This week in baseball: UW opens new stadium with sweep of Arizona

Hello baseball fans, sorry I haven't updated you with the latest Husky baseball news in a while. Winter quarter finals and the NCAA tournament filled up my schedule last week, but the Huskies are playing some of their best ball of the year, so lets get to the recaps.

Game Recaps

March 14- Arizona State 4, Washington 1-The Huskies had their seven game winning streak snapped as they fell to the Sundevils in the UW's Pac-12 opener. Starting pitcher Jared Fisher went the distance on the mound for the Huskies, allowing nine hits over eight innings. Junior Erik Forgione's two out triple in the top of the seventh inning gave the Huskies their lone run for the game.

March 15- Washington 9, Arizona State 3-A six-run eighth inning by the Huskies broke up a 3-3 tie as the UW bounced back from Friday's loss to beat the Sundevils. Sophomore Braden Bishop started the rally with a bases-clearing triple to put the Huskies up 6-3. He finished 3-for-6 with 3 RBIs. Sophomore Troy Rallings earned the win, pitching two innings of scoreless relief.

March 16- Washington 4, Arizona State 3 (11 innings)-Junior Andrew Ely's solo home run in the top of the 11th inning was enough to give the Huskies the series-winning victory over Arizona State. Ely's home run gave the Huskies their first series win in Tempe since 2004. Senior Trevor Dunlap was unable to hold the Sundevils in the ninth inning, but pitched a scoreless tenth and eleventh, earning his first win of the season.

March 18- Washington 7, Portland 6-The Huskies scored seven runs in the first two innings and held off a late rally to hold on a beat the Pilots. The Huskies sent 10 batters to the plate in the first inning, jumping all over Pilots starter Alex Fisher. Sophomore Will Ballowe earned the win for the Huskies. Junior Will Sparks led the UW offensively, finished 2-for-4 with four RBIs and a double.

March 21- Washington 8, Arizona 7-The UW opened up the newly renovated Husky Ballpark with a comeback victory against Arizona. After falling behind 4-0 in the first inning, the Huskies responded with a five-run second inning. Trailing 7-6 in the sixth inning, sophomore Austin Rei doubled down the left field line, driving in two. Rei finished 2-for-3 with 4 RBIs. Junior Brandon Choate earned the first victory in the new ballpark.

March 22- Washington 5, Arizona 2-Junior Tyler Davis allowed just one run over seven innings, giving up just three hits as the UW continued its winning streak with a victory over the Wildcats. The Wildcats failed to score any runs off Davis after the third inning, as he retired 12 batters in a row until a lead-off walk to begin the eighth inning. Senior Brian Wolfe and junior Trevor Mitsui both went 3-for-4 to lead the Huskies.

March 23- Washington 8, Arizona 0-Senior Brian Wolfe hit the first ever home run in the new Husky Ballpark and junior Jeff Brigham pitched six scoreless innings as the UW completed its sweep of Arizona. Wolfe's three run home-run capped a five-run fifth inning, blowing the game open for the UW. Wolfe, junior Erik Forgione, and junior Robert Pehl all had two hits for the Huskies.

Top Performers

Senior Brian Wolfe earned Pac-12 Player of the Week after finishing a team best 9-for-16 during the Huskies four game week beginning with Portland. Wolfe finished 4-for-4 against Portland, 3-for-4 in the UW's 5-2 win against Arizona on Saturday, and hit the first home run at the new Husky Ballpark in Sunday's 8-0 win. He is hitting .328 on the season. The Huskies are the first team to have a player awarded two weeks in a row. Last week junior Andrew Ely earned Player of the Week honors.

Junior Jeff Brigham improved to 4-0 with another win against Arizona on Sunday. His ERA now stands at 1.06, giving up just four runs over 34 innings. I had the chance to see Brigham in action on Sunday, and he is as good as advertised. He doesn't blow anybody away, as he has recorded only 14 strikeouts this season, but he is effective with all his pitches and doesn't miss many spots.

Coming Up

The Huskies will face off against Gonzaga tonight at 5 p.m. before travelling to USC for a three game series beginning Friday. After winning 13 of their last 14, including six in a row, the Huskies are ranked 19th in the latest Collegiate Baseball News poll. Those who didn't make it to the new Husky Ballpark this weekend need to check it out when the Huskies return home, it is beautiful.

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