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Congratulations to Matt Nordsten for NCBA So Pac Player of the Week!

U of A Series Weekend Recap
Monday, Feb. 2, 2009

This past weekend opened the 2009 season for the USC Club Baseball Trojans. The UofA Wildcats made the journey from Tucson on a bus to play a Friday night 9 inning affair, and a doubleheader on Saturday. UofA finished ranked 7th in the NCBA in 2008 after losing in the semifinals in the NCBA World Series in Florida. The Trojans definitely had their work cut out for them.

 

GAME 1

Jon Arthur took the mound Friday night against the Wildcats. In the Fall, Arthur had a bad outing against UofA, giving up four home runs in one inning while in Tucson. Friday night was a different story however. Arthur lasted 7 2/3 innings while only giving up 1 earned run and striking out 5. The Trojans offense struggled through the first 8 innings of the match up and it wasn't until the bottom of the 9th inning that the Trojans put some runs on the board. With 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th inning and down 2-0, Dean Mraz steps up to the plate and hits a double off the center field wall. With a little dramatic pause brought on by the sprinkler system, Matt Nordsten then steps up to the plate and crushes a 2-1 fastball on top the USC parking structure to tie the game 2-2 and send it to extras. "I don't think I have ever hit a ball that hard in my life," Nordsten commented. However, then in the 11th inning, UofA scored two runs to take the lead 4-2. The Trojans answered back in the bottom of the 11th by loading the bases, but only were only able to score one run. Friday night: UofA escapes with a 4-3 victory in 11 innings.

 

Notables:

Jon Arthur - 7.667 innings, 2R, 1ER, 5K, 4BB

Matt Nordsten - 2-4, 2B, HR, 2RBI, BB

Dean Mraz - 3-5, 2 2B, 1B

Irving Corrales - 2-5, 2 1B.

 

GAME 2

Trying to redeem themselves the next day, the Trojans began the first of the doubleheader with Matt Nordsten on the mound. Nordsten had a solid outing, pitching 6 1/3 innings only giving up 3 runs. New lead off hitter Nick Chavkin also got in on the action, walking in the 1st inning and scoring on a Cody Nicholson sacrifice. The Trojans were out to an early 1-0 lead. The lead stayed this way until the 4th inning until the Wildcats evened it out with a run of their own off of Nordsten. The score remained 1-1 until the top of the 7th inning when the Wildcats touched up Nordsten and Sam Colen for three runs. The final score was 4-1 Wildcats, sending the Trojans to 0-2 on the season.

 

Notables:

Matt Nordsten - 6.333 innings, 3ER, 7K, 7H, 4BB (L)

Nick Chavkin - 1-3, 1B, BB, R, SB.

 

GAME 3

Needing a win, the Trojans sent out newly acquired pitcher Danny Beck to shut down the Wildcats, and shut down was exactly what Beck did. Once again the Trojans jumped off to an early 1-0 lead when lead off hitter Nick Chavkin hit an opposite field homerun to lead off the game. The Trojans scored the next inning when Bobby Bowman was hit in the back and came around to score on singles from Andrew Meagher and Vincent Valdez. The Wildcats cut the deficit in half in the top of 3rd inning touching up Beck for 1 unearned run. In the bottom of the 4th, the Trojans scored their third run with a single from newcomer Johnny Cigliano, then pinch run for by Brandon Broitman; Vincent Valdez helped his cause with another single, and Broitman was able to score on a wild pitch. Danny Beck finished up the game in the 7th and gave the Trojans their first win of the season, 3-1.

 

Notables:

Danny Beck - 7 innings, 1R, 0ER, 5H, 7K, 4BB

Nick Chavkin - 1-3, HR, BB

Vincent Valdez - 3-3, 3 1B, RBI, SB.

 

The Trojans started off their season 1-2 this past weekend against the U of A Wildcats. Seeing that the Wildcats are probably the best competition that the Trojans are going to see this year, the Trojans are looking to have a promising season. The Trojans came out with a fire in their eyes and focused minds. The fundamentals were better than ever before and the pitching was stellar. With performances like this and perhaps a wake up in the bat department, the Trojans are looking strong and likely to win the Southern Pacific Conference South Division.

 

The next series for the Trojans will be in Tempe, AZ against the ASU Sun Devils on February 14-15.

 

Go Trojans!

Jon Arthur
Co-President
USC Club Baseball