Teams: UC Davis vs. San Jose State; at Pacific
Records: Aggies, 12-25 (6-6); Spartans, 30-16; Tigers, 14-25 (6-9)
Where: Dobbins Stadium; Bill Simoni Field – Stockton, Calif.
When: Today at 2:30 p.m.; Friday at 6 p.m.; Saturday at 6 p.m.; Sunday at 1 p.m.
Who to watch: Junior Scott Kalush was on fire at the plate in last weekend’s sweep of Cal State Northridge.
The 6-foot-1 catcher out of San Mateo, Calif. hit .455 with three runs scored and seven RBI, garnering Big West Conference Player of the Week accolades for the first time in his Aggie career.
Kalush’s offensive performance included a grand slam in the first inning of game one.
According to coach Rex Peters, that hit was huge for the Aggies’ momentum.
“We were way overdue for a big hit like that,” Peters said. “We haven’t gotten many of those this year, and [Kalush] came up and delivered for us, and anytime you can get four runs with one swing of the bat that certainly helps.”
Did you know? The Aggies hit five homeruns in the recent home series, boosting their team total to 15 on the season.
UC Davis now ranks second in the Big West Conference in homers, behind Cal State Northridge (17).
Preview: With heightened Aggie energy after the sweep of the Matadors last weekend, the team is eager to keep fighting in league play.
“We didn’t have that good of a start to the season,” Kalush said. “We’re trying to pick it up and see if we can do well in conference. We definitely have something to play for and we’re all playing with a purpose.”
UC Davis will head to Stockton, Calif. for a three-game series against Pacific after taking on San Jose State on Wednesday to wrap up a five-game home stand.
When the Aggies hosted the Tigers for a three-game series during the 2009-2010 campaign, Pacific swept UC Davis handily by a combined score of 30-13.
The Aggies will look to their recent power hitting and sturdiness on the mound for another conference triumph at Pacific.
“It’s Big West pride,” Peters said. “We’re going to try to get as many Big West wins as we can and finish as high as we can. Right now, we’d like to finish in the top half of the conference and at least have that positive in our pocket at the end of the year.”
– Grace Sprague
