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Ethan Skuija
Mark Duffel

Baseball

Skuija Named WAC Pitcher of the Week

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – CSU Bakersfield pitcher Ethan Skuija was named the Western Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week on Monday after he tossed the first complete game for the Roadrunners since May 5, 2017 and beat Santa Clara 3-1 on Saturday.

The Canadian right hander allowed just one earned run and four hits in the impressive showing.  He struck out 11 batters and walked one in CSUB's first complete game since Max Carter went the distance against Northern Colorado.  Skuija retired the first 12 batters he faced in the start.   He earned CSUB's first conference player of the week award since Carter pitched the complete game shutout against the Bears.  In his first win of the season, he lowered his ERA to just 1.80 over 20.0 innings pitched, the fourth-lowest earned-run average among starting pitchers in the WAC this season.

CSUB Heads to UNLV
The Roadrunners (5-8) will look to carry the momentum they earned from the series victory over Santa Clara into Tuesday's matchup with UNLV (6-6).  The Rebels took two out of three games from Fresno State over the weekend to win their first conference series of the year. 

Pitching Matchup
Isaiah Moten (0-1, 1.29 ERA) vs. Troy Balko (0-1, 18.47 ERA) or Bradley Spooner (0-0, 5.79 ERA)

For the second straight Tuesday, Moten will get the ball for the Roadrunners.  Against Cal Poly last week, the senior tossed the first five innings and allowed just three hits and one run to the Mustangs.  Prior to Tuesday's start, Moten threw two relief appearances and didn't allow a run in either. 

Balko was projected to be the Rebels' Saturday starter, but has had two tough starts to begin his freshman campaign.  The right-hander has allowed 13 earned runs in just 6.1 innings pitched to begin his career.  Spooner was fantastic in his start against No. 5 Stanford earlier this season.  The junior struck out six and allowed just one run against the Cardinal.  In his first start of the year though, he struggled against Seattle U and allowed five runs in 3.1 innings. 

Series History
CSUB defeated UNLV for the first time in school history last season at Hardt Field.  The `Runners shutout the No. 23 Rebels 4-0 with Moten getting the start and pitching four innings to begin the game.  Alex Daily earned the victory after he struck out five in three innings pitched.  Ben Cutting and Naithen Dewsnap tossed scoreless eighth and ninth innings, respectively.  CSUB had nine hits in the game including two by Andrew Penner, Jake Ortega, Jassen Oliver and Austyn Tengan. Tengan had three RBI to lead the attack. 

The Rebels lead the all-time series 3-1.  UNLV swept a two-game series in 2012 and won a single game in 2013. 

Scouting the Rebels
UNLV is led by Golden Spikes Award candidate Bryson Stott.  The junior also doubles as the starting shortstop for USA Baseball's Collegiate National team.  He had three hits against CSUB in last season's meeting and led the country last year with 30 doubles.  This season, he has an OPS of 1.513 with five home runs, five doubles and two triples.  Edarian Williams has also swung a hot bat to begin the year.  The second baseman is also hitting .390 with five doubles.  Max Smith provides the power as he has hit two round trippers already. 

Veterans Leading Offense
Despite all the newcomers to the CSUB baseball team this season, it's a trio of veterans that have sparked a dormant offense.  In the series against Santa Clara, senior designated hitter Ryan Koch hit .357 with three doubles, a home run and five RBI, including the game-winning two-run double in yesterday's win over the Broncos.  In the series, Koch slugged an impressive .785 and had 11 total bases.  Berkey was a terror on the base paths after reaching at a .467 clip.  The sophomore second baseman was a perfect 4-for-4 in stolen base attempts.  Berkey had five hits in 13 at-bats over the four-game set.  Catcher Jake Ortega, CSUB's team leader in batting average (.345), OPS (.905) and on-base percentage (.457), continued his hot start.  The senior hit .333 against the Broncos was hit by a pitch twice and coaxed a walk. 

First pitch tomorrow night in Sin City is set for 6:00 p.m.
 
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Players Mentioned

Max Carter

#8 Max Carter

INF/P
5' 11"
Senior
Naithen Dewsnap

#22 Naithen Dewsnap

P
6' 4"
Senior
R/R
Andrew Penner

#7 Andrew Penner

C/OF
5' 11"
Senior
R/R
Austyn Tengan

#12 Austyn Tengan

INF
5' 8"
Sophomore
L/R
Ben Cutting

#51 Ben Cutting

LHP
6' 1"
Junior
L/L
Ryan Koch

#23 Ryan Koch

C/1B
6' 1"
Senior
R/R
Isaiah Moten

#28 Isaiah Moten

RHP
6' 1"
Senior
R/R
Jassen Oliver

#13 Jassen Oliver

OF
6' 1"
Redshirt Senior
R/R
Jake Ortega

#33 Jake Ortega

C
5' 10"
Senior
L/R
Ethan Skuija

#37 Ethan Skuija

RHP
6' 3"
Junior
R/R

Players Mentioned

Max Carter

#8 Max Carter

5' 11"
Senior
INF/P
Naithen Dewsnap

#22 Naithen Dewsnap

6' 4"
Senior
R/R
P
Andrew Penner

#7 Andrew Penner

5' 11"
Senior
R/R
C/OF
Austyn Tengan

#12 Austyn Tengan

5' 8"
Sophomore
L/R
INF
Ben Cutting

#51 Ben Cutting

6' 1"
Junior
L/L
LHP
Ryan Koch

#23 Ryan Koch

6' 1"
Senior
R/R
C/1B
Isaiah Moten

#28 Isaiah Moten

6' 1"
Senior
R/R
RHP
Jassen Oliver

#13 Jassen Oliver

6' 1"
Redshirt Senior
R/R
OF
Jake Ortega

#33 Jake Ortega

5' 10"
Senior
L/R
C
Ethan Skuija

#37 Ethan Skuija

6' 3"
Junior
R/R
RHP
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