Top-seeded Diamond 'Dogs head to Reno for MW Championship

Thursday, May 23

Reno, NV

6:30 PM

Fresno State

Nevada

Photo by: Keith Kountz/Fresno St

Top-seeded Diamond 'Dogs head to Reno for MW Championship

5/22/2019 10:00:00 AM | Baseball

Fresno State Notes (PDF)Mountain West Championship Bracket (PDF)Championship Central Video: McCarthy Tatum Video: Mike Batesole

The top-seeded Diamond 'Dogs open the 2019 Mountain West Championship on Thursday in Reno against host Nevada.

By: Travis Blanshan / Assistant Director of Communications

RENO, Nev. - Fresh off winning the Mountain West regular season title last weekend at UNLV, the Diamond 'Dogs enter this week's Mountain West Championship as the No. 1 seed opening up action against host and No. 4 seed Nevada on Thursday evening at Don Weir Field at Peccole Park.

Game 51: No. 1 seed Fresno State (35-14-1, 20-8-1 MW) at No. 4 seed Nevada (29-24, 14-16 MW)

First Pitch: May 23-26 - Thu: 6:30 p.m.; Rest of Tournament: TBD
Stadium: Don Weir Field at Peccole Park (3,000)
Surface: SprinTurf
Dimensions: 340 (LF), 401 (CF), 340 (RF)
All-Time Series: Fresno State leads 108-68
Last Meeting: Fresno State defeated Nevada, 8-2 (May 5, 2019 in Reno, Nev.)

Radio: 940 AM ESPN
Play-by-play: Paul Loeffler
Video: Mountain West Network
Live Stats: TheMW.com
Twitter: @FresnoStateBSB

2019 MW CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Thursday, May 23
Game 1: No. 2 San Diego State vs. No. 3 UNLV, 2 p.m.
Game 2: No. 1 Fresno State at No. 4 Nevada, 6:30 p.m.

Friday, May 24
Game 3: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2, 2 p.m.
Game 4: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 25
Game 5: Winner Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4, 2 p.m.
Game 6: Winner Game 4 vs. Winner Game 5, 6:30 p.m.

Sunday, May 26 (if necessary)
Game 7: Winner Game 4 vs. Winner Game 5, 1 p.m.

Bulldog Headlines

The Diamond 'Dogs head to the Mountain West Tournament for the sixth time in program history after missing the four-team field in 2018.
The Bulldogs come into Reno winners of four straight games, 9 of their last 10, 16 of their last 19 and 20 of their last 24.
The 'Dogs won their second MW regular season title last Thursday at UNLV finishing with a 20-8-1 (.707) conference mark and 4.5 games in front of second-place SDSU (16-13).
The Bulldogs are coming off their third-straight MW road series sweep after winning all three games at UNLV last weekend.
The 'Dogs moved into the top 25 nationally in two polls on Monday sitting at No. 23 in Baseball America and No. 25 in Collegiate Baseball Newspaper.
Junior pitcher Ryan Jensen earned his second Mountain West Pitcher of the Week honor of the season on Monday after tossing a career-high eight innings while allowing three hits, zero earned runs, zero walks and struck out 10 at UNLV on May 16.

Mountain West Tournament History

Fresno State will play in its sixth-ever Mountain West Championship this week and enters this year's tournament as the number one seed.
Fresno State owns a 8-10 all-time record in MW tournament games.
The Bulldogs are seeking their first Mountain West Tournament Championship.
As the No. 3 seed in 2017, the 'Dogs made the MW Championship final falling 3-2 to San Diego State in Albuquerque, N.M. The Bulldogs went 3-2 in the tournament.
As the No. 1 seed in 2016, Fresno State went 0-2 falling in a heartbreaker 9-7 to Air Force in the first game before losing 25-6 to Nevada in eight innings in the consolation bracket.
As the No. 3 seed, the 'Dogs went 2-2 in the 2015 tournament winning the first two games over UNLV and San Diego State before losing to New Mexico and SDSU.
As the No. 5 seed, Fresno State opened the 2014 tournament with a 4-3 win against Nevada before dropping the next two.
As the No. 4 seed, Fresno State opened the 2013 tournament vs. Nevada and fell 4-3 in 12 innings, won the next two, and then fell to San Diego State.

