May 15-17, 2009 • Portland, Ore. • Joe Etzel Field (1,000)
Series: USF leads 42-21
Live Audio/Stats: portlandpilots.com
PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS
Friday, May 15 - 3:00 p.m.
POR - Kyle Kraus (R, Fr., 4-5, 3.43)*
USF - Matt Lujan (L, So., 4-7, 6.12)
Saturday, May 16 - 1:00 p.m.
POR - Scott Burris (L, So., 5-3, 4.07)
USF - Doug Murray (R, Jr., 8-0, 3.76)
Sunday, May 17- 1:00 p.m.
POR - TBA
USF - Matt Hiserman (R, So., 4-5, 3.65)
*(R/L, Yr., W-L, ERA)
This Week in Pilots Baseball...
The Portland Pilots (24-24, 6-12 WCC) will look to finish the season above the .500 mark for the first time since 1992 as they welcome the San Francisco Dons (26-27, 10-8 WCC) to Joe Etzel Field for a three-game West Coast Conference series this weekend. The season-ending series is set to begin on Friday at 3:00 p.m. The Pilots and Dons will then play at 1:00 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday.
Portland’s eight graduating seniors will be honored with a pre-game ceremony on Sunday.
A Brief Look Back
The Pilots stepped out of conference this week and split a pair of games with the Washington State Cougars in Pullman, Wash. After the Cougs won the first game 10-5 on Tuesday, the Pilots bounced back to win 6-3 on Wednesday. Four UP pitchers combined to hold the Cougars to just five hits, with starter Ed Wakefield picking up his third win of the season. Wakefield, a junior southpaw, allowed three runs on four hits, while striking out three. Sophomore LHP Zach Varce worked a scoreless ninth to pick up his league-leading ninth save of the season. Senior 1B Cort Carpenter knocked in two runs during the first inning as the Pilots jumped out to a 5-0 lead after an inning and a half. Redshirt-freshman OF Garrett Queen drilled a homer and had two RBI’s during the win.
Previously, the Pilots took one game of a three-game conference set at home against the Pepperdine Waves. The Pilots recovered from a 14-9 loss on Friday, May 8 to win 5-4 on Saturday. Trailing 4-2 with two outs and two on in the bottom of the eighth inning, senior DH Chase Powell tatooed a 1-1 fastball over the center field fence to give Portland its first lead of the series. Varce then struck out the game’s final two batters, Pepperdine’s No. 3 and No. 4 hitters, with the tying run on second base in the top of the ninth.
On Sunday, Pepperdine and Portland needed 12 innings to decide the rubber match, which the Waves won 3-2.
About San Francisco
The Dons, who dropped a 12-4 non-conference game at San Diego State on Monday, took two of three from San Diego on the road last weekend. USF has lost just two (Gonzaga and LMU) out of six WCC series this season.
Junior SS Derek Poppert has been San Francisco’s most prolific hitter this season, batting .354 with a team-high 48 RBI’s. Sophomore 2B Stephen Yarrow leads the team and ranks fourth in the WCC with 12 home runs. USF’s team batting average is .291, while the staff ERA is 5.22. Junior RHP Doug Murray leads the league in wins and is a perfect 8-0 on the season with a 3.76 ERA. Sophomore RHP Matt Hiserman is 4-5 with two complete games, two saves and a 3.65 ERA.
Nino Giarratano is in his 12th year at head coach of the Diamond Dons. He’s racked up more than 300 wins and went 31-26 (12-9 WCC/4th) last season. 16 letterwinners and 14 position starters returned this year.
The Pilots/Dons Series
The Pilots and Dons have split their last eight meetings, with San Francisco claiming a 42-21 advantage in the all-time series. Last season, the Dons took two of three from UP in San Francisco. The Pilots won two of three against USF during the last series played in Portland in 2007.
One More Last Chance
Sunday’s 1:00 p.m. game against the San Francisco Dons marks the final regular season appearance in a Pilots uniform for Portland’s eight graduating seniors. Jeff Arbayo, Cort Carpenter, Charlie Herche, Bryant Kraus, Matthew Lange, Chase Powell, Brennan Thorpe and Mark Triolo will be honored with a pre-game ceremony at Joe Etzel Field.
Just Win
At 24-24, the Pilots have already matched the most wins for a single season during head coach Chris Sperry’s 12-year tenure. Portland also won 24 games in 2000 and 2002, going 24-27 and 24-30, respectively.
With three games remaining, the Pilots have a chance to record their first winning season since 1992, when Portland finished 26-23-1 under then-head coach Terry Pollreisz.
With a sweep of San Francisco this weekend, Portland, which is 6-12 in the WCC, has a chance to win the most conference games since 2002 when the Pilots went 16-14. Portland’s best league record under the current 21-game WCC format came in 2007 (7-14). The league returned to a one-division, 21-game format in 2006.
All-Academic
Portland Pilots senior outfielder Bryant Kraus was named to the 2009 ESPN The Magazine/CoSida Academic All-District First Team. This is the first academic honor for Kraus, who leads the Pilots this season with nine home runs and 41 RBI’s.
Kraus, a native of West Linn, Ore., is batting .327 with 14 doubles and two triples, while leading the team with a .456 on-base percentage. He had a career long 12-game hitting streak earlier this season and currently ranks seventh all-time at UP with a career on-base percentage of .430. Kraus has knocked in four runs during a game twice this season and he belted a three-run, game-winning home run in the bottom of the eighth inning of a 3-2 win over No. 22 Gonzaga on April 18.
