Game Times (Mountain):
Thursday - 6:05 p.m.
Friday - 2:05 p.m./5:05 p.m. (approx.)
Saturday - 12:05 p.m.
Game Notes: DIXIE STATE - PDF | UNC - PDF
WAC DIGITAL NETWORK: vs. UNC
Live Stats: vs. UNC
Twitter: @DixieAthletics | @Dixie_Baseball | #DixieBlazers | #WACbsb
 
PROBABLE STARTERS:
Thursday (G1) – RHP #29 Dillon Holliday (4-2, 5.08 ERA) vs. RHP #34 Dylan Bowers (2-4, 6.04 ERA)
Friday (G2) – RHP #40 Jimmy Borzone (2-5, 7.16 ERA) vs. RHP #6 Sam Leach (3-6, 4.95 ERA)
Friday (G3) – RHP #18 Brett Porthan (1-0, 6.68 ERA) vs. TBA
Saturday (G4) – TBA vs. TBA

FIRST PITCH: Dixie State (19-30/17-15 WAC) closes out the home portion of its D-I debut season with its final WAC series of the year this weekend when the Trailblazers host Northern Colorado (11-32/7-20 WAC) for a four-game set at Bruce Hurst Field.
    The series opener will take place on Thursday night at 6:05 p.m., followed by a doubleheader on Friday at 2:05 p.m., and the series finale on Saturday at 12:05 p.m.
    Saturday's series finale will also serve as "Senior Day" for 13 Trailblazers - outfielders Drake Benner, Ben Petty-Hull and Lane Pritchard, infielders Trey Allred, Tanner Argyle, Jake Engel and Tanner Harper, catcher Cade Spurlin, and pitchers Brayden Bonner, Tevita Gerber, Jack Gonzales, Zach Hansen and Jed Jensen.

ALL-TIME SERIES: This weekend's series will mark the first-ever meeting between the Trailblazers and Bears on the diamond.

HI, MY NAME IS ....: After 14 years as a competing member of the NCAA at the Division II level, Dixie State has embarked on its first season transitioning to Division I status as one of two new members (along with Tarleton State) of the Western Athletic Conference.  
    During their 14-year Division II era, the Trailblazers played to a 435-243-1 (.641) overall record. Dixie State won four conference regular season championships (4 Pacific West Conference), and made six-straight NCAA D-II Baseball Tournament regional appearances from 2012-17 (9-12 record in NCAA Tournament games).

DIXIE STATE ON THE WEB: All Dixie State home games this season will be streamed live online on the WAC Digital Network (wacdigitalnetwork.com). The WDN is also available on Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, and Roku TV, while the WDN app is available for iOS in the Apple Store and Android on Google Play.

COACHING STAFF: Two-time Pacific West Conference Coach of the Year Chris Pfatenhauer is in his ninth season as head coach of the Dixie State Baseball program. During his tenure in the Trailblazer dugout, Pfatenhauer led the Trailblazers to consecutive PacWest titles in 2014 and 2015, and to five-straight trips to the NCAA West Regionals from 2013-17, including serving as the host institution in 2013.
    Pfatenhauer, who picked up his 250th victory as DSU skipper in the series finale vs. Concordia-Portland (10-4; 2/23/2020), owns a 273-158-1 (.633) overall record at DSU, and a 325-217-1 (.599) career mark.
    Joining Pfatenhauer (UNLV, 2000) in the Trailblazer dugout this season is second-year pitching coach Zach Wilkins (Nevada, 2016), along with seventh-year assistant coaches Bobby Rinard (Arizona, 2014) and Matt Hill (Dixie State 2015).

LAST TIME OUT: For the third time in as many weeks, Dixie State was involved in a series sweep. But as was the case two weeks ago vs. Utah Valley, the good guys were the ones with the brooms as the Trailblazers took all four games from visiting Seattle U last weekend at Bruce Hurst Field.
    DSU doubled up the Redhawks in Friday's series opener, 6-3, before needing two last at-bat rallies to claim the middle two games in Saturday's twin bill, 9-7 in game two and a 14-13 walk-off win in game three. The Blazers then completed the WAC series sweep with a 14-4 win in seven innings on Sunday afternoon. 

