54.1 F
Davis

Davis, California

Saturday, April 20, 2024

Baseball Preview

Teams: UC Davis at Seattle University
Records: Aggies, 7-10; Seattle University 5-11
Where: Bannerwood Park — Bellevue, Wash.
When: Friday at 4 p.m.; Saturday at 1 p.m.; Sunday at 12 p.m.
Who to Watch: Junior Steven Patterson batted 4-9 over the weekend series against Cal State Bakersfield. The second baseman had a run batted in and scored a run.

He has played in 15 games this season and has a batting average that currently sits at .333. He has scored eight runs and has nine RBI thus far. Out of the regular starters, Patterson is second on the team in batting average to junior Nick Lynch.

Patterson grew up in Stockton, Calif. and attended St. Mary’s High School. He had a great junior and senior season for the Rams, winning consecutive CIF-San Joaquin Section Div. I championships and consecutive Tri-County Athletic League titles in 2009 and 2010.

In his senior season, he batted .341 with six homers and 34 RBI, which earned him a spot to All-TCAL honors.

This season is Patterson’s first with the Aggies after he transferred from San Joaquin Delta College where he was a 2012 California Community College Baseball Coaches Association All-American and a unanimous All-Big 8 first team selection. In his final season, he batted .380 with 11 doubles, six home runs, and 33 RBI.

Steven’s father, Fred Patterson, is a UC Davis alum of 1980 and played two years on the Aggie football team.

Did you know? After pitching 7 1/3 innings and allowing two runs in his win last weekend, junior Evan Wolf lowered his earned-run average to 2.42. He recorded his first win of the season in the four games that he has started.

Occasionally playing first base, Wolf found the majority of his playing time on the mound. Wolf has limited his opponents’ batting average to .229 on the season. He has pitched 22 1/3 innings, while striking out five and walking six batters.

Born in Fresno, Calif., Wolf attended Clovis High School and graduated in the class of ’09. In his senior year, he accumulated a record of 24-8. He played both football and baseball for the Cougars and played tight end for his football team.

He was selected to play in the 2009 Central Section City/County All-Star Game. He was also a 2009 Rawlings/Perfect Game Preseason All-California Region honorable mention. In his junior year, he was named to the TRAC All-Conference Team.

Preview: Seattle University holds a record of 5-11 this season and has played 13 of its first 16 games on the road. Currently, it is ninth in the Western Athletic Conference.

The Redhawks will be led by senior Sean Narby who has a batting average of .371, an on-base percentage of .451 and a slugging percentage of .532. He has started all 16 games and also leads his team in hits (23), doubles (eight), and runs (13).

The Aggies are 7-10 and are coming off a loss against Nevada. The slugfest resulted in the Aggies coming up short 11-10.

“We need to keep making strides in all areas. We have played better defense of late and that was a concern through the first nine games, but all areas of the game can improve for us,” said coach Matt Vaughn.

UC Davis comes into the series batting .296 as a team and consists of an offense of getting on base and doing the little things, such as running the bases well and stealing bases when possible, to win games.

The Aggies have a team ERA of 5.72 and have had strong starting pitching from Wolf (1-0) and relief pitching from freshman Max Cordy (3-1), whose ERA is 2.16.

—Luke Bae

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