Monday, April 18
Omaha, Neb.
6:00 pm
Creighton University
vs
Arizona
Photo by: Brenden Willsch
Bluejay Baseball Hosts Arizona in Two-Game Series
4/17/2022 3:43:00 PM | Baseball
Omaha, Neb. -- Creighton Baseball faces its toughest test of the 2022 home schedule on Monday, April 18 and Tuesday, April 19 as the Bluejays host defending CWS Participant Arizona in back-to-back nationally televised games in Charles Schwab Field Omaha.
Download the complete preview (PDF).
Scouting Creighton (21-8, 6-0 BIG EAST)
Since starting the season 0-4, Creighton has won 21-of-25 games to improve to 21-8. The Bluejays are 12-0 at home, outscoring foes 90-34 at Charles Schwab Field Omaha.
Creighton is hitting .265 as a team, led by Alan Roden (.382), Jared Wegner (.349, 9 HR) and Andrew Meggs (.306).
On the mound the Bluejays have a 3.40 ERA, which lowers to 2.13 at home. Creighton has collected 240 strikeouts in 254 innings. The leaders of the pitching staff are BIG EAST Preseason Pitcher of the Year Dylan Tebrake (5-1, 2.81 ERA) with 53 strikeouts in 51.1 innings and back end hurlers Paul Bergstrom (1.98 ERA) and Tommy Steier (1.34 ERA, 7 saves).
Scouting Arizona (24-12, 11-7 Pac-12)
Arizona comes to Omaha after dropping a series at Utah over the weekend.
The Wildcats bring lightning hot bats to Charles Schwab Field Omaha as Arizona is hitting .290 as a team. The leaders of the offense are Daniel Susac (.385), Tanner O'Tremba (.371) and Mar Bingham (.295). Another bat to watch for in the Wildcat lineup is Chase Davis (.269 with 11 HR).
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On the mound Arizona has been slightly less impressive bringing a 4.41 team ERA. Closer Holden Christian is slated to start the game on Monday as both teams will opt for an opener. Christian has a 4.15 ERA in 17.1 innings with 22 strikeouts.
Series History with Arizona (0-0)
This two-game series will be the first meeting between the Bluejays and Wildcats.
Weekend Recap: Creighton (3-0 at St. John's)
The Bluejays swept a trio of tight games from the Red Storm in New York over the weekend. Creighton took the opening game 5-3 on Thursday as Bluejay ace Dylan Tebrake needed just 78 pitches to take Creighton in the seventh (6.1 innings). The tandem of Paul Bergstrom and Tommy Steier locked down the final eight outs.
With the Red Storm unable to play on Good Friday, the two teams battled in a doubleheader on Saturday. The opening game saw both offenses scratch across four runs in the opening five frames, but the tandem of Bergstrom and Steier retired the final 13 St. John's hitters to secure a 5-4 win.
The finale saw sophomore Cade Lommel hold St. John's to two unearned runs in the third as he carried the game to the eighth. Junior reliever Marc Lidd carried the final five outs for his first save as a Bluejay.
Weekend Glimpse: Arizona (1-2 at Utah)
The Wildcats were outscored 26-16 in their series at Utah, played on Thursday - Saturday. Arizona took the series
opening game 7-6 thanks in large part to a grand slam in the fifth inning by Chase Davis that put Arizona ahead 6-5.
Bluejays Equal Best BIG EAST Start
Off to a 6-0 start to BIG EAST play, Creighton equaled its the start it got off to during the 2021 season. Since joining the BIG EAST during the 2014 season, Creighton has the following records after six games.
2014: 5-1
2015: 5-1
2016: 5-1
2017: 5-1
2018: 2-4
2019: 5-1
2020: No BIG EAST season
2021: 6-0 (lost seventh game)
2022: 6-0
Roden and Wegner Provide Back-to-Back Blasts
Trailing 2-1 in the sixth inning of the finale at St. John's it took just two pitches for the Bluejays to surge out front. Sophomore Alan Roden got things going with his second home run of the day (the first came in the opening game of the doubleheader) on a 1-0 count. Roden blasted a shot to the batter's eye in center field to knot the game at 2-2. On the following pitch junior Jared Wegner connected on his team leading ninth long ball of the season to left field.
The last time a pair of Bluejays went back-to-back also involved Roden as he teamed with Ryan Mantle last season against Villanova on April 10, 2021.
Did Roden Find His Power Surge
Entering the series with St. John's (April 14-16), BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year had an impressive .388 average but just one home run in 26 games. During the Bluejays' three games in New York, Roden blasted a pair of home runs and also connected for a double. If the Wisconsin native gets his power game going, it will be even more trouble for BIG EAST pitching staff.
Download the complete preview (PDF).
Arizona at Creighton
Charles Schwab Field Omaha
Omaha, Neb.
Live Stats:Â https://creighton.statbroadcast.com
April 18 - 6:00 pm (FS2)
Monday: FS1 - Bob Brainerd (PBP) & Rob Simms (Analyst)
April 19 - 8:00 pm (CBSSN)
Tuesday: CBSSN - Chris Lewis (PBP) & Will Middlebrooks (Analyst)
Probable Pitching Matchups
Monday   ERA   W-L   App   GS   CG   SHO   IP   H   R   ER   BB   SO
UA - Holden Christian (LHP)Â Â Â 4.15Â Â Â 2-2Â Â Â 14Â Â Â 0Â Â Â 0Â Â Â 0Â Â Â 17.1Â Â Â 15Â Â Â 10Â Â Â 8Â Â Â 11Â Â Â 22
CU - Dylan Tebrake (RHP)Â Â Â 2.81Â Â Â 5-1Â Â Â 10Â Â Â 10Â Â Â 0Â Â Â 0Â Â Â 51.1Â Â Â 41Â Â Â 22Â Â Â 16Â Â Â 21Â Â Â 53
Tuesday   ERA   W-L   App   GS   CG   SHO   IP   H   R   ER   BB   SO
UA - TBA
CU - TBA
Charles Schwab Field Omaha
Omaha, Neb.