OFFENSIVE RESURGENCE: A week after the Trailblazer bats were stymied in four road losses at Grand Canyon (May 7-9), Dixie State's offense roared back to life in the four-game sweep of Seattle U last weekend.
    The Trailblazers batted .398 in the series with 51 total hits, including nine home runs - five of which came in Sunday's series finale, a .656 SLG%, and 43 runs scored, all of which were DSU four-game series season highs.  
    Those offensive numbers were a far cry from a week earlier at GCU, where Dixie State hit a paltry .168 in the four games vs. the Lopes with 19 hits - all singles, and managed to score only six total runs, which broke a school NCAA era record for fewest runs in a four-game series. The previous record was eight runs scored in a four-game set at Hawai'i Pacific (3/13-15/13) during the 2013 season.
    DSU was also shutout in consecutive games for just the third time in its four-year era in the first two games of the GCU series (0-10 and 0-5). The first occasion also happened at HPU in 2013, while the second occurrence came in the 2014 season (at Colorado Mesa; 0-2/0-1 – 2/15/14).

ROUND AND ROUND: Well it took nearly 47 full games, but Dixie State finally managed to bat around the line-up in game two vs. Seattle U last Saturday. DSU sent 10 batters to the plate in the sixth inning and struck for five runs on four hits, which turned a 7-4 deficit into a 9-7 lead going in to the seventh and final inning in the first game of the doubleheader.
    Prior to last Saturday's feat, the last time the Trailblazers batted around in one inning was at home in a 22-2 triumph over Adams State (3/7/2020), against which the Blazers did it twice, sending 12 batters to the plate in the first, and 11 more in the home sixth.

BEST IN STATE?: Dixie State finished the in-state portion of its D-I debut schedule with a 6-2 mark against the other three Utah baseball schools this season. Along with their four-game sweep of Utah Valley two weeks ago, the Trailblazers split home-and-home single game series against both PAC-12 member Utah and West Coast Conference member BYU.

FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING: Dixie State posted a pair of D-I firsts in its series finale win over Utah Valley back on May 2. Not only did the Trailblazers complete their first series sweep as a newly minted D-I program, they recorded its first shutout victory in the new era.

HOME SWEET HOME: The Trailblazers have played to a 283-110 (.720) overall record in 393 games played inside the friendly confines of Bruce Hurst Field in the program's NCAA era, including a 13-9 mark this year.
    In fact, Dixie State has posted a winning home record in all 14 seasons since becoming an NCAA program in 2007. DSU went 8-3 (.727) in the COVID-19 Pandemic shortened 2020 season, and closed its 2019 home slate by winning seven of its final eight games to en route to a 21-7 (.750) home mark.
    DSU has won 20 or more home games in eight of 14 seasons overall, including 21-5 (.807) record in 2017, 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 home wins that year were the most under Head Coach Chris Pfatenhauer, while the .807 winning percentage in 2017 was the best W% during the Pfatenhauer era.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN: Dixie State has held its own away from home as the Trailblazers own a 157-152-1 overall road record (.508) in its four-year era, though they are 8-18 away from home so far this season.
    While the Blazers are currently 6-21 away from home this season, DSU has posted a winning road record in eight of their last 11 seasons overall, highlighted by a 16-7-1 road mark in 2017. The 16 road wins were the most in program history since beginning 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 of it last nine seasons overall. When you also figure in neutral-site games (14-11 in 25 games), Dixie State is 171-163-1 (.512) all-time away from Bruce Hurst Field in the program's NCAA era.

