\nWith a 10-game homestand just around the corner, Grand Canyon first plays a three-game road series at Fresno State. On Easter weekend, the series begins on Thursday and concludes on Saturday.<\/p>\n
All three games will stream on Mountain West Network<\/a>. 3 THINGS TO KNOW<\/p>\n
SCOUTING FRESNO STATE<\/p>\n Fresno State is 8-17-1 overall and 0-5-1 in Mountain West play, having already opened league play with series against Nevada and New Mexico. Even with the slow conference start, the Bulldogs have shown they can still generate offense in bunches. The Bulldogs are hitting .287 as a team, which ranks fifth in the MW\u00a0and inside the national top 100, while also sitting fifth in the league in scoring at 7.2 runs per game. The Bulldogs have been especially solid at creating pressure with contact, ranking third in the MW in triples (7) and triples per game, fourth in sacrifice flies (15) and fourth in stolen bases (30).<\/p>\n Program-wise, Fresno State remains one of the Mountain West’s gold-standard brands. The Bulldogs are coming off back-to-back Mountain West tournament championships in 2024 and 2025, with last year’s title continuing a recent resurgence under fourth-year head coach Ryan Overland. Fresno State’s 2008 national championship remains one of the sport’s most iconic underdog runs, when the Bulldogs became the first No. 4 regional seed to win the College World Series. The program’s history includes four College World Series appearances, 30-plus NCAA tournament bids and a long list of MLB talent. While Aaron Judge is the most famous modern Fresno State baseball alum, the Bulldogs’ pro pipeline has also included names like Doug Fister, Matt Garza and numerous long-time big leaguers.
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\n\tFRESNO CONNECTIONS:\u00a0GCU’s Thursday scheduled starting pitcher, junior JT Guerrero<\/a>, played his first two college seasons at Fresno State before transferring last summer. Lopes reliever Cam Cunnings<\/a> hails from Fresno and played at Fresno City College. The Lopes and Bulldogs shared WAC baseball membership for one season in 1997, with the teams playing one three-game series in Fresno.
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\n\tTURN IT:\u00a0GCU has turned 27 double plays on the season, a mark that ranks 16th nationally and leads the Mountain West.
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\n\tSLUGGERS:\u00a0The Lopes have flashed the power of late. GCU homered four times in Friday’s win against San Diego State. GCU followed it up with two grand slams in Saturday’s game, a program first since 2006. Junior center fielder Griffin Cameron<\/a> hit two home runs in the series and leads the Mountain West with a 1.091 slugging percentage in conference play. Freshman third baseman Jose Lopez III<\/a> is not far behind, slugging .800.
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