Where Fresno State Rank Offensively in the Mountain West/nation in 2019 (as of 5/22/19)

.297 Batting Average: No. 1 - 28th nationally
.450 Slugging Pct: No. 1 - 40th nationally
.384 On base Pct: No. 1
34 sacrifice bunts: No. 3
351 Runs: No. 1
519 Hits: No. 4
311 RBI: No. 1
97 Doubles: No. 6
12 Triples: No. 5
49 Home Runs: No. 2

Where Fresno State Rank Pitching in the Mountain West/nation in 2019 (as of 5/22/19)

3.75 ERA: No. 1 - 35th nationally
.256 Opposing bat average: No. 1
16 saves: No. 1
450 strikeouts: No. 2
184 Earned runs allowed: No. 1
435 Hits allowed: No. 1
175 walks allowed: No. 1
65 doubles allowed: No. 1
4 triples allowed: No. 1
27 home runs allowed: No. 1

Where Fresno State Rank Fielding in the Mountain West/nation in 2019 (as of 5/22/19)

.970 Fielding Percentage: No. 4
501 Assists: No. 6
29 double plays: No. 7

Where Fresno State Players Rank in the Mountain West/NCAA in 2019 (as of 5/22/19)

Batting average: Zach Ashford - 2nd (.371); JT Arruda - 6th (.358)
Slugging percentage: Tatum - 2nd (.601); Arruda - 5th (.567)
On-base percentage: Zach Ashford - 3rd (.482); JT Arruda - 4th (.463)
Runs: Ashford - T-2nd (57); Carter Bins - 4th (51); Arruda - 5th (50)
Hits: Tatum - T-4th (74)
RBI: Tatum - 1st (65)/RBI per game: 1.30 - 1st - 13th/10th in the nation
Home runs: Tatum - 2nd (11); Zach Presno, Arruda - T-8th (8)
Walks: Arruda - T-2nd (37); Ashford - 5th (35)
Sacrifice bunts: Nolan Dempsey - 2nd (9)
ERA: Ryan Jensen - 5th (3.09)
Opposing batting average: Jensen - 6th (.230)
Innings pitched: Jensen - 3rd (84.1)
Strikeouts: Jensen - 3rd (89); Davis Moore - 4th (77)
Wins: Jensen - 1st (10) - 3rd nationally
Saves: Jaime Arias - 1st (11) - 21st nationally

A look at No. 4 seed Nevada Wolf Pack (FS record vs. Nevada in 2019: 3-0)
Nevada enters Thursday's contest against the Bulldogs with a 29-24 overall record and a 14-16 mark in the Mountain West. The Wolf Pack finished fourth in the MW standings and are riding a four-game winning streak after sweeping San Jose State on the road and defeating Pacific at home to end the regular season.

Nevada, who last played on May 14, went 14-12 at home during the season and hit .270 as a club in the regular season to rank sixth in the MW while also checking in sixth in the league averaging 5.5 runs per game.

Junior outfielder Jaylon McLaughlin leads the Wolf Pack from the plate hitting .347 (8th in the MW) and ranks second in the league in stolen bases with 23. Sophomore infielder Joshua Zamora, the 2018 MW Freshman of the Year, tops the club in at-bats (208), hits (65), doubles (13), RBI (38) and total bases (106).

On the mound, Nevada has a 4.61 ERA, third in the MW, with a 2.10 strikeout-to-walk ratio (2nd in the MW) with 396 strikeouts to 189 walks while holding opponents to a .267 batting average.

The 'Dogs will face Wolf Pack ace Ryan Anderson, a junior southpaw out of Sparks, Nev., who enters Thursday with a 4-4 overall mark in 13 starts. Anderson leads the team in innings pitched (67.2) and strikeouts (62) and gave up six hits, four earned runs, four walks and struck out three in 5.1 innings against the Bulldogs on May 3 as Fresno State topped the Wolf Pack for a 5-3 win in Reno.

A look at No. 2 seed San Diego State Aztecs (FS record vs. SDSU in 2019: 4-2)
San Diego State, winners of five of the last six Mountain West Tournaments, comes into the MW Tournament with a 32-23 overall record and finished second in the MW with a 16-13 mark. The Aztecs, who went 12-11 away from home on the year, recently saw the 'Dogs in a three-game series in Fresno, May 10-12, with the Bulldogs winning two of three games on Senior Weekend.

SDSU is hitting .281 as a club to rank fourth in the MW and the Aztecs are also fourth in the league in scoring averaging 5.9 runs per contest.

Sophomore outfielder Matt Rudick has started all 55 games for the Aztecs and leads the team in hits (75), runs (46), at-bats (233), triples (3) and total bases (93). Sophomore infielder/pitcher Casey Schmitt is hitting .314 from the plate and has posted a 3-3 mark on the mound with a 3.95 ERA in 20 appearances.