JUST WIN BABY: The four-game sweep at GCU two weeks ago also led to another first for the Trailblazer program since it joined the NCAA ranks in 2007 - that being that Dixie State will see its 2021 season final record dip below the .500 plateau.
    Prior to this season, Dixie State had played to a winning record in 13 of its previous 14 seasons, with the lone exception coming in 2018, when the Trailblazers posted an even 25-25 mark. In fact, DSU has reached the 30-win plateau 10 times in 15 seasons of NCAA play overall, which included nine-straight seasons (2009-17).
    DSU has won 35 of more games in a season four times under Head Coach Chris Pfatenhauer, highlighted by 39 wins in 2017 and a four-year program record 40 victories (40-14) in 2016, The 2016 campaign also included a record-breaking 10-0 start to begin the season, which was the best overall start in the program's NCAA-era.

A DECADE OF DOMINANCE: Dixie State closed out the 2010-19 decade as one of the most all-around successful programs in the NCAA Division II ranks. DSU posted a 337-179-1 (.653) overall record and captured three Pacific West Conference championships (2011/2014/2015) over that 10-year span.
    In addition, the program earned six-straight NCAA Tournament regional berths from 2012-17, and recorded 30 or more wins in nine of 10 seasons overall, including five 35-plus win campaigns.  
    Dixie State was just as tough in conference play as the program finished the decade with a .666 overall winning percentage against league opponents, which included a 227-112-1 mark in PacWest play (.669), and a 23-13 (.639) RMAC record in 2019.

