Warrior Weekly: Three ex-Sac-Joaquin Section pitchers have Stan State off to 9-1 start

There are many reasons why the Stanislaus State baseball team is off to a 9-1 start, and ranked No. 19 in the nation, as the Warriors head into the second week of conference play.

They’ve played every game at home.

Stanislaus State has a lineup with five players hitting .300 or better. As a team, the Warriors are batting .320 and have outscored opponents, 85-36.

Led by 18-year head coach Kenny Leonesio, the pitching staff has a 3.10 ERA, fourth best in the California Collegiate Athletic Association.

The low team ERA is led by the youngest starting trio in the CCAA.

Leonesio has sent out a sophomore and two freshmen on Fridays and Saturdays through three weekends. All three are 19 years old. They are a combined 6-0 with a 2.74 ERA. They have 41 strikeouts in 49 2/3 innings.

They’re home grown, too.

Rylan Tinsley, the staff ace, is from Stockton’s Weston Ranch High School.

The lefty was the CCAA Freshman of the Year after an 8-5 campaign and he’s off to another great start. He’s 3-0 with a 1.35 ERA and is among the CCAA leaders with 19 strikeouts. Against potent Sonoma State, Tinsley tossed seven shutout innings, striking out seven and allowing two hits.

“We all get along,” Tinsley said. “We are just a big family. We all hang out together, it’s great chemistry with us.”

Tyler Meyer, the No. 2 starter, is from Big Valley Christian High School in Modesto. The Riverbank native is 2-0 after three starts. The 6-foot-3 right-hander has a 3.86 ERA with seven strikeouts in 14 innings.

The transition from high school to college has been a little bit easier for Meyer as he played travel ball for Leonesio at Stan State.

“I have known coach Kenny for a few years now,” he said. “I know how he calls pitches and how he manages the game. It’s been super comfortable now at the college level. It has been an easy transition, it’s been great.”

Casey Carr, a left-hander from Turlock High School, is the Game 3 starter. Carr threw a seven-inning complete game Saturday evening against Sonoma State. He struck out eight Seawolves to earn his first collegiate win. After three starts, he has a 3.45 ERA with 15 strikeouts in 15 2/3 innings.

The other three wins on the mound were posted by two freshmen relievers. Bobby Garcia is 2-0 and Anthony Ramirez is 1-1. Both Garcia and Ramirez are from Saugus High School.

The Warriors are trying to match the 10-1 start set by the 2011 team when they travel to Hayward on Friday for Game 1 of a four-game series against Cal State East Bay.

Morales Sets Another School Record: Clarissa Morales set another school record, her second in as many indoor track and field meets this season.

At the GVSU Big Meet in Michigan last week, the Enochs High graduate finished the 3,000-meter run in 9 minutes, 35.31 seconds to surpass newly inducted Hall of Famer Courtney Anderson’s time of 9:35.40.

Morales shattered her own school record in the 5,000 two weeks ago, finishing in 16:38.00. Her previous best was 17:10.78.

Davis Becomes All-Time Assists Leader: Ty Davis posted seven assists in Saturday’s men’s basketball win over San Francisco State to become Stan State’s career assist leader. He has 379 assists, one more than Brian Barnett (1997-2000). Davis has 102 this season and averages 4.1 assists per game, fourth-best in the CCAA.

Trevor Picks Up Career Win No. 150: Third-year men’s basketball coach Paul Trevor earned career victory No. 150 last Thursday when the Warriors beat Sonoma State, Trevor’s alma mater. Trevor coached seven seasons at San Francisco State where he amassed 107 wins before joining the Stanislaus State staff in April of 2017.

Women’s Basketball Team Scored 102 Points: The Warriors scored 102 points in a blowout over San Francisco State last Saturday, making it the first time the Warriors past the century mark since putting up 102 at Alaska Fairbanks on Nov. 13, 2015.

The only other time the Warriors scored 100 or more points during a CCAA regulation game was on Dec. 19, 1998, in a 105-57 win over Cal State L.A. The Warriors scored 106 in an overtime game during a NCAA West Region tournament game against Cal State Bakersfield on March 14, 2003.

This story was originally published February 19, 2020 at 11:34 AM.