Wednesday, February 19, 2020

SEASON UNDERWAY: After having its opening series with Lewis-Clark State canceled due to weather, Western Oregon finally opened its season last week, splitting a four-game series at Fresno Pacific. The Wolves dropped the first two games of the series before bouncing back to pick up their first two wins of the season.

The Wolves snagged their first win of the season riding the arm of newcomer Alan Vasquez, who transferred to Western Oregon from Pierce Community College in Puyallup, Washington. Vasquez threw five innings in the 4-1 victory, allowing one run on three hits with one walk and 11 strikeouts to earn GNAC Pitcher of the Week honors.

Although the season started just three weeks ago, the Montana State Billings batters looked to be in midseason form as the Yellowjackets won three out of four in a split series with Sioux Falls and CSU-Pueblo in Pueblo, Colorado. The Yellowjackets scored 38 runs in the four games and batted .342 as a team.

ALL-AMERICAN START: Two of the conference’s top players got off to hot starts as the 2020 season hit the ground running.

Montana State Billings’ Daniel Cipriano and Western Oregon’s Connor McCord both landed on the 2020 National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Division II Preseason All-West Region and All-America Teams. So far, they have lived up to those accolades.

Cipriano earned unanimous selection to the All-West Region Team. He was also selected as a Second Team Preseason All-American. McCord, who saw action on the mound and at first base in 2019, was named an honorable mention preseason All-American in addition to the regional honors.

Cipriano was named the GNAC Baseball Player of the Week after he paced the Yellowjackets to a 3-1 week in Pueblo, Colorado with a .500 batting average and 1.000 slugging percentage. He batted 8 for 16 with five runs, seven RBI, two doubles and two home runs.

McCord also had himself a week at the plate, going 8 for 14 with five doubles, a triple, three RBI and three runs scored as the Wolves opened their season with a split at Fresno Pacific.

The Yellowjackets are ranked No. 5 in the latest NCBWA West Region Rankings while the Wolves are among others receiving votes.

THIS WEEK'S GNAC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
PLAYER
Daniel Cipriano, Montana State Billings
IF • 6-3 • Sr. • Agoura Hills, Calif.

Cipriano paced MSUB to a 3-1 week with a .500 batting average and 1.000 slugging percentage, going 8 for 16 with five runs, seven RBI, two doubles and two home runs. Cipriano opened by going 3 for 5 with two runs and a double in Friday’s 8-5 win over Sioux Falls before going 2 for 4 with two runs, two RBI and a solo home run in an 11-9 win over CSU-Pueblo. On Saturday, Cipriano went 2 for 5 with a two-run homer and a three-run double to beat CSU-Pueblo 16-9.

Also Nominated: Mitch Lesmeister (Central Washington), Matt Bergevin (Concordia), Connor McCord (Western Oregon).

PITCHER
Alan Vasquez, Western Oregon
RHP • 6-0 • Jr. • Santa Ana, Calif.

Vasquez went five solid innings to earn his first win of the season and in a WOU uniform in a 4-1 victory at Fresno Pacific on Friday. He allowed one run on three hits with one walk and 11 strikeouts, striking out all three outs in the fifth inning.

Also Nominated: Dillon Larsen (Central Washington), Ryan Gibson (Concordia).

AROUND THE GNAC
CENTRAL WASHINGTON
• Central Washington went 1-2 at Corban last week, dropping the first two games, 6-5 and 4-0, on Friday before picking up the win in the finale on Saturday, 9-5.

• Mitch Lesmeister led the Wildcats with a .545 batting average. He went 6 for 11 with a double, two RBI, two runs scored and two steals. He batted 2 for 3 with an RBI double in Friday’s first game then went 2 for 4 in the second game of Friday’s doubleheader. Lesmeister finished the week by going 2 for 4 with an RBI single and two runs scored in the finale. He leads the GNAC and ranks ninth in Division II with seven stolen bases.

• Justin Hampson batted 5 for 12 with a double, a walk, an RBI and a run scored.  He went 2 for 4 in each of the first two games of the series and closed the week by going 1 for 4 with a walk and a run in Saturday’s win. Hampson is tied for the conference lead with 12 hits while also ranking second with a .462 batting average.

• Dillon Larson allowed two hits and three earned runs while walking two and striking out 10 in a six-inning start in Friday’s 4-0 loss. He ranks 49th in Division II with 3.21 hits allowed per nine innings.

• Up next, the Wildcats will open conference play at home, hosting Northwest Nazarene on Feb. 28-29.

CONCORDIA
• Concordia went 0-3 at home against an always-tough Lewis-Clark State last week. The Cavaliers lost 4-0 and 3-2 on Friday before dropping the finale on Sunday, 11-3.

