The Chico State baseball team is entering the home stretch of the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) schedule, and with one eye on the postseason, the Wildcats are needing their pitching staff to come up big at the most crucial time of the year. Righthanded starter Hilario Tovar has definitely stepped up over the past month, racking up four consecutive wins as the ’Cats hover near the top of conference standings. His latest gem against Cal State Dominguez Hills makes Tovar the latest Wildcat of the Week.
Needing a big performance after a disappointing series-opening loss to the Toros, Tovar delivered in the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader, scattering four hits over seven shutout innings and striking out seven as Chico State rebounded with a 13-0 win. The Wildcats would go on to take the final two games of the series to improve to 27-17 overall and 23-15 in CCAA play.
The victory raised Tovar’s season record to 6-4 while lowering his earned run average to 3.41. He currently leads all Wildcat hurlers in wins and is second on the team in strikeouts (61).
The Selma product has now won each of his last four starts (against Cal State LA, UC San Diego, Cal State San Marcos, and now Dominguez Hills) as part of a recent surge that has seen Wildcats win 11 of their last 14 games to rise to third place in the CCAA standings.
The Wildcats are in Southern California this weekend for a crucial four-game series against CCAA rival Cal Poly Pomona. Chico State concludes regular season play with a May 4 home doubleheader vs. Stanislaus State.
