Coming off a four game sweep of Seattle University the Matadors head into their three game series against the Sacramento State tied for first place in the Big West with UC Irvine.
The sweep over Seattle was the Matadors first four game sweep against an opponent since 1998.
The Hornets come into Matador Field with a 7-12-1 record and on a four-game losing streak. The Matadors are on a current five-game winning streak, and have won nine of their last 10 games.
Despite the losing record, the Hornets have played some competitive baseball. In their three-game series versus UC Irvine, the Hornets defeated UC Irvine in the opener. UC Irvine took the next two games, however, the contests were close, as the last game went 10 innings.
“Sacramento State is always a pretty decent team,” shortstop Brad Decater said. “We expect good competition from them. If we play good, we should take the series.”
So far this season the Matadors are 6-2 in games decided by three runs or less, and are 3-0 in games decided by one run. This is a change from last seasons Matador squad which lost 13 one run games.
The Matadors go into their series with the Hornets with a 13-6 record. Last season the Matadors had a 7-12 record after 19 games.
The Matadors’ offense has been on a roll during the last 10 games, scoring 97 runs during the stretch. This season, Matadors have scored 10 or more runs in a game six times, going 5-1 in those games. In comparison, last season the Matadors scored 10 runs or more in a game five times during the entire season.
“The offense is probably our strong point,” said Decater. “We have a real solid lineup. We get guys on base and we usually get them in.”
The Matadors have a pressure style offense which involves a lot of stealing, hit and runs and bunts.
Before the season started, not much was expected from the Matador baseball team by many. Some experts predicted that the Matadors would finish second to last in the division.
“We knew that we weren’t ranked high, and didn’t have a great season last year,” Decater said. “We had some good new players come in and I felt we had talent in the fall. I knew we would contend. We are not too surprised.”
After the three game series with the Hornets, the Matadors will host the University of Albany for one game, before opening up division play with a three game series versus UC Irvine at Matador Field.
