Game Times (Mountain):
Saturday - 7 p.m.
Sunday (DH) - 1 p.m.
Monday - 7 p.m.
Game Notes: DIXIE STATE - PDF | AAU
Audio/Video: None
Live Stats: portal.stretchinternet.com/artu
Twitter: @DixieAthletics | @Dixie_Base | #BlazeForward | #PacWestBASE | #d2bsb
 
PROBABLE STARTERS:
Saturday (G1) – RHP Jayden Murray (Vernal, Utah/Uintah HS) (1-2, 3.79 ERA) vs. RHP Luke Lacey (0-3, 5.21 ERA)
Sunday (G2) – LHP Matt Mosca (Las Vegas, Nev./Cimarron Memorial HS) (1-3, 6.75 ERA) vs. RHP Ben Kaser (1-2, 2.05 ERA)
Sunday (G3) – TBA vs. LHP Alex Fernandez (2-1, 3.33 ERA)
Monday (G4) – TBA vs. RHP Angel Mora (2-0, 2.35 ERA)

FIRST PITCH: Dixie State (6-12/2-6 PacWest) opens an eight-game Pacific West Conference road trip in the Bay Area this weekend with a four-game series against Academy of Art (8-9/3-5 PacWest). The Trailblazers open the series Saturday night at 6 p.m. (PT), followed by a Sunday doubleheader at 12 noon (PT), and the series finale Monday night at 6 p.m. (PT). All four games will be played at Laney College in Oakland, Calif.

ALL-TIME SERIES: Dixie State owns a 44-4 all-time record against Academy of Art through the first nine years of the series. DSU has won 14-straight and 26 of its last 28 overall vs. the Urban Knights, including a four-game sweep last season at Bruce Hurst Field. DSU is 18-2 all-time vs. AAU in the Bay Area.

LAST WEEK IN REVIEW: Dixie State is looking to get back on track after dropping three of four to No. 1/2 Azusa Pacific last weekend at Bruce Hurst Field. After APU swept the opening two games of a Thursday twin bill, the Trailblazers bounced back with season-highs in hits (19) and runs (14) on their way to a 14-3 victory, becoming the first team to defeat the top-ranked Cougars. However DSU could not salvage a series split as APU rebounded for a 14-9 win in the series finale. 

COACHING STAFF: Two-time Pacific West Conference Coach of the Year Chris Pfatenhauer is in his sixth season as head coach of the Dixie State Baseball program. Pfatenhauer led DSU to consecutive PacWest titles (2014 and 2015) and to five-straight trips (six-straight overall) to the NCAA West Regionals, including serving as the host institution in 2013. Pfatenhauer, who picked up his 200th-career coaching victory last season vs. Saint Martin's (2/19/17) owns a 185-93-1 (.655) overall record at DSU, including a 127-52-1 (.708) record in PacWest play, and a 237-152-1 (.609) career mark.
    Joining Pfatenhauer (UNLV, 2000) in the Trailblazer dugout this season is first-year pitching coach Matt Wilson (Sacramento State, 2006), along with fourth-year assistant coaches Matt Hill (Dixie State 2015), and Bobby Rinard (Arizona, 2014), and third-year assistant coach Patrick Perry (Northern Colorado, 2013). 

TRAILBLAZERS VOTED THIRD IN PACWEST PRESEASON POLL: Dixie State was picked to finish third in the 2018 Pacific West Conference preseason coaches' poll released on Jan. 25. California Baptist received seven first place votes and 116 total points to edge defending PacWest champion Azusa Pacific, which collected four first place nods and 111 points to finish second in the poll. DSU garnered 100 points, followed by Point Loma (84 pts) in fourth, Concordia-Irvine (79 pts) in fifth, and Fresno Pacific (66 pts) in sixth to round out the top half of the poll.
    Dixie State senior first baseman Logan Porter (Surprise, Ariz./Valley Vista HS) and junior third baseman Bryce Feist (Emmett, Idaho/Rocky Mountain HS) were both voted to the PacWest preseason team. APU's Pablo O'Connor was voted the conference preseason Player of the Year, while CBU's Dylan Stowell was tabbed as the league's preseason Pitcher of the Year.

