GAME #8
AAU Urban Knights (0-7, 0-0) vs. Cal State Monterey Bay Otters (2-15)
Thursday, Mar. 4, 2010 at 2:00 PM
Cal State Monterey Bay, CSUMB Baseball Field
GAME #9, 10 (Doubleheader)
AAU Urban Knights (0-7, 0-0) vs. Dixie State Red Storm (6-6, 1-3)
Friday, Mar. 5, 2010 at 11:00 AM
Moraga, CA, Louis Guisto Field
GAME #11, 12 (Doubleheader)
AAU Urban Knights (0-7, 0-0) vs. Dixie State Red Storm (6-6, 1-3)
Saturday, Mar. 6, 2010 at 10:30 AM
Moraga, CA, Louis Guisto Field
Game Notes (includes season/career-highs)
KNIGHTS FACE CSUMB THEN BEGIN PACWEST PLAY:
Now at the tail end of one of two long breaks this season, the Academy of Art University baseball team returns to the field for one contest versus Cal State Monterey Bay before starting its inaugural Pacific West Conference season against Dixie State on Mar. 5 at Louis Guisto Baseball Field in Moraga, CA.
FIRST PITCH:
The Urban Knights travel to Seaside, CA for their single game against CSUMB this Thursday, Mar. 4 starting at 2:00 PM. Less than 24 hours later, AAU kicks off league play with a two-day, four-game series versus Dixie State. Friday, Mar. 5 features a doubleheader beginning at 11:00 AM at Louis Guisto Field in Moraga, CA. The second pair of games comes on Saturday, Mar. 6 starting at 10:30 AM. Live score updates for the AAU-DSC series can be found on the Urban Knights' athletics site,
Twitter, and
CollegeFanz.
KNIGHT SPOTLIGHT:
While sophomore infielder
Jared DePatto leads the team with a .500 batting average, junior infielder
Chris Vargas was named to the PacWest Weekly Top 10 Honor Roll after a 4-for-5 performance versus FPU on Feb. 20.
Vargas, who also added three runs batted in, became the second Urban Knight to ever have four hits in a game. In the first contest of the FPU series, freshman left-handed pitcher
Jeff Smith worked three scoreless innings on the mound. However, junior right-handed pitcher
Darnell Quinney still paces the team in innings pitched (13.0) and strikeouts (10).
SCOUTING THE OTTERS:
Cal State Monterey Bay started its season with one 2-1 victory on Feb. 6 in a four-game series with Sonoma State. Since the start of CCAA play, the Otters have played several tough teams and now stand 1-11 in their conference. Most recently, CSUMB was swept by UCSD in four games and the Otters will play Montana State-Billings twice before facing AAU. Infielder Jacob Flores leads the team with a .406 batting average, three home runs, and 10 runs scored. Right-handed pitcher Scott Tully (1-2) has the best ERA amongst the starting rotation (5.03).
SCOUTING THE RED STORM:
A nearly unanimous preseason selection to repeat PacWest Conference champions this year, Dixie State has not been perfect thus far. The Red Storm were topped by Point Loma Nazarene and Grand Canyon in the next four games during mid-February before taking three of four from MSU-Billings. Outfielder Brett Adams leads with a .472 batting average, two home runs, and 11 runs batted in while righty Justin Prodan (1-2) has a 4.08 ERA and 16 strikeouts.
KNIGHTS SWING HOT BATS, BUT FPU PREVAILS 14-7
The Academy of Art University offense exploded for seven runs on 14 hits in a 14-7 loss to Fresno Pacific on Feb. 20. The top five AAU batters all had hits and scored at least one run followed by
Vargas who was 4-for-5 with three RBI. Sophomore outfielder
Johnathan Robbins was particularly effective for the Knights with a 2-for-4 day, three runs scored, and two stolen bases.
LOOKING AHEAD:
With PacWest play officially underway, Academy of Art heads to Phoenix, AZ where the Urban Knights will play a four-game series versus Grand Canyon beginning on Mar. 12. AAU will then be back home for a three-day stretch pitting Academy of Art against Hawaii Pacific in five games.