TRAILBLAZER QUICK HITS:
* - Senior 1B/OF/DH Jake Engel (.311/8 HR/32 RBI) had himself a series against Seattle U last weekend, batting .467 (7-for-15) with a HR and a team-high nine RBI ... the senior collected a career-high six RBI in the series finale, which featured a three-run homer, his eighth of the year, and a two-run single as part of a 3-for-6 day with two runs scored.
* - Engel's homer on Sunday, the 30th of his stellar collegiate career, pulled him into a tie for second place (Brett Adams, 2008-10) on DSU's career HR list, and leaves him two long balls shy of becoming DSU's career home run leader (Drew Oldfield - 31, 2009-10).
* - Meanwhile, Engel's six RBI in Sunday's finale vs. Seattle U moved him into solo second place on DSU's career RBI list (140), and he needs only eight more RBI to pass Adams (147) for the top spot on that list.
* - Engel has hit safely in seven of his last eight games and is batting .428 (12-for-28) over this current stretch with 10 RBI ... his seven hits combined hits in the Seattle series also vaulted him into fifth place on DSU's career hits list (183).
* - Engel broke out of a combined 3-for-17 (.176) slump vs. CBU/at BYU in a big way in the San Diego State series, where he batted .455 (5-for-11) with four solo home runs in the April 30 twin bill, including three long balls in consecutive ABs in game one of the series.
* - Engel, became the second player in Dixie State's NCAA era to homer in three-straight plate appearances (Brody Clifford at Adams State – 3/10/19).
* - Engel enters this weekend's series vs. Northern Colorado third in program history in total bases (318), fourth in career runs (136), career doubles (35), SLG% (.600) and career OB% (.449), fifth walks (84), and eighth in career average (.345).
* - Senior OF Lane Pritchard (.329 - #12 in the WAC/5 HR/30 RBI) bounced back after a tough GCU series by batting .357 (5-for-14) with two XBH, including his fifth HR of the year, and three RBI in four starts vs. Seattle U.
* - Pritchard has been on quite the run over his last 33 games, during which he batted .375 (45-for-120) with seven three-hit outings, including a 3-for-4 day in the series finale vs. UVU (5/2) with a triple, home run and three RBI.
* - Pritchard batted .533 (8-for-15) against UVU pitching and drove in a team-high nine runs in the series, along with posting a .933 SLG%.
* - Pritchard has collected 23 of his 30 RBI, and 12 of his 17 XBH, over this current stretch with six stolen bases.
* - Pritchard enters this weekend's home series vs. UNC batting a team-best .366 in WAC play ... he also needs three stolen bases to move into second place on DSU's career stolen bases list (30 steals) ... in addition the senior OF is currently ranked fifth in program history in OB% (.448), t-sixth in career batting (.347) and ninth in SLG% (.537).
* - Since being inserted as the DSU lead-off hitter in G3 at Sacramento State (3/27), freshman 2B/3B Shane Taylor (.292/6 HR/22 RBI) has hit .327 (34-of-104) with nine XBH over his last 30 games.
* - The freshman had career weekend in the Seattle series, during which he batted an even .500 with team highs of three home runs and nine runs scored ... Taylor posted a 1.250 SLG% and a .684 OB% as he reached base safely in 13 of his 23 plate appearances with six walks, one HBP and one sacrifice bunt.
* - Taylor hit safely in all four games, highlighted by a 3-for-4 day with two HRs and three RBI in DSU's 9-7 triumph in G2 on Saturday, and homered again and scored three runs in DSU's 14-4 sweep-clinching win on Sunday ... he also scored a career-high four runs in DSU's 14-13 come-from-behind win in G3 on Saturday night.
* - Taylor's HR on Sunday was his, and DSU's, second lead-off homer of the season ... he also belted a lead-off HR in the series finale win at Tarleton State (4/3).
* - Junior CF Jagun Leavitt (.253/5 RBI) is batting .343 (11-for-32) over his last 12 games and has hit safely in eight of those outings, though he was held to just one hit in 10 ABs in three games vs. Seattle U.  
* - After being held hitless in the opener at GCU (5/7), Leavitt collected five hits in the final three games of the series, including a three-hit effort in game three, and wound up 5-for-13 (.385) in the set with a stolen base.
* - Leavitt had himself a series vs. UVU three weeks ago, against which he hit a team-high .556 (5-for-9) and posted a whopping .733 OB% ... Leavitt hit safely in all four games with three walks and three HBPs, and led the team with three stolen bases (3-for-3) and eight runs scored ... he also picked up his fourth RBI of the year on a perfectly executed suicide squeeze for the 9-8 walk-off win in the series opener.