Kraus is now eligible to earn Academic All-America honors.
That’s Offensive
The Pilots are enjoying success at the plate this season and rank third in the WCC with a .293 team batting average. The Pilots have nine players batting .285 or better, with senior sophomore 2B Riley Henricks and freshman SS Kris Kauppila leading the way at .347. Senior 1B Cort Carpenter is at .341, while senior OF Bryant Kraus is at .327. Last season, Portland combined to hit .256 as a team. The highest team batting average for UP this decade was .295 during the 2000 season.
In addition, UP is stealing bases at an unprecedented rate. Portland, which had only 16 stolen bases last season, has swiped 39 bases in 2009. Sophomore OF Craig Smith has a team-high nine steals.
Here’s the Pitch
While Portland’s offensive is rolling, its pitching has been just as solid. The Pilots have team ERA of 5.11, which ranks fourth in the WCC. The Pilots feature six pitchers that boast an ERA of less than 4.50, led by sophomore RHP Zach Varce’s ERA of 3.16, which ranks third in the WCC. Varce is tied for the league high with nine saves, while holding opposing hitters to a .254 average.
Freshman RHP Kyle Kraus, who has taken over Portland’s top spot in the rotation, is 4-5, ranks fifth in the conference with a 3.43 ERA, has tossed a staff-high 78.2 innings and has UP’s only complete game this season.
Sophomore Scott Burris has a staff-high five wins, has an ERA of 4.32 ERA and is holding opposing hitters to a measly .245 batting average.
Redshirt-freshman Keeler Brynteson, also a lefty, has proven to be Portland’s workhorse, making a team-high 27 appearances. He’s 2-0 with a save, has a 3.89 ERA and is holding opposing hitters to a .255 average.
Leading Off
Freshman SS Kris Kauppila wasted little time getting acclimated to NCAA DI baseball, going yard in his first collegiate at-bat. After the Pilots retired the Utah Valley Wolverines in order in the top half of their season opener on Feb. 20, Kauppila led off the bottom half of the inning with a blast that hit the scoreboard beyond the left field fence. The Glendale, Calif., native finished the weekend 5-for-11 (.455) with two RBI’s, a home run, a double and three runs scored as the Pilots took two of three from the Wolverines.
He hasn’t slowed down and currently leads the team in a plethora of offensive categories. Kauppila, who just had a 13-game hitting streak come to an end, is tied for the team high with a .347 batting average and he leads the squad with 46 runs, 70 hits, 19 doubles, 22 multi-hit games and nine sacrifices bunts. He also has 21 RBI’s and has eight stolen bases in 10 attempts. He has five games with three hits this season and one game with four. He also knocked in four runs during a game.
Sibling Rivalry
Senior OF Bryant Kraus and younger brother Kyle, who is a freshman right-handed pitcher, have emerged as two of Portland’s leaders at the plate and on the hill. The elder Kraus is batting .327 with team highs of nine home runs, two triples, 41 RBI’s, 101 total bases, 25 walks and a .456 on-base percentage. Kraus had a career-long 12-game hitting streak earlier this season and he currently ranks seventh all-time at UP with a career on-base percentage of .430.
The younger Kraus has matched Bryant every step up the way, emerging as one of Portland’s most consistent starters during his first season on The Bluff. Kraus is fifth in the WCC with a 3.43 ERA and leads the team with 78.2 innings pitched. He’s 4-5 overall and has worked at least seven innings during seven of his 10 collegiate starts. On March 12, Kraus picked up his first complete game as the Pilots defeated reigning national champion and 24th-ranked Fresno State 4-2 in Fresno. He allowed two runs on six hits and a walk, while striking out five.
Joining the family reunion is junior OF Austin Pearce, who is a cousin of the Krauses. Pearce has made 36 starts this season and is batting .281 with seven doubles, two triples, a home run and 15 RBI’s.
Hit Me with Your Best Shot
Bryant Kraus has been hit by a pitch 18 times this season, which is tied of the most times during a single season in program history and ranks 13th in the country. His 31 career hit-by-pitch’s ranks third on UP’s all-time charts.
Run at Your Own Risk
Junior catcher Rocky Gale, who has led the WCC the last two seasons in throwing out would-be base stealers, is back at it again this year. Gale is mowing down attempted base stealers at a 44.0 percent clip this spring. He leads the conference once again by throwing out 23 would-be base stealers, while only allowing 29 stolen bases. Out of the last 13 attempted stolen bases against him, Gale has thrown out nine of those runners. During conference play, he’s allowed just 10 steals out of 22 attempts.
Cort is in Session
Senior 1B Cort Carpenter is mashing this season and currently ranks second on the team with eight home runs. Carpenter, who took over starting duties permanently earlier this season, is second on the team with 30 RBI’s and is third with a .341 average. During conference play, he leads the team with a .348 average. Carpenter has made only one error in 169 chances during 18 league games for a fielding percentage of .994. He leads the team with 330 putouts overall this season.
2009 WCC Preseason Poll
San Diego and Pepperdine were picked as favorites to win this year’s WCC regular season title in the 2009 preseason baseball poll, as voted on by the league’s head coaches. The Portland Pilots were selected to finish eighth. San Diego and Pepperdine both received 45 points, with the Toreros receiving four first place votes to three for the Waves. Gonzaga received the last remaining first place vote.
