Jackson Evans had enough RBIs to beat Western Oregon all by himself on Sunday. The entire team was there, though, to see him homer and knock in the last five runs of the game to lift the Wildcats to a 6-2 win and a series victory. Evans drove in or scored 11 of Chico State’s 19 runs on the weekend to earn Wildcat of the Week honors.
Evans opened the series in style, knocking in the go-ahead run with two outs in the eighth Friday night before the Wildcats eventually lost 4-3. He singled home another run in Chico State’s 4-0 win in Saturday’s opening game and went 1-for-4 with two RBI, a run, and two stolen bases in their 6-5 win in the nightcap.
The Vancouver, Wash., native then put together his best game of the season in the series finale. He tied the game with a two-out RBI-single in the fifth, gave Chico State the lead with a two-run homer in the seventh, and put the game away with a two-out, two-run single in the eighth, finishing 3-for-5 with five RBI and a run scored.
Evans, one of the 2010 team’s most outstanding newcomers, improved to a .346 batting average with four home runs and 30 RBIs. He also boasts an exceptional on-base percentage of .406 and leads the team in triples with four.
A few more RBIs from Evans could help spell “N-C-A-A p-l-a-y-o-f-f-s” for the ’Cats, who finish the regular season this weekend at Nettleton Stadium with a four-game set against CCAA foe Cal State Monterey Bay. The Wildcats will then travel to Stockton for the CCAA Championship Tournament May 6-8.
A strong showing over the next two weekends could propel the Wildcats into the NCAA Championship Tournament West Regional, set for May 13-16.