REGIONAL HONORS FOR PORTER AND FEIST: The NCBWA announced in January its 2018 preseason all-West Region honors list honorees and two Trailblazers made the cut as both Porter and Feist were named to the NCBWA West Region second team. 

2018 FAREWELL TOUR: Dixie State will wrap up its 10-year run in the Pacific West Conference this season before moving on to the RMAC ahead of the 2019 baseball season.
    The Trailblazers have won four PacWest baseball titles (2009, 2011, 2014, 2015) over their nine seasons of conference membership and has posted a dominant 208-99-1 overall record (.677) in 308 league games.

WE'RE GOING STREAKING: Not only does Dixie State enter the 2018 season looking to win its third PacWest crown in five seasons in its final year of conference membership, the Trailblazers are also hoping to keep its NCAA postseason streak alive as well. DSU has made six-straight NCAA regional appearances, which is currently the longest active streak in the West Region.

HOME SWEET HOME: Dixie State has played to a 229-87 (.724) overall record inside the friendly confines of Bruce Hurst Field since becoming an NCAA Division II program in 2006-07, and has posted a winning record at home in all 11 seasons of NCAA play.
    Dixie State has won 20 or more games in seven of those 11 seasons, including 21-5 (.807) record last season, and a 24-6 mark (.800) in 2016, which was the second-best home record in terms of wins in the program's NCAA Division II era (26-7 in 2009). The 24 wins that year were also the most home wins under Head Coach Chris Pfatenhauer, while last season's .807 winning percentage in 2017 was the best during the Pfatenhauer era.
    Since joining the PacWest for baseball in 2009, DSU is 114-40 (.740) all-time vs. conference foes at Bruce Hurst Field and has won 10 or more games in each of those nine seasons, including 14 league win in both the 2016 and 2017 seasons.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN: Despite the results over its last two road trips, Dixie State has also held its own away from home as the Trailblazers own a 128-111-1 overall road record (.535) through 11-plus years of D-II competition with seven-straight winning road marks, including a 16-7-1 road record last year. The 16 road wins were the most in program history since its move to NCAA play in 2007.
    In 2015, DSU went a program-best 15-5 on the road (.750), and DSU has won at least 10 road games in eight-straight seasons overall. When you also figure in neutral-site games (9-10 in 19 games), Dixie State is 137-121-1 (.531) all-time away from Bruce Hurst Field in NCAA play.
    In PacWest play, Dixie State is 94-58-1 (.617) in true road games and 0-1 in one neutral-site game vs. Hawai'i Hilo during the 2013 season, which was played in Riverside, Calif. (at California Baptist) as a make-up game due to a rain out on the Islands earlier that season.

JUST WIN BABY: Dixie State extended its streak of winning 30 or more games to nine-straight seasons with its 39-win campaign of 2017. In fact, DSU has won 35 of more games in four of those seasons, including three of the last four years under Head Coach Chris Pfatenhauer. In addition, the 39 games won this season is the second-most in program history. In 2016, DSU won a four-year program record 40 victories (40-14), which included a record-breaking 10-0 start to begin the season, its best overall start in the program's NCAA-era.
    DSU is 365-205-1 (.640) overall record in 11-plus years of NCAA Division II competition (571 games). The Trailblazers won its 300th game as a four-year program in the second game of a doubleheader at Holy Names (3/18/16).

WALK IT OFF: The Trailblazers recorded another "first" as they opened their 12th-season of NCAA competition with three-straight walk-off victories. Prior to this season, DSU only had two seasons that saw it record at least total three walk-off wins, including the 2008 campaign (3) and the 2012 season that featured a school-record five walk-off wins.
    Two of the three walk-off wins last week came against Cal State San Bernardino, the last of which featured a two-out, two-run home run off the bat of senior 1B Logan Porter (Surprise, Ariz./Valley Vista HS). Porter's walk-off homer is the third in program history and the first since former DSU shortstop Tanner Morache connected for a 10th-inning grand slam (the first walk-off GS in school history) in a 9-6 DSU win over Saint Martin's (2/21/16), while former OF Brett Adams hit the first walk-off homer, which came in a 9-8 home win over PacWest rival California Baptist (3/31/10).
    DSU also posted another win in its final at-bat in game three at PLNU, a game the Trailblazers won by a 12-9 count in 10 innings.