Live Stats:Â https://creighton.statbroadcast.com
April 18 - 6:00 pm (FS2)
Monday: FS1 - Bob Brainerd (PBP) & Rob Simms (Analyst)
April 19 - 8:00 pm (CBSSN)
Tuesday: CBSSN - Chris Lewis (PBP) & Will Middlebrooks (Analyst)
Probable Pitching Matchups
Monday   ERA   W-L   App   GS   CG   SHO   IP   H   R   ER   BB   SO
UA - Holden Christian (LHP)Â Â Â 4.15Â Â Â 2-2Â Â Â 14Â Â Â 0Â Â Â 0Â Â Â 0Â Â Â 17.1Â Â Â 15Â Â Â 10Â Â Â 8Â Â Â 11Â Â Â 22
CU - Dylan Tebrake (RHP)Â Â Â 2.81Â Â Â 5-1Â Â Â 10Â Â Â 10Â Â Â 0Â Â Â 0Â Â Â 51.1Â Â Â 41Â Â Â 22Â Â Â 16Â Â Â 21Â Â Â 53
Tuesday   ERA   W-L   App   GS   CG   SHO   IP   H   R   ER   BB   SO
UA - TBA
CU - TBA
Scouting Creighton (21-8, 6-0 BIG EAST)
Since starting the season 0-4, Creighton has won 21-of-25 games to improve to 21-8. The Bluejays are 12-0 at home, outscoring foes 90-34 at Charles Schwab Field Omaha.
Creighton is hitting .265 as a team, led by Alan Roden (.382), Jared Wegner (.349, 9 HR) and Andrew Meggs (.306).
On the mound the Bluejays have a 3.40 ERA, which lowers to 2.13 at home. Creighton has collected 240 strikeouts in 254 innings. The leaders of the pitching staff are BIG EAST Preseason Pitcher of the Year Dylan Tebrake (5-1, 2.81 ERA) with 53 strikeouts in 51.1 innings and back end hurlers Paul Bergstrom (1.98 ERA) and Tommy Steier (1.34 ERA, 7 saves).
Scouting Arizona (24-12, 11-7 Pac-12)
Arizona comes to Omaha after dropping a series at Utah over the weekend.
The Wildcats bring lightning hot bats to Charles Schwab Field Omaha as Arizona is hitting .290 as a team. The leaders of the offense are Daniel Susac (.385), Tanner O'Tremba (.371) and Mar Bingham (.295). Another bat to watch for in the Wildcat lineup is Chase Davis (.269 with 11 HR).
Â
On the mound Arizona has been slightly less impressive bringing a 4.41 team ERA. Closer Holden Christian is slated to start the game on Monday as both teams will opt for an opener. Christian has a 4.15 ERA in 17.1 innings with 22 strikeouts.
Series History with Arizona (0-0)
This two-game series will be the first meeting between the Bluejays and Wildcats.
Weekend Recap: Creighton (3-0 at St. John's)
The Bluejays swept a trio of tight games from the Red Storm in New York over the weekend. Creighton took the opening game 5-3 on Thursday as Bluejay ace Dylan Tebrake needed just 78 pitches to take Creighton in the seventh (6.1 innings). The tandem of Paul Bergstrom and Tommy Steier locked down the final eight outs.
With the Red Storm unable to play on Good Friday, the two teams battled in a doubleheader on Saturday. The opening game saw both offenses scratch across four runs in the opening five frames, but the tandem of Bergstrom and Steier retired the final 13 St. John's hitters to secure a 5-4 win.
The finale saw sophomore Cade Lommel hold St. John's to two unearned runs in the third as he carried the game to the eighth. Junior reliever Marc Lidd carried the final five outs for his first save as a Bluejay.
Weekend Glimpse: Arizona (1-2 at Utah)
The Wildcats were outscored 26-16 in their series at Utah, played on Thursday - Saturday. Arizona took the series
opening game 7-6 thanks in large part to a grand slam in the fifth inning by Chase Davis that put Arizona ahead 6-5.
Bluejays Equal Best BIG EAST Start
Off to a 6-0 start to BIG EAST play, Creighton equaled its the start it got off to during the 2021 season. Since joining the BIG EAST during the 2014 season, Creighton has the following records after six games.
2014: 5-1
2015: 5-1
2016: 5-1
2017: 5-1
2018: 2-4
2019: 5-1
2020: No BIG EAST season
2021: 6-0 (lost seventh game)
2022: 6-0
Roden and Wegner Provide Back-to-Back Blasts
Trailing 2-1 in the sixth inning of the finale at St. John's it took just two pitches for the Bluejays to surge out front. Sophomore Alan Roden got things going with his second home run of the day (the first came in the opening game of the doubleheader) on a 1-0 count. Roden blasted a shot to the batter's eye in center field to knot the game at 2-2. On the following pitch junior Jared Wegner connected on his team leading ninth long ball of the season to left field.
The last time a pair of Bluejays went back-to-back also involved Roden as he teamed with Ryan Mantle last season against Villanova on April 10, 2021.
Did Roden Find His Power Surge
Entering the series with St. John's (April 14-16), BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year had an impressive .388 average but just one home run in 26 games. During the Bluejays' three games in New York, Roden blasted a pair of home runs and also connected for a double. If the Wisconsin native gets his power game going, it will be even more trouble for BIG EAST pitching staff.
Players Mentioned
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OF
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