Teams: UC Davis vs. Fresno State
Records: Aggies, 2-6; Bulldogs, 6-1
Where: Dobbins Stadium
When: Friday at 2:30 p.m.; Saturday at 1 p.m.; Sunday at 1 p.m.
Who to watch: Senior Daniel Cepin could become a solid middle of the order hitter for the Aggies.
The outfielder out of Coronado, Calif. is hitting .320 on the year with a modest OPS (On-base plus slugging percentage) of .710. Cepin had the game-tying RBI single in the Aggies’ lone win over San Francisco this weekend.
Did you know? When Fresno State won the NCAA College World Series in 2008, it became the lowest seeded team ever to win an NCAA Division I title. Of the 27 players on the Bulldogs 2008 roster, none have played a single Major League Baseball inning.
Preview: UC Davis is in a slump.
The Aggies have started slow, winning just two of their first eight games and losing three in a row.
In order to break the slump, UC Davis will have to go up against a former national champion.
Fresno State, the 2008 College World Series Champs, will travel to Dobbins Field this weekend to take on UC Davis in a three-game weekend series.
The Bulldogs, who dropped their first game of the year on Tuesday to Cal Poly, ranks 24th in the nation according to Baseball America.
The Bulldogs have gotten off to a fast start thanks to strong pitching and hitting. Fresno State has a team earned run average of 2.86 and have averaged over six runs a game.
By comparison, the Aggies’ team ERA is nearly a run more than the Bulldogs. UC Davis has averaged just fewer than three runs per game.
Coach Rex Peters acknowledges this weekend’s series will be both a challenge and a sign of games to come.
“We’re struggling a little bit,” Peters said. “I look at that series [against Fresno State] and that’s going to be a key indicator for us going into conference. Fresno State is a top-30 team and that’s what we’re going face when we get into conference.”
UC Davis dropped a mid-week game to rival Sacramento State on Tuesday 6-4. The Aggies have lost three of their four games this season against the Hornets.
UC Davis battled back from an early 6-1 deficit to cut the lead to two by the ninth. The Aggies loaded the bases in the ninth, but hit into a rally-killing double play to close the game.
-Jason Alpert
