BSB: Cougs open Pac-12 play with weekend series at Oregon State
Washington State continues its 9-game, 12-day road trip with a weekend series at No. 18 Oregon State to open Pac-12 Conference play.
The Cougars are off to a 10-2 start, matching its best start since 2010 after beating Portland 6-4 in Portland Wednesday afternoon. WSU opened the 2021 season by taking three of four at UC Davis, followed by sweeping a four-game series at Dixie State for its first four-game road series sweep since 1993.
WSU then took two of three games from Seattle U two weekends ago. The Cougars' road trip to Seattle last weekend was postponed after Covid-10 developments within the program. WSU was scheduled to face Seattle U and Washington twice and will now look to reschedule those games for a later date.
The Cougars are led by senior outfielder Collin Montez' .419 batting average, second among Pac-12 hitters, while preseason All-American junior first baseman Kyle Manzardo paces the club with 21 hits, shares the Pac-12 lead with six home runs and leads the league with 21 RBI.
Oregon State enters the weekend ranked as high as No. 18 in the latest National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Top 25 with an 11-3 overall record. The Beavers lost two of three games to rival Oregon in a nonconference series in Corvallis last weekend.
Pitching has been the story in Corvallis so far this seaosn. Oregon State opens the series ranked seventh nationally in earned run average (2.07). That also places the Beavers first in the Pac-12. OSU also ranks seventh nationally with a 1.07 WHIP, which also tops in the conference. Oregon State has held opponents to just 2.3 runs per game this season, good for a tie for third nationally.
Washington State leads the all-time series against OSU 230-209-3 but have dropped the last three series overall and the last six series in Corvallis including the last 11 matchups at Goss Stadium.
WSU will be looking for its first win in the series since a series-clinching 6-3 win in Pullman in 2013 and its first series win in Corvallis since 2009.
ON DECK: WSU travels to Las Vegas for a two-game series at UNLV Tuesday and Wednesday and will wrap up the trip with a weekend Pac-12 series (March 26-28) at No. 12 Arizona State.
Pac-12 Weekend Schedule:
