By JARYD CLINE, staff reporter
2008. That was the last season where Central Washington baseball had a winning season, until now that is.
The Wildcats look to continue their recent string of success into the second half of the season. They face off against out-of-conference Oregon Tech on Saturday and Sunday for a doubleheader at Gary and Bobbi Frederick Field. Game 1 is slated to start at noon while the games on Sunday begin at 11 a.m.
The Wildcats (20-14, 14-7 GNAC) will play in their first non-conference game since they defeated Whitworth University 7-2 in early March.
Oregon Tech (15-27, 7-13 CCC), who competes in the Cascade Collegiate Conference of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, will be traveling to Ellensburg for the first time in school history.
Central comes into the game having won the last 15 of their 20 games, including a sweep of Northwest Nazarene on the second day of their doubleheader.
The Wildcats have also managed to get off to a strong start playing at home. Central has also won 10 out of their 13 home games on the season.
During their hot streak, the Wildcats managed to move into a first-place tie with Western Oregon in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standings.
Central split two games each in their last visit to Western Oregon which included a 10-inning pitcher’s duel in which saw Central surrendered only three hits but lost 1-0 after a Western Oregon double in the bottom of the 10th inning.
Leading the charge for Wildcat hitters this season has been senior third baseman Marc Garza. Garza leads the team in hits and is second in batting average hitting .364 on the season. Senior catcher Kyle Sani leads the team with seven homeruns, 24 RBIs and 20 runs scored.
The Owls however enter the four game series with Central after losing seven of their last eight games. Oregon Tech hasn’t had a winning record since the 2009 season.
The Owls are led this season by junior catcher Dylan Rogers and junior first baseman Aaron Bocchi. Rogers paces the team with his .380 batting average along with his 60 hits and 34 RBIs.
Bocchi leads the team with two homeruns and is second on the team batting .321 on the season.
