PLAY BALL!
Utah State softball (19-16, 3-6 Mountain West) continues its 2024 campaign this week with a pair of two-game Mountain West series. The Aggies first host Nevada in a doubleheader on Wednesday, April 3, with games at 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m., at LaRee and LeGrand Johnson Field. The team then travels to Fresno, California, to face Fresno State on Saturday, April 6, at 3 p.m. (MT), then again on Sunday, April 7, at 1 p.m. (MT).
FOLLOW ALONG
Live stats for all of this weekend's games will be available via Sidearm, while games will also be streamed on the Mountain West Network. Links and live updates will be available on the USU softball social media pages and through UtahStateAggies.com.
AGGIES VS WOLF PACK
• Utah State and Nevada have met up 65 times in a series dating back to 1980. The Wolf Pack hold a 36-29 series advantage, including a 13-10 lead over the Aggies in games played in Logan.
• Last season in Reno, Nevada won two games of a three-game series. Nevada opened the series with a 12-4 six-inning win followed by a 9-1 five-inning win. The series wrapped with a 4-1 win for the Aggies. The past eight meetings have been split 4-4.
• The Wolf Pack enter the weekend 30-7 overall, with an 8-1 record in Mountain West games to sit atop the league standings. Nevada swept New Mexico in its most recent series last weekend. It also swept Colorado State previously and took two of three against Fresno State. On the road, the Wolf Pack are 8-1.
AGGIES VS BULLDOGS
• Utah State and Fresno State have met up 68 times in a series dating back to 1978. The Bulldogs hold a 51-17 series advantage, including a 27-7 lead over the Aggies in games played in Fresno.
• Last season in Logan, the teams split a two-game series. Fresno State won the first contest in a 10-9 nine-inning thriller before Utah State bounced back to win the second game 8-2. The past six meetings have been split 3-3.
• The Bulldogs enter the weekend 22-11 overall, with a 2-4 record in Mountain West games to sit just below Utah State at seventh in the league standings. Fresno State took one of three games against San Diego State in its most recent MW series. Prior to that, it took one of three against Nevada. The team will play at San José State in a doubleheader on Wednesday before hosting the Aggies. At home, the Bulldogs are 14-8 this season.
ICYMI
• Utah State dropped all three games of its series at UNLV last weekend, then fell at Utah on Monday. The Aggies dropped a 7-3 game on Thursday, then in a Friday doubleheader, suffered a 14-13 nine-inning loss and a 12-3 five-inning loss. On Monday at Utah, the Aggies fell 9-1 in a five-inning contest.
• Six different Aggie pitchers saw time in the circle, with Graduate Katie Zuniga pitching a team-high 8.0 innings with a team-high four strikeouts. The Aggie pitching staff had a combined 15.72 ERA during the stretch with 12 strikeouts and 39 earned runs.
• Senior infielder Giselle Gonzalez led the Aggie bats with a .545 (6-for-11) batting average during the series with a double and two home runs.
SCHEDULE CHANGE
Utah State's game at Southern Utah, originally scheduled for March 13th but canceled due to rain, has been rescheduled. It will now be played next week on Wednesday, April 10, at 1 p.m. in Cedar City, Utah.
MATEJ MAGIC
• Utah State sophomore catcher Grace Matej had a career game in last week's series at UNLV with a four-hit (4-for-5) day at the plate. Matej hit a grand slam and a pair of doubles in the contest as she accounted for seven RBIs while scoring two runs and totaling nine bases.
HOT STARTS
Big starts have been one of Utah State's strengths this season, as the Aggies have outscored opponents 39-22 in first innings this season. Utah State has scored first 19 times and have scored in the first inning 15 times.
