PORTLAND PILOTS (14-5)
WEEK 6 GAME NOTES

vs. Seattle U Redhawks (6-10)
Date: Tuesday, March 22
Location: Portland, Ore.
Ballpark: Joe Etzel Field
Video: PortlandPilots.com
Live Stats: PortlandPilots.com 
Series: POR leads 84-75
Last: POR 3, SU 5 (Feb. 22, 2021 @POR)

Thursday • March 17 • 6 PM
POR: RHP Brock Gillis (1-1, 7.88)
SU: LHP Jarrod Billing (2-0, 3.97)

THIS WEEK IN PILOTS BASEBALL 
• The Pilots will stay home for their matchup against the Seattle U Redhawks on March 22.
•  First pitch for the game is currently set for 4 p.m.
• Check PortlandPilots.com for a live stream and stats.

NEXT UP IN PILOTS BASEBALL 
• The Pilots host the San Francisco Dons this weekend for their second WCC series of the season.
• They'll play on Friday at 6 p.m. followed by games on Saturday and Sunday that have first pitches set for 1 p.m.
• Check PortlandPilots.com for live streams and stats.

ABOUT THE PILOTS 
• The Pilots are 14-5 to start the year after winning their first WCC series of the season over the BYU Cougars.
• Portland also defeated the Washington Huskies to win the first of two games against the Pac-12 opponent.
• This is their best record through 19 games since the 2012 season and the best record up to this point for a Pilot team led by Geoff Loomis. College Baseball Nation had the Pilots ranked 49th in their latest top 50 poll.
• The work on the mound was top notch from the Pilots this weekend, with several pitchers putting together season-best performances.
• Brett Gillis continued his stellar start to the year by pitching seven innings with only one run and three hits allowed and 12 strikeouts. That strikeout total matches both a season and career-high for the righty.
• Gillis has posted an impressive 1.45 ERA with a 4-1 record and 43 strikeouts in five starts. He is first in ERA in the WCC, fifth in total strikeouts and strikeout-to-walk ratio (5.38) and strikeouts per nine innings (12.48).
• Eli Morse also pitched six innings last Saturday with only one run and two hits allowed and six strikeouts. He improved to 4-0 on the season.
• At the plate, Ben Patacsil hit half the balls that came his way against BYU, posting a batting average of .500. It's the second series this year where he's batted at least .500 or better.
• Patacsil is the top batter for Portland with a slash line of .364/.455/.455 (BA/SLG/OBP).
• The Pilots currently second the WCC in walks (89), hits (183), batting average (.284) and on-base percentage (.387) and third in runs (121).
• Among other notable individual rankings, Peter Allegro is first in the WCC and fourth in the nation in saves (6). He went three innings with no runs or hits allowed and six strikeouts in the rubber match against BYU.
• Sophomore Sam Brown and senior Eli Morse were both named to the All-WCC Preseason Team this season. The Pilots as a team were picked to finish sixth in the conference in the WCC Preseason Coaches Poll.
• The sixth-place ranking marks the first time since 2003 that the Pilots were slated to finish in the top six. It's the first time since the conference also expanded to 10 teams in 2013.
• The Pilots return 28 players while adding 10 newcomers from last year's squad, including seven players who earned All-WCC honors last year. Seven position starters return along with 11 pitchers.
• Morse returns after leading the WCC in saves last season with eight. He was among the nation's leaders in the category as well for most of the year.
• Morse is fourth all-time in total strikeouts (232), ninth all-time in program history in strikeouts per nine innings (8.49) and 10th in saves (eight). He is sixth in the WCC in strikeouts this season with 34.
• Jake Tsukada, Ben Patacsil and Jake Holcroft were among the top batters for the Pilots, batting .282, .263 and .262 as freshmen.
• Tsukada also tied the school record for hits in a games last season against the Pacific Tigers with six. He is the first Pilot who played Division I baseball to do so.
• Holcroft batted an astounding .484 in a shortened 2020 season and was named a Collegiate Baseball Freshmen All-American. Against San Jose State, he batted .455 with four RBI's
• Caleb Franzen is another hurler poised for a breakout season with the Pilots. Last season, he was third in the WCC in strikeout-to-walk ratio (5.82) and fourth in walks allowed per nine innings (1.65).
• The Pilots also return Trace Tammaro, who sat out almost all of last season due to a back injury. The redshirt sophomore batted .333 with a team-leading seven home runs in 2020. He is tied for the team-lead with two home runs this year.
• 2022 marks the seventh year at the helm for head coach Geoff Loomis.
• With 125 career wins as Portland's skipper, Loomis already ranks fourth all-time for coaching wins at Portland.
• Loomis is a Portland baseball alum and UP Athletics Hall of Fame member who still holds the UP program career record for batting average (.376).

LAST SEASON IN PILOTS BASEBALL 
• The Pilots went 24-26 overall last season with a 14-13 record in WCC play.
• Their fifth-place finish in the WCC was their best full-season finish since head coach Geoff Loomis took over the Pilots and their best since 2011. Their 14 wins in WCC player were also the most for the team since 2010.
• The Pilots had nine players earn All-WCC recognition, with shortstop Chad Stevens most notably earning first team recognition. First baseman Sam Brown and starting pitcher Christian Peters both named to the All-WCC Second Team.
• Stevens batted a team-high .333 with with 67 hits, eight home runs, 19 doubles and 29 RBI's. His total hits and doubles both were tops in the WCC and he was also second in extra-base hits (27) and total bases (110).
• Stevens was subsequently drafted in the 11th round of the 2021 MLB Draft by the Houston Astros. The last Pilot to get drafted was Beau Brundage in 2018.
• Brown put together one of the best seasons by a freshman in the conference, batting .315 with five home runs, 16 doubles and a triple. Among freshman, he was first in doubles (fifth overall), second in extra-base hits (22), third in slugging percentage (.495) and fifth in batting average.
• Brown made the Collegiate Baseball Freshmen All-American baseball team as well, becoming the third Pilot to do so since 2012.
• Peters was among the top hurlers, with the second best ERA in the WCC at 2.63. He was also fourth in WHIP (1.12) and strikeouts (78). He was one of only three pitchers to earn WCC Pitcher of the Week honors multiple times last year.
• The other six players to earn All-WCC recognition were pitcher Peter Allegro, two-way player Brett Gillis, left fielder Jake Holcroft, center fielder Briley Knight, pitcher Eli Morse and second baseman Jake Tsukada. Brown, Holcroft and Tsukada all made the All-WCC Freshman Team.
• As a whole, the team ranked second in the WCC in strikeouts per nine innings (9.6), strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.93), WHIP (1.31) and walks allowed per nine innings (3.28). Their four shutouts also ranked third in the WCC.

ABOUT THE OPPONENT 
• The Seattle U Redhawks are 6-10 this season but 4-2 in WAC play.
• They hit .271 as a team with a staff ERA of 7.02.
• They most won their series against the Sacramento State Hornets two games to one.
• Donny Harrel is in his 13th year as head coach of the Redhawks.