ELLENSBURG, WASH. – The Central Washington University baseball team will be traveling to Cowley, Wyoming to take on Montana State University Billings for a four-game series this weekend. The Wildcats are looking to add to their win column after a four-game split with Western Oregon University earlier this week.
GAME INFORMATION
Saturday, March 16 | DH starting @ 12:00 p.m. | Cowley, WY | Rocky Mountain HS
Sunday, March 17 | DH starting @ 12:00 p.m. | Cowley, WY | Rocky Mountain HS
LIVE STATS
QUOTEABLE
"Last weekend was an odd weekend for us" Said CWU Head Coach
Desi Storey. "We are happy to have taken a split last weekend against Western Oregon. They are a good team but we swung the bats well and got a few timely hits to give us that edge. We got some bunts down and did some of the little things well which is going to be key for us. Starting pitching did well for us last weekend and kept us in games. Montana State is a good team. Coach Sutton always does a good job with his guys so you know they are going to be ready to go. This weekend should be filled with some good games, we just got to hope the weather holds out for us."
SCOUTING MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
Montana State comes into the weekend fresh off of a three-win series against Northwest Nazarene University. The Yellow Jackets took both games on day one and then took the final game of the four-game series. The weekend puts the Yellow Jackets at an even four and four conference record and a four and twelve overall record.
The power of the Yellow Jackets has been a major key of their season so far. The team has already hit 23 homeruns through just 16 games. Leading the way is Matt Dillon who has already hit eight round trips and has accumulated 15 RBIs early on. Daniel Cipriano has hit six homeruns already and has a team high 16 RBIs. Dillion is hitting an impressive .333 on the year with 54 at-bats while Cipriano is hitting an even .500 with 36 at-bats.
The Montana State pitching consists of four guys that have started four games each. Dylan Barkley, Steen Fredrickson, Jarrod Molnaa, and Keven Mackintosh are more than likely going to be who the Wildcats will face. Fredrickson will more than likely start game one of the series as he has the past two weekends.
Fredrickson comes in with a 5.40 ERA through 21.2 innings of work. He has struck out 21 of the 87 batters that he has faced and has only given 11 free passes. Fredrickson leads the Yellow Jacket pitching staff in innings pitched and in strikeouts so far this season and has an opponent batting average of .264.
Dylan Barkley will likely get the ball in game two and has also been a solid starter for the Yellow Jackets. Barkley has the lowest ERA of the starters at a 4.00 mark. He has thrown 18 innings and has struck out 16 of the 76 hitters that he has faced and has walked just eight.
LAST TIME OUT
As mentioned earlier, the Wildcats are coming off a two-win weekend after a four-game series against Western Oregon University. Centrals offense has been on a tear as seven Wildcat hitters (among qualifiers) have a batting average over .250 already.
Colton Bunt leads the team with a .310 average in his 42 at-bats. He has accounted for ten runs and has brought in four RBIs with five extra-base hits.
Justin Hampson and
Mitch Lesmeister are also already to a hot start with a .291 average each. The two lead the team with 16 hits a peace through their 55 at-bats. Each have a homerun to their credit. Hampson leads the team with 11 runs accounted for. Lesmeister has brought in a team high ten RBIs.
Game four of last weekend's series ended in dramatic fashion. Central Washington's offense was quiet until the fifth inning.
Robert Ball drilled a two-run opposite field homerun to right center field, cutting the deficit to 6-2. Later in the fifth, Hampson laid down a safety squeeze to score Bunt.
Yi-Fan Pan then roped a double down the right field line to score
Trevor Tripoli. A batter later Yi-An Pan singled to left, scoring his twin, and cutting the deficit to 6-5.
Neither offense was done, however, as Chung lifted a solo shot in the seventh to put the Wolves ahead 7-6. The Wildcats responded in kind, bringing home pinch runner
Adam Fahsel with a passed ball.
Yi-An led off the ninth inning with a single.
Michael Peter moved him to second with a sacrifice bunt.
Jaden Hassell then twisted a flare down the left field line, scoring Yi-An and ending a long day at the ball park.