On the mound, SDSU has a 4.16 ERA, second in the MW, with a 1.92 strikeout-to-walk ratio with 484 strikeouts to 252 walks while holding opponents to a .261 batting average.

Junior Adrian Mardueno led the MW and ranks 7th nationally in ERA at 1.48 and is 5-2 with 71 strikeouts in 60.2 innings and is holding opponents to a .180 average.

A look at No. 3 seed UNLV Rebels (FS record vs. UNLV in 2019: 4-2)
UNLV enters the MW Tournament with a 27-27 overall record and finished third in the MW standings with a 14-16 overall mark. The Rebels are coming off getting swept at home by the Bulldogs last weekend and last won on May 11 at New Mexico winning both ends of a doubleheader over the Lobos.

The Rebels, who went 8-15 away from home this season, are hitting .291 as a club to rank third in the MW and are fifth in the league in scoring averaging 5.8 runs per contest. Junior infielder Bryson Stott ranks fourth in the MW in batting average at .361 and leads the league with 61 runs, 51 walks, a .489 on-base percentage and a .615 slugging percentage and ranks second with 19 doubles and 75 hits.

On the mound, UNLV has a 5.76 ERA, sixth in the MW, with a 1.85 strikeout-to-walk ratio with 348 strikeouts to 188 walks while holding opponents to a .291 batting average.

Diamond 'Dogs wins Mountain West regular season title
The Bulldogs' won their 35th conference title in program history last Thursday at UNLV with a 7-0 win over the Rebels. It is the 'Dogs seventh regular season title under head coach Mike Batesole after winning WAC titles in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010 & 2011 and a MW title in 2016.

The 'Dogs are looking to earn their seventh tournament title under Batesole and first in the MW after winning six over a seven-year stretch in the WAC earning titles in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011 & 2012.

Mountain West Player of the Week honors
The Bulldog earned three Mountain West Player of the Week honors in 2019 with senior second baseman Nolan Dempsey earning the award twice and redshirt sophomore shortstop JT Arruda picking up the honors once on May 13.

April 22 - Nolan Dempsey, Sr., 2B, Fresno State
May 6 - Nolan Dempsey, Sr., 2B, Fresno State
May 13 - JT Arruda, RSo., SS, Fresno State

Mountain West Pitcher of the Week honors
The 'Dogs also earned four MW Pitcher of the Week awards in 2019 with all three weekend starters earning the nod at least once. Junior right-hander Ryan Jensen claimed the honor twice, most recently on Monday after his performance at UNLV.

April 15 - Ryan Jensen, Jr., RHP, Fresno State
April 22 - Nikoh Mitchell, So., LHP, Fresno State
May 6 - Davis Moore, Jr., RHP, Fresno State
May 20 - Ryan Jensen, Jr., RHP, Fresno State

Fresno State sitting in top 25 in two national polls
The 'Dogs are ranked in the top 25 in two national polls this week after being tabbed No. 23 by Baseball America and No. 25 by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper. The 'Dogs are also receiving votes in both the NCBWA poll and the USA Today Coaches poll.

Fresno State earning a top mark in the MW in the RPI
The 'Dogs lead the MW in the RPI at No. 38 as of Wednesday and will look to use top-100 wins over Tennessee (12), Oregon (59), San Diego State (67) & Kansas State (85) to keep a strong position before the NCAA Tournament field is set on Monday.

'Dogs find midweek success
The Bulldogs found great success in midweek games this season sporting a 7-1 record notching wins over San Francisco, Pacific (2x), CSU Bakersfield (2x) and Cal Poly (2x) with their only stumble being a 2-0 loss at then-No. 2 Stanford on April 2.

Jensen & Moore finish the regular season strong
Junior right-handed starters Ryan Jensen and Davis Moore combined for 18 of the 'Dogs 35 wins this season. With Jensen leading the MW and ranking third nationally with 10 wins and Moore not far behind with eight victories, the duo became the first pair since 2016 to each have eight or more wins in the regular season joining Ricky Tyler Thomas (9) and Jimmy Lambert (10). Both went on to be named first-team All-MW with Lambert being named Co-MW Pitcher of the Year.

Road Warriors
The Bulldogs found great success away from Fresno this season posting a 22-6 mark in road/neutral site games. The 'Dogs were 17-6 in true road contests played at the opponents' field, 2-0 in games as the road team played in Fresno and 3-0 in neutral site games.

The Bulldogs, who have won 10 straight road games coming into the Mountain West Tournament, last suffered a road loss at Oregon on April 6 falling in a doubleheader by scores of 5-3 and 8-7.

