By Marc Buchanan
After splitting its season-opening series against nationally ranked UC-Irvine, the BYU baseball team will return to California for a three-game series against the San Jose State Spartans beginning today.
The Spartans have a 3-4 record and have been rained out the last two weekends.
The Cougars won the season opener by defeating the 19th-ranked Anteaters 5-1. In game 2 of the series, BYU had 18 hits but lost 9-6. Game 3 of the series was canceled due to rain. Head coach Vance Law said he was proud of the way the Cougars opened the season.
?I was pleased with the way the team came out and expected to win,? Law said. ?We were not intimated; we held our own and played very good baseball.?
Apana Nakayama, who hit .500 for the series, said he felt good to begin the season.
?I felt comfortable out there, and the team was prepared,? Nakayama said. ?The work put in during practice gave us an extra push for that opening series.?
BYU outfielder Ryan Chambers said the team mindset is to sweep the series with San Jose State.
?We have great momentum going into this next series,? Chambers said. ?We expect to get a sweep.?
Cougar infielder Sean McNaughton agreed with Chambers, saying that the team is ready to play after a good start.
?We got our nerves out against UC-Irvine, and we know what we can do,? McNaughton said. ?We will be able to play to our true potential.?
