WEEK PREVIEW:
TUESDAY DOUBLEHEADER
GAME 1: Saint Mary's College at Fresno State (May 2, 2023 – 3:30 p.m. PT)
GAME 2: Saint Mary's College at Fresno State (May 2, 2023 –6 p.m. PT)
LOCATION: Fresno, Calif. (Margie Wright Diamond)
MOUNTAIN WEST SERIES
THURSDAY: Boise State at Fresno State (May 4, 2023 – 6 p.m. PT)
FRIDAY: Boise State at Fresno State (May 5, 2023 – 6 p.m. PT)
SATURDAY: Boise State at Fresno State (May 6, 2023 –11 a.m. PT)
LOCATION: Fresno, Calif. (Margie Wright Diamond)
TV/WEB: Mountain West Network [All Games]
RADIO: Bulldog Sports Network – 1130 AM (Matt Norville/Greg Krikorian) [All Games]
FIRST PITCH
The Fresno State softball team hosts Saint Mary's College on Tuesday in a doubleheader starting at 3:30 p.m. PT and hosts Boise State for a three-game Mountain West series, which starts on Thursday night at 6 p.m. PT
Fresno State (20-28, 9-10 Mountain West) enters the week tied for fourth place in the MW standings.
Fresno State can clinch a spot in the 2023 MW Softball Championship with two wins over Boise State this week, and can also earn next week's hybrid single/double elimination tournament in San Diego through a variety of other scenarios that could play out this week.
In the Bulldogs' last three home conference games, Fresno State swept the Nevada Wolf Pack in a three-game home series at Margie Wright Diamond.
24 of Fresno State's first 48 games this season were decided by two or fewer runs, including 19 by a single run.
BULLDOG BONES
Fresno State's Keahilele Mattson leads the team with a .364 batting average and a .432 on-base percentage as a starter in all 48 games.
Fresno State's Alesia Denby is batting .311 and has nine home runs, 29 RBIs, 10 doubles and five triples entering the week.
Fresno State's Juliana Wilson sports a .300 batting average and has homered eight times this season.
Four Bulldogs – Mattson, Denby, Bunker and Bella Rocco – enter the week having played and started in all 48 of Fresno State's games this season.
IN THE CIRCLE
In 2023, Fresno State has mostly pitched by committee, but got three impressive complete games from its staff in the Bulldogs' home sweep of New Mexico (March 31-April 2).
Taylor Gilmore leads the squad with a 3.53 ERA and 72 strikeouts in 40 appearances (13 starts) and 115.0 innings of work.
Shelbi Denman is 7-4 on the season with a 4.20 ERA in 30 appearances (12 starts).
Freshman pitcher Serayah Neiss has recorded 79 strikeouts over the course of 93.0 innings of work in 31 appearances (19 starts) during her first collegiate season.
Hannah Ortega owns a 4.06 ERA in 29.1 innings over 17 appearances (two starts).
BULLDOGS PICKED TO FINISH FIFTH IN THE MOUNTAIN WEST
The Fresno State softball team was picked to tie for fifth in the 2023 Mountain West softball regular season, as voted by the League's nine head coaches. Boise State was tabbed as the preseason favorite to win the 2023 MW softball regular season title. Boise State tallied 61 points and five of the nine first-place votes. San Diego State was a tight second place with 60 points and the remaining four first-place votes. UNLV was voted third with 48 points, Colorado State in fourth with 36 points, Fresno State, Nevada, and San José State all tied for fifth with 25 points each, New Mexico in eighth with 23 points and to round out the MW preseason poll was Utah State in ninth with 21 points.
The top six teams in conference play will qualify for the 2023 MW Softball Championship, which will be held May 11-13, 2023 at SDSU Softball Stadium in San Diego. The hybrid single and double-elimination event awards first-round byes to the top two seeds with the other four seeds playing single-elimination contests to advance to the double-elimination format.