PHOENIX, Ariz. – UC Riverside (14-16, 4-5) takes a break from conference play this week as it takes on Grand Canyon (19-16, 10-2) on Wednesday before hosting a weekend series with San Jose State (14-21, 6-11) on Fri-Sun.
The game against the Lopes will take place at 2:00 p.m. at GCU Ballpark's Brazell Field and will be streamed live by the
WAC Digital Network. The series against the Spartans will see a 6:00 p.m. start time on Friday and Saturday, and a 1:00 p.m. start for Sunday's series closer.
Wednesday, Apr. 18 - 2:00 PM | LHP Hazahel Quijada
Friday, Apr. 20 - 6:00 PM | Trenton Toplikar
Saturday, Apr. 21 - 6:00 PM | Cole Percival
Sunday, Apr. 22 - 1:00 PM | Jared Morton
Live Stats: GCU | San Jose
Video: GCU | San Jose
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UC Riverside |
GCU |
San Jose St. |
| Stats |
14-16, 4-5 |
19-16, 10-2 |
14-21, 6-11 |
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Schedule |
Schedule |
Schedule |
|
Roster |
Roster |
Roster |
| Last 5 Gms |
L-L-L-W-L |
W-L-W-L-W |
W-L-W-W-L |
| Leaders |
| ERA |
Cole Percival
2.34 ERA |
Jake Wong
2.24 ERA |
Andrew Mitchel
4.93 ERA |
| B/avg |
Matt Hardy
.365 |
Quin Cotton
.347 |
Brett Bautista
.363 |
| RBI |
Connor Cannon
23 RBI |
Ian Evans
28 RBI |
Shane Timmons
39 RBI |
| History |
| Record vs. |
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19-16 |
2-1 |
| Streak |
|
W1 |
L1 |
HAWAII RECAP
UC Riverside went 1-2 in its first conference road series in Hawaii, dropping the series opener and finale by final scores of 5-4 and 5-0. The Highlanders' 9-2 win in the middle game saw them go off for 18 hits, including a program Division I record nine doubles. Senior Colby Schultz finished with season-highs of four hits and two doubles, as UCR tallied at least 18 hits for the third time this season.
FANTASTIC FRESHMAN
Freshman Nathan Webb has a hit in all nine Big West games this year, currently leading the way in both batting average (.472) and doubles (6) during conference play. He also has the second-most hits (17) since the start of Big West. For the season, he has doubled on 13 of hits 26 hits.
THAT'S ONE WAY TO START
On Friday, Mar. 29, UC Riverside opened its 2018 Big West campaign with its hottest start ever out of the conference gates. The Highlanders posted 16 runs, 20 hits and 14 RBI, shattering their previous records for runs (7 vs. UCSB in 2007), hits (15 vs. Cal Poly in 2003) and RBI (8, twice) in a conference season-opener since joining the Big West in 2002. It was also the Highlanders' first 20-hit performance in over three years.
Sophomore Connor Cannon led the way with three hits on a career-high tying five RBI, which were split between a three-run homer and a two-run double. Five different Highlanders notched three hits for the first time this season as UCR enjoyed its third six-run inning of the year in the bottom of the third.
WHAT A WEEKEND
UC Riverside ended the opening weekend of Big West play with the mosts runs (27), hits (41), RBI (25), batting average (.383) and slugging percentage (.607), all marks which also set Division I program records for a conference-opening weekend. Six different Highlanders batted over .400 with five hits in three games.
The strong start against UC Davis gave the Highlanders their third 2-0 start ever in Big West play. The only other times they started 2-0 were in 2016 – also against the Aggies – and in a 2013 sweep over UC Irvine.
BUILT LIKE A MOUNTAIN
Connor Cannon earned his first career Big West Field Player of the Week Award earlier this month. From Mar. 27-31, the sophomore batted .467 (7-for-15) and put up a 1.200 slugging and .556 on base percentage to go along with six runs, 10 RBI and three walks. Cannon also launched a home run in three consecutive games. Prior to that week, he had never homered in back-to-back outings.
Already with two 5-RBI games this season, Cannon becomes the first Highlander with multiple 5-RBI performances since Tony Nix in 2010. His first 5-RBI game of the year came in the Highlanders' 8-1 season-opening win over WSU on Feb. 16, when he recorded his first ever grand slam in the bottom of the seventh. For the season, he leads UCR in home runs (6) and RBI (23), marks which rank third and eighth in the Big West, respectively.
R' HOUSE
The Highlanders have gone 9-8 at home this season, already one win away from matching their 2017 win-total, when they went 10-15. Despite dropping their last three home contests, they have gone 8-5 at The Plex since Mar. 6.
THE HITS KEEP COMIN'
Despite a slow offensive start, the Highlanders have gotten on track as the season has wore on. After a seven-game stretch from Feb. 24-Mar. 4 in which the Highlanders averaged just 4.6 hits per game, they began to turn things around. Since Mar. 6 against Valparaiso, UCR has racked up 192 hits, averaging out to 10.1 per game.
ATOP THE PACK
The Highlanders have improved their offensive production significantly during Big West play, ranking in the top three in a number of statistical categories. Through nine games, they rank first in the conference in doubles (28) and extra-base hits (36), second in batting average (.320), slugging (.473) and hits (102), and third in RBI (47) and home runs (5).
HOLDING DOWN THE MOUND
Right-handed pitcher Cole Percival (5-1) is another Highlander having a great freshman season. He has pitched more innings (50.0) than any other Highlander, leading the way in wins (5) and strikeouts (39) and sitting second on the team in opposing batting average (.207). His team-leading 2.34 ERA also ranks fourth in the Big West.
Percival impressed many in his first career start on the mound, leading the Highlanders to an 8-1 victory over Nebraska in just under six innings pitched. He struck out eight batters, giving up just one hit, one run, and a meager .056 opposing batting average.
NO RUN ZONE
Right-handed pitcher Jared Morton has a 2-1 record and a very low 0.74 ERA in 24.1 innings pitched this year. The senior is also fourth in the Big West in saves (5). Now with nine saves in his career, he is tied for No. 8 all-time in the UCR record books.
The Highlanders are 10-4 this season when Morton has stepped onto the mound. In his first conference appearance on Mar. 30, he pitched a perfect three innings to close out the Aggies, retiring all nine batters he faced.
OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION
UC Riverside hit .472 as a team against Valparaiso on Mar. 7, exploding for 14 runs and 17 hits. At the time, it was the most hits for the Highlanders since recording 18 against Long Beach State on Apr. 23, 2016.
Seven different Highlanders finished with multiple runs or RBI. Senior shortstop Colby Schultz finished 3-of-5 for 2 RBI, and had his second three-run game in his last five outings. Sophomore Connor Cannon finished with a team-high 3 RBI.
STREAKERS
The Highlanders won four straight games from Mar. 6 - Mar. 11 for their longest win streak so far this season. It was UCR's first four-game win streak since opening the 2017 season with a 4-0 record.
ONE MORE BEFORE THE ROAD
Following this week, UCR will play one more non-conference midweek game at home against San Diego State (Apr. 24) before heading on the road for four straight, starting with UC Santa Barbara from Apr. 27-29.