FREE BASEBALL: Dixie State has already played in two extra inning games through 18 dates this season, this after only playing in a total of three extra-inning games in 54 dates last season.
    Dating back to last season, the Trailblazers have won four-straight extra inning games overall, and have improved to 29-13 (.690) in 42 total extra-inning games in the program's four-year era. 

ROCKIN' THE 'STACHE: Forget the "Fear The Beard" mantra, since Head Coach Chris Pfatenhauer's arrival at Dixie State, his teams have created a "Mustache March" tradition, and by all accounts, it's pretty effective. Thanks to the power of the mustache, Dixie State has played to a 76-22 (.775) overall record in the month of March over the past five seasons, including a 14-5 mark last year, and a 19-2 record in March of 2014.

TEAM NOTES: Senior 1B Logan Porter (Surprise, Ariz./Valley Vista HS) (.407/3HR/13RBI) is DSU's hottest hitter heading into this weekend's series at AAU ... Over his last eight starts, Porter is batting .481 (13-for-27), including an even .500 clip in the APU series (8-for-16), with four total XBH and six RBI ... Porter connected for his second and third HRs of the season vs. APU (G2 and G4), which vaulted him to seventh (13) on DSU's career HR list ... Porter needs seven RBI to move into solo 10th-place on DSU's career RBI list ... Porter leads the team in average, 2B (7), HR, RBI, SLG% (.678), OB% (.538) and walks (14) ... Porter has hit safely in five-straight and in 13 of 18 games this season.
    Senior C Jake Davison (Taylorsville, Utah/Taylorsville HS) (.316/8RBI) has hit safely in eight of his last nine starts overall and is fourth among starters in batting.
    Freshman OF Jagun Leavitt (St. George, Utah/Pine View HS) (.250/5RBI) also enjoyed a solid series vs. APU, batting .444 (8-for-18) with a pair of doubles, four RBI and two runs scored.
    Freshman INF Alec Flemetakis (Hurricane, Utah/Hurricane HS) (.216/2HR/8RBI) connected for his second HR of the year in G2 vs. APU ... Flemetakis started in two of the three games he played in the series and batted .333 (2-for-6), and drew two walks and one HBP, with three RBI and three runs scored.
    Senior SS Kyle Hoffman (Taylorsville, Utah/Taylorsville HS) (.298/8RBI) hit .385 (5-for-13) in four starts vs. APU, including one at 3B, and co-led the team (with Porter) with four runs scored to go with two RBI.
    Sophomore reserve infielder Joe Raymond (Foresthill, Calif./Del Oro HS) (2Rs) and freshman back-up catcher Ben Petty-Hull (San Diego, Calif./La Jolla Country Day HS) (1R) each collected their first collegiate hits in the series finale vs. APU and combined for three runs scored.
    Junior RHP Jayden Murray (Vernal, Utah/Uintah HS) picked up his first DSU victory in G3 vs. APU as he fired a season-high seven innings of eight-hit, two-run baseball with no walks and four strikeouts ...  Murray's win came on the heels of another solid outing in G2 at PLNU, during which he surrendered one run and seven hits with four Ks in 4.0 IP, but
    Senior RHP Tanner Howell (Boulder City, Nev./Boulder City HS) collected DSU's lone win of the PLNU series with an "Iron Man" performance in G3, during which he scattered five hits and two runs with three strikeouts in 4.1 innings of relief to close out the win and move to 2-0 on the season ... Howell's 4.1 IP were the most since his freshman year when he started in six of 12 total appearances.
    DSU enjoyed one of its better offensive performances in the APU series as the Trailblazers combined to hit .354 with nine XBH (6 2B/3 HR) and five stolen bases.
    Through 18 games this season, DSU is averaging 6.3 runs and 9.4 hits per game with a .285 team batting average ... DSU's pitching staff enters this weekend's series with a 7.20 ERA, while Trailblazer hurlers have combined for 118 strikeouts in 150.0 IP.

NEXT UP FOR THE TRAILBLAZERS: Dixie State concludes its eight-game Bay Area road swing with a four-game set at Holy Names on March 15-17.