Second-best regular season winning percentage under Coach Batesole
The 'Dogs completed their second-best regular season winning percentage under Coach Batesole finishing with a .707 mark. Only the 'Dogs 2011 team finished with a better mark at 37-14 (.725).

Bulldog pitching staff continues to dominant
The 'Dogs lead the MW in ERA (3.75), opposing batting average (.256), earned runs allowed (184), hits allowed (435), walks allowed (175), doubles allowed (65), triples allowed (4), home runs allowed (27) and saves (16).

In addition, the 'Dogs have given up three runs or less in 23 of their 50 games and are 21-2 in those contests.

Magic number eight
Fresno State has had great success this year when reaching eight runs sitting at 20-1. Their loss came on March 9 at then-No. 25 Tennessee in a 13-9 loss to the Volunteers.

Scoring first is key
Another key to the 'Dogs recent success has been scoring first. On the season, the 'Dogs are 29-5 when scoring first and 21-5 when scoring in the first inning. The Bulldogs have scored in the first inning in four straight games, totaling 16 runs, and in seven of their last eight games. On the year, the 'Dogs scored a total of 79 runs in the first inning, 33 more than the next closest inning.

Ashford closing in on top 10 career hits mark
Zach Ashford played in his 207th career game last Saturday and sits only four games behind Korby Batesole (211 from 2015-18) for No. 10 on the all-time games played list. In addition, Ashford has moved his career hit total to 232 and is now only five shy of moving into the top 10 in career hits as he will pass Phillip Romero who is currently No. 10 (236 from 1989-92).

Bulldogs in the Mountain West Tournament
Only four 'Dogs have ever played in a MW Tournament game with Zach Ashford leading the way with six appearances followed by Carter Bins (5), McCarthy Tatum (3) and Ryan Jensen (2) .
2015 (4 games): Tatum: 2 game appearances, 1-1, 2 R
2016 (2 games): Ashford: 1 game appearance, 1 walk; Tatum: 1 game appearance, 1 at-bat
2017 (5 games): Ashford: 5 game appearances, 4 starts, .375 BA (6-16), 2B, 3B, 3R, 4 RBI; Bins: 5 game appearances, 5 starts, .375 BA (6-16), 3 2B, 2 HR, 8R, 6 RBI, SB; Jensen: 2 relief appearances, 1.1 innings, 1 walk

Batesole reaches 800 career win milestone & 30-win plateau
Head coach Mike Batesole reached career win number 800 on Feb. 16 in the Bulldogs' 6-3 season-opening win over Utah Valley at Pete Beiden Field at Bob Bennett Stadium. Now in his 17th season at the helm of the Bulldogs this season, Batesole has won 578 games at Fresno State and 256 at CSUN from 1996-2002 for a total of 834 career wins.

With the 'Dogs win at Nevada on May 5, Batesole has won at least 30 games in 14 of his 17 seasons at Fresno State and in 20 of his 24 years as a Division I head coach.

Dempsey named CoSIDA Academic All-District 8 First Team
Fresno State senior infielder Nolan Dempsey was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District 8 First Team on May 9. A communication major, Dempsey carries a 3.78 GPA and is now eligible to become a CoSIDA Academic All-American which will be announced on June 6.

Arias named to NCBWA Stopper of the Year Midseason Update
Sophomore left-hander Jaime Arias was named to the Midseason Update for the 15th annual NCBWA Stopper of the Year on April 24. Given annually to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I baseball, Arias is one of 45 pitcher nationally and three pitchers from the Mountain West on the Midseason Update. The finalists for the award will announced on Wednesday, June 5 with the winner revealed on Saturday, June 15.

Bins named to Buster Posey Award Watch List
Junior catcher Carter Bins was named to the Buster Posey Award Watch List on April 2 which is given to the nation's top division one collegiate catcher by the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission.

Ashford named a Senior CLASS Award Candidate
Senior outfielder Zach Ashford has been named a candidate for the 2019 Senior CLASS Award, the organization announced on March 22. Thirty NCAA baseball student-athletes who excel both on and off the field were selected as candidates for the 2019 Senior CLASS Award in collegiate baseball and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. The 10 finalists for the award were named on April 10, but Ashford unfortunately did not make the cut.

Up next
The 'Dogs will look to make their 35th NCAA Tournament appearance next weekend at one of 16 regional sites nationwide. The 2019 NCAA Tournament selection show will air on ESPNU on Monday at 9 a.m. PT.

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