* - Senior DH Cade Spurlin (.275/5 HR/18 RBI) has collected seven of his 11 XBH of the season in his last 27 games, including his fifth HR of the year in G1 vs. UVU (4/30), which moved him into 10th place on DSU's career HR list (15) ... he batted a team-high .750 (6-of-8) over three games vs. Seattle U, highlighted by a game-tying, pinch hit RBI double in the bottom of the ninth in the G3 win last Saturday.  
* - Sophomore OF Drake Benner (.239/1 HR/5 RBI) posted his first collegiate three-hit game in game three vs. GCU (5/8) ... Benner also drove in two of DSU's three runs in the extra-inning affair.
* - Junior SS Mathew Ivancich (.191/2 HR/9 RBI) connected for his first two HRs as a Trailblazer in the two bookend games of the UVU series (4/30-5/2), highlighted by a solo blast that flew well over the CF batter's eye to lead off the fifth inning in the series opener (4/30) ... he then ended the series with a "walk-off" two-run shot to give DSU a double-digit lead in the seventh in the series finale (5/2 ; W, 11-0).
* - Ivancich had a good series vs. Seattle, against which he hit .333 (5-for-15) with a combined two doubles and three RBI.
* - Sophomore OF/3B/DH Tyson Fisher (.147/6 HR/14 RBI) moved into a tie for seventh place on DSU's career HR list (18) when he launched a three-run moon shot in the sixth inning of Sunday's finale vs. Seattle U, which highlighted a five-run Blazer rally.
* - Senior C/1B/OF Tanner Harper (.216/3 HR/10 RBI) belted his third home run of the year in Sunday's finale vs. Seattle U ... the senior had an overall productive series, batting .500 (3-for-6) in the four games with four RBI and four runs scored ... he reached base safely in 10 of his 13 plate appearances (.769 OB%) with five walks and two HBPs.
* - Freshman C Kaden Hollow (.325/9 HR/36 RBI) returned to his early season form last weekend vs. Seattle U, against which he batted .462 (6-for-13) with two home runs and six RBI.
* - Hollow picked up three of his six RBI in Friday's series opener, going 2-for-2 with an RBI-double and a two-run HR ... he followed that up with his team-leading ninth homer of the year with a solo blast in G2 on Saturday.
* - Hollow, who is batting at a .360 clip against WAC pitching, hit .615 (8-for-13) and posted a 1.231 SLG% in the four games at Tarleton (4/1-3) ... he finished with two doubles, two homers, seven RBI and seven runs scored in the four game set.
* - Hollow kept the vibe going in the home loss vs. Utah (4/6), against which he went 2-for-2 with a double and a two-run home run in the third inning.
* - Hollow feasted on Utah pitching as he also homered twice and drove in a career-high six runs in the Blazers' 9-7 road win back on March 23 in Salt Lake City ... Hollow drilled a grand slam in the fourth inning, then followed that up with a two-run shot in the sixth that gave DSU an 8-0 lead, as the freshman posted his first collegiate four-hit game.
* - DSU has hit 20 of its 48 home runs over its last 15 games, including six HRs at San Diego State, all solo shots, and five more in the UVU series (three solo).
* - Of note, 28 of Dixie State's 48 total home runs this season have come with the bases empty ... DSU's 48 home runs on the year (t-2nd WAC) are the fourth-most in a single season in the program's NCAA era.
* - Dixie State broke a rather dubious record during the UVU series as the Trailblazers set a new single season strikeout record....at the plate ... DSU has now struck out 439 times this season (with seven games to go) ... the previous school record was 350 Ks set in 2008.
* - DSU's pitching staff has fanned 333 batters thus far this season, which is good for fifth all-time in the program's four-year era ... DSU pitching combined for a season series-high 37 Ks in four games at Tarleton State (4/1-3), which featured a season-high 12 punch outs in the series opener.
* - Freshman RHP Dillon Holliday (4-2/5.08 ERA/26 K), who will start G1 vs. UNC on Thursday, picked up his team-leading fourth win of the year in the series opener vs. Seattle, against which he scattered three runs and seven hits with two Ks in 5.1 IP.
* - Holliday struck out a career-high five and surrendered one run and four hits vs. CBU (4/16), which earned him his first win as a starting pitcher.
* - Holliday was credited with his first collegiate pitching victory at Utah (3/16), against which he threw 2.0 shutout innings to open the game, striking out two while surrendering only two hits ... Holliday quickly got win number two five days later after he pitched 2.1 spotless innings of relief with a strikeout in the win at Sac State (3/28).
* - Junior RHP Jimmy Borzone (2-5/7.16 ERA/58 K) notched the first major highlight of DSU's new NCAA D-I journey when he fired the second no-hitter in DSU's four-year era at Tarleton State back on April 2, for which he was named TicketSmarter WAC Baseball Pitcher of the Week (4/5).