• Matt Bergevin batted .500 in the series with five hits, a double, a walk and three RBI. Bergevin went 3 for 4 with an RBI single in Friday’s second game then closed the week by going 2 for 3 with two RBI on Sunday.

• Damon Peters finished the week with a .333 batting average. He went 3 for 9 on the week, tallying two doubles, two walks, an RBI and three runs scored. Peters batted 1 for 3 with a walk and two runs in Friday’s second game. He ranks fifth in the GNAC with a .409 batting average.

• Ryan Gibson started on the mound in Friday’s 3-2 loss. He received a no-decision after seven innings of work, allowing two hits and no runs while walking two and striking out six.

• Concordia will take to the road to start a three-game series at Dixie State on Saturday.

MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
• Montana State Billings went 3-1 in a split series with Sioux Falls and CSU-Pueblo in Pueblo, Colorado. In Friday’s doubleheader, the Yellowjackets beat Sioux Falls 8-5 and CSU-Pueblo 11-9. The Jackets then outslugged CSU-Pueblo on Saturday, 16-9, before losing to Sioux Falls on Sunday, 17-3.

• Daniel Cipriano was named the GNAC Baseball Player of the Week after he hit .500 on the road trip. Cipriano went 8 for 16 in the four games with five runs, seven RBI, two doubles and two home runs. He went 3 for 5 in the 8-5 win over Sioux Falls on Friday then went 2 for 5 with a two-run homer and a three-run double in Saturday’s 16-9 win over CSU-Pueblo. Cipriano is tied for second in the GNAC with seven RBI while also ranking fourth with nine hits.

• Wyatt Setian batted .438 last week with seven hits, two doubles, a home run, three RBI and four runs scored. Setian went 3 for 5 with an RBI single in Friday’s first game then followed by batting 2 for 5 with a leadoff home run and an RBI single in Friday’s second game.

• Matthew Houlihan improved to 2-0 with a win in Saturday’s 16-9 win over CSU-Pueblo. He allowed three hits and no runs while walking five and striking out three in five innings pitched. Houlihan holds a 0.00 earned run average and a .161 opposing batting average.

• The Yellowjackets are ranked No. 5 in the latest NCBWA West Region Rankings.

• The Yellowjackets will open their home schedule this week, starting a three-game series with Colorado Mines on Saturday.

NORTHWEST NAZARENE
• Northwest Nazarene did not play last week.

• The Nighthawks opened their season by going 1-3 in a split series with Dixie State and Cal State LA in Los Angeles. The Nighthawks lost both games to Dixie State and split with Cal State LA.    

• The Nighthawks are third in the GNAC with a .238 batting average while also ranking second with a .964 fielding percentage.

• Quentin Ayers ranks third in the conference with a .714 slugging percentage, fourth with a .429 batting average and fifth with a .500 on-base percentage.

• Up next, the Nighthawks will hit the road to start a four-game series at Colorado Mesa on Thursday.

SAINT MARTIN’S
• Saint Martin’s did not play last week.

• The Saints opened their season with a split in their four-game series at Holy Names on Feb. 7-9.

• The Saints rank third in the GNAC with a 6.47 earned run average and a .360 on-base percentage while also ranking second with a .238 opposing batting average.

• Aaron Renaud is tied for second in the conference with a .462 batting average. He has six hits on the season to go with two RBI, two runs scored and four walks.

• Harrison Goebel is 1-0 on the season, posting a 1.69 earned run average. He allowed just three hits and one earned run while walking four and striking out seven in 5.1 innings pitched in his first start of the season.

• Up next, the Saints will head back to California to start a four-game series at Academy of Art on Friday.

WESTERN OREGON
• Western Oregon opened its season with a split at Fresno Pacific. The Wolves dropped the first two games, 4-3 and 10-7, before bouncing back to top the Sunbirds in the last two games, 4-1 and 9-3.

• Connor McCord opened his senior campaign in style, batting 8 for 14 with five doubles, a triple, two walks, three RBI and three runs scored. His five doubles and .571 batting average both lead the GNAC. McCord was instrumental in the Wolves’ 9-3 win in the series finale as he went 2 for 3 with two walks and three runs scored.

• Alan Vasquez was named the GNAC Pitcher of the Week for his strong five-inning start in Friday’s 4-1 victory. Vasquez earned his first win in a WOU uniform, allowing one run on three hits with one walk and 11 strikeouts, striking out all three outs in the fifth inning.

• The Wolves are among others receiving votes in the latest NCBWA West Region Rankings.

• Up next, the Wolves will open conference play at home, starting a four-game series with defending GNAC champion Montana State Billings on Feb. 29.