2026 WAC Baseball Release - Week 2

UTAH TECH WINS SEVEN OF EIGHT TO START THE YEAR
The hottest WAC team out of the gate in 2026 has been Utah Tech, who has won seven of its first eight games through two full weeks of play. The Trailblazers won their first five games against UC Riverside (four) and CSU Bakersfield (one) before taking two of three games at Pacific.

MCDANIEL NAMED WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Utah Tech second baseman Kyle McDaniel captured WAC Player of the Week honors on Feb. 23 following a 3-1 week for the Trailblazers that included a series win at Pacific. McDaniel batted .389 with a home run, seven RBIs and four runs scored over his four starts to extend his active on-base streak to 49 straight games dating back to last season. McDaniel also led all WAC players in hits (15) and runs scored (12) and ranked second in batting average (.469) thus far this season as of Feb. 25.

CBU’S PALMER NAMED WAC PITCHER OF THE WEEK
California Baptist right-handed pitcher Ryne Palmer earned WAC Pitcher of the Week accolades for the first time on Feb. 23 following a stellar start for the Lancers in a 5-1 victory over Seattle U the prior day. Palmer tossed 5.0 shutout innings, scattering three hits and two walks while striking out six Seattle U batters in the victory.

SACRAMENTO STATE’S LAY STRIKES OUT CAREER HIGH VERSUS ST. JOSEPH’S
In a hard-luck no decision against St. Joseph’s on Feb. 20, Sacramento State senior right-handed pitcher Ethan Lay shined with a perfect game through six innings and a career-high 13 strikeouts. Lay ultimately finished the game with two earned runs allowed on six hits in 8.2 innings, with no walks and the 13 punchouts in a 5-4 setback in 12 innings.

TARLETON STATE OFFENSE ON A ROLL ONCE AGAIN
For the second straight year, the Tarleton State offense has opened firing on all cylinders to place itself near the top of the WAC statistical standings. Entering games on Feb. 25, Tarleton State led all WAC teams with a .312 batting average, 68 runs and 64 RBIs along with a team .450 on-base percentage. Brady Englett (.423), Slade McCloud (.407) and Kendyl Johnson (.368) each maintained batting averages above .350 meeting the minimum required plate appearances through Tarleton State’s first eight games, and Sergio Guerra was the individual conference leader with 15 RBIs as of Feb. 25.