* - Borzone struck out eight, which was one off of his career high (9 at Wichita State, 3/5), and allowed only four total base runners (3 HBP, 1 BB) in the Trailblazers' 5-1 victory in seven innings ... the junior retired the final 14 Texan batters he faced and threw 97 pitches on his way to his first complete-game win.
*- Prior to Borzone's day, Dixie State's only other no-hitter came nearly six years to the day on April 3, 2015, when former DSU hurler John Conquy blanked Fresno Pacific, 1-0, in a seven-inning road win. Borzone's no-no was also the 25th no-hitter in WAC history.
* - Borzone, who is slated to start G2 vs. UNC on Friday, is second on the DSU staff with 58 K in 60.1 IP and is seventh on DSU's single-season K/9IP list (8.65).
* - Freshman RHP Brett Porthan (1-0/6.68 ERA/18 K), who is scheduled to start game three vs. UNC on Friday, picked up his first collegiate win in G3 vs. UVU (5/1) ... Porthan retired nine of the first 10 Wolverines he faced and held UVU just two runs and five hits with three strikeouts to earn 7.0 IP complete game victory.
* - Not to be outdone, fellow freshman RHP Ryan Hardman (2-6/9.55 ERA/35 K) fired six innings of five-hit shutout baseball with a career-high tying five strikeouts to earn his first collegiate victory in the series finale vs. UVU (5/2) ... Hardman retired 11 of the first 13 UVU hitters he faced, including four on strikes, while no UVU base runner advanced past second base on the freshman.
* - Holliday worked a scoreless seventh as DSU won that final game by the WAC run rule ... the combined ShO came exactly 15 months to the day since DSU's last one, which was turned in by current Blazer hurlers Tevita Gerber, Haiden Hendricks and Zach Hansen in a 7-0 win at Cal State San Marcos (2/2/20).
* - Hardman collected his second win of the year in Sunday's finale vs. Seattle U ... the freshman tied a career-high with five strikeouts and allowed three runs on six hits in 5.1 IP.
* - After struggling in his first two starts of the year, junior LHP Jack Gonzales (2-4/1 SV/5.26 ERA/59 K) has been virtually lights out in his last 19 appearances - all in relief ... Gonzales has struck out 52 of his staff-best 59 batters in 32.2 innings out of the Blazer bullpen, including a season-high six Ks in 3.2 scoreless innings in G3 at GCU (5/8).
* - Gonzales recorded his first collegiate save in G1 vs. Seattle U last Friday night when he tossed 3.2 innings of one-hit shutout baseball with five punch outs.
* - The junior southpaw collected his second win of the season in G2 vs. UVU (5/1), against which he tossed 3.0 hitless innings ... he also earned the decision in the Tarleton series finale (4/3).
*  - Gonzales owns a 2.70 ERA in WAC play with 38 strikeouts in 23.1 IP (14.65 K/9IP) ... WAC hitters are also batting a paltry .171 against the southpaw, while he is holding all opposing batters to a .219 clip, both of which leads the DSU staff.
*- Gonzales enters this weekend's series vs. UNC as DSU's single season (14.09) and career K/9IP leader (9.59) ... in addition, he is currently fourth in career appearances (50) and last Friday moved to third all-time in career strikeouts (146).
* - Freshman LHP Ben Hart (2-5/10.09 ERA/29 K) earned his second win out of the Blazer bullpen in G2 vs. Seattle U last Saturday after he fired 2.2 innings of one-hit scoreless relief with a pair of strikeouts.
* - Senior closer Brayden Bonner (3-2/6SV/8.46 ERA/20 K) became DSU's career leader (66 APP) in appearances when he earned a save in the series finale vs. UTRGV (3/21) ... Bonner also picked up a win (G3) and a save (G2) in last Saturday's DH sweep of Seattle U, and he enters this weekend in solo fourth on DSU's career saves list (15).  

FREE BASEBALL: After not playing an extra inning game in two full seasons, Dixie State has played five extra inning affairs in its last 27 games overall. DSU saw its 52-straight game streak of not playing an extra inning game come to an end in the series opener at Tarleton (L, 9-10, 4/1), then lost in the 10th inning in game two at San Diego State (4/24).
    DSU did manage to even its season extra-inning record at 2-2 thanks to victories over Utah Valley in the first two games of that series three weeks ago, but dropped a 4-3 decision at GCU in game three of that series back on May 8.
    The Trailblazers are 33-18 (.647) in 51 total extra-inning games in the program's four-year era, 16-8 in 10-inning games, and the program has won seven of its last 12 extra inning games overall.

NEXT UP FOR THE TRAILBLAZERS: Dixie State will put a bow on its 2021 NCAA Division I debut season with a three-game road series at nationally-ranked Arizona next weekend, May 27-29, in Tucson.