean-up spot, Galvan leads the MW and ranks 22nd in NCAA Div. I with a .523 on-base percentage this season while also leading the team in batting average (.389).
• In 15 MW games Galvan is hitting .415 with a .529 on-base percentage.

Super Support
• The red wave has averaged 1,050 fans per game this season, the most among all 20 NCAA Div. I schools in California and the 15th highest attendance average in the nation. The team's total attendance of 24,176 this season is the 14th most in all of Div. I.
• All three games of the SDSU series had over 1,000 fans with a season-high 1,561 for Bark in the Park on Saturday. Fresno State has averaged more than 1,000 fans per game for 25 consecutive seasons.

Red Hot Hernandez
• Vanessa Hernandez had a hit in all 10 games of the 'Dogs winning streak, during which she hit .500 with 3 home runs, 6 doubles, 18 RBIs, 13 runs, and a .941 slugging percentage.
• Hernandez drove in eight runs against San Jose State and had six multi-hit and six multi-RBI games during the streak.

Doubling Up
• Fresno State is tied for the MW lead and 11th in NCAA Div. I with 24 double plays turned this year. The Bulldogs have also only hit into 10 double plays this season.
• The 'Dogs have turned a pair of double plays in four games this season, three of them against Power 5 opponents (Wisconsin, LSU, Stanford).

Irregular Innings
• Fresno State was played 18 games this season were not completed in the standard seven innings. The team has played 11 5-inning games, four 6-inning games, two 8-inning games, and one 9-inning game.
• The Bulldogs did not play a seven-inning game until their fifth contest of the season.

Home Cooking
• In 23 home games this year the 'Dogs are 17-6, having outscored the opposition 141-75 while hitting .310 with 15 home runs and tallying a 2.86 team ERA.
• The win over Monmouth on Mar. 11 was the 900th home victory in program history. The 'Dogs are 909-236-1 all-time at home over 41 seasons.

15 Outs, 15 Strikeouts, No-Hitter
• Freshman Danielle East threw her first career no-hitter, recording all 15 outs via the strikeout, as Fresno State beat New Mexico, 10-0, in five innings on March 30. It is believed to be the first Fresno State no-hitter in which every out was a strikeout.
• New Mexico did not but a ball in play as the only Lobo baserunners came on one walk and one hit batter. East's 15 strikeouts are a new program record for a 5-inning game and were just three shy of the 7-inning program record of 18.
• East became the 22nd pitcher in program history to throw a no-hitter while tallying the 74th no-no all-time.

On a Rohl
• Sophomore Miranda Rohleder reached base in 18 consecutive games and leads the MW with 43 runs scored this season.
• Rohleder is also tied for 6th in NCAA Div. I with six triples and has 18 stolen bases this year, which is tied for the 8th most in a season in program history.

Working the Field
• Fresno State ranks second in the MW and 32nd in NCAA Div. I with a .972 fielding percentage this year.
• The Bulldogs have 21 error-free games this season and have committed multiple errors just five times over the last 35 games.

High RPI
• In the most recent NCAA Rating Percentage Index (RPI) rankings Fresno State is No. 65, the second highest in the MW behind only No. 44 San Jose State.
• The RPI rankings reflect quality wins and strength of schedule as the 'Dogs played a very difficult non-conference slate and have wins over highly ranked teams, including a victory over Notre Dame (No. 43) and three wins last week against the Spartans.

They've Got the Power
• Fresno State is second in the Mountain West with 38 home runs this season.
• Savannah McHellon leads the MW with 12 home runs as eight 'Dogs have homered and six have hit multiple home runs.

Running Free
• Fresno State had been successful on 29 of its last 32 stolen base attempts over the last 30 games.
• The Bulldogs were 15-for-15 in steals in the Fresno State Invitational and rank fourth in the MW with 41 stolen bases this year.
• Miranda Rohleder, who leads the team with 18 steals in 20 attempts, has been successful on 11 of her last 12 steal attempts.

Walk-Offs
• Fresno State has totaled eighth walk-off wins this season.
• The Bulldogs have recorded three traditional walk-offs with two by Katie Castellon and one from Savannah McHellon. The other five walk-off wins have come via the 8-run mercy rule.
• McHellon (3), Castellon, and Schuylar Broussard have hit walk-off homers.

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Bulldogs to battle Broncos in Boise for MW lead

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Players Mentioned

Schuylar Broussard

Katie Castellon

Danielle East

Hayleigh Galvan

Vanessa Hernandez

Savannah McHellon

Samantha Mejia

Miranda Rohleder

Fresno State Athletics