TUCSON, Ariz. - The Arizona Wildcats scored 13 runs for the second straight game Friday night, beating North Dakota State 13-3 in the opener of a three-game series. The win came on the heels of a 13-4 win over San Diego State on Tuesday at Hi Corbett. 

The bats stayed hot Saturday in a 9-4 win over the Bison. Michael Flynn earned the win on the mound and Cal Stevenson added three hits.

The Cats will go for the sweep and a four-game winning streak Sunday at 1 p.m., in the series finale. 

North Dakota State is coached by former Wildcat player and coach, Tod Brown. 

Below is a full preview of the series:

Date                    Time (MST)        Location (Ballpark)                            Probable Starters/Results
Fri. March 9        6 p.m.                Tucson, Ariz. (Hi Corbett Field)        Arizona 13, North Dakota State 3
Sat. March 10     2 p.m.                Tucson, Ariz. (Hi Corbett Field)        Arizona 9, North Dakota State 4
Sun. March 11    1 p.m.                Tucson, Ariz. (Hi Corbett Field)        RHP Jordan Harms vs. LHP Randy Labaut

Live Stream: Available through ArizonaWildcats.com

Live Stats: Available through ArizonaLiveStats.com


Leading Off...
•    Arizona continues its four-game homestand with a three-game series with North Dakota State. Both teams enter at 6-6 on the season. 
•    Arizona leads the all-time series with North Dakota State, 7-1. The two teams last met in 2015. Arizona won both games of a two-game series, winning 7-2 and 11-1.
•    North Dakota State head coach Tod Brown played at Arizona from 1990-1994 under Hall of Fame coach Jerry Kindall. A pitcher, Brown threw 24 innings in 1992 when the Wildcats captured a Pac-12 Championship. 
•    Arizona catcher Cesar Salazar is leading the team with a .333 batting average and was named to the Johnny Bench Award Watch List this week, given to the top catcher in the country.
•    Alfonso Rivas hit the 10th home run of his career Tuesday against San Diego State and leads this year's team in hits, home runs, RBI and slugging percentage through 12 games. 
•    Arizona pitching has given up just 34 runs on the season, which is the lowest total through 12 games since 1974. 
•    The Wildcats scored a season-high 13 runs on a season-best 15 hits last time out against San Diego State. 
•    All total, Arizona pitchers have a staff ERA of 2.30 in 109 2/3 innings this season, holding batters to a .231 batting average against. 

Some Series Themes: Following its best offensive performance of the season, the Arizona Wildcats will look to stay hot at the plate this weekend with a three-game series with North Dakota State from the Summit League…Arizona scored 13 runs on 15 hits Tuesday against San Diego State, establishing season highs in both categories…Alfonso Rivas, Cesar Salazar and Nick Quintana all had three-hit games against the Aztecs, while Cal Stevenson and Matt Fraizer each had two hits in the win…Arizona had scored 12 runs total in its previous four games before the breakout performance against the Aztecs…The pitching has been stellar all season for the Wildcats, who have a staff ERA of 2.30…Right-hander Cody Deason, with a 0.93 ERA through three starts, will start Friday night's series opener against the Bison…He'll be followed on Saturday by fellow junior righty Michael Flynn…Sophomore left-hander Randy Labaut, coming off a career-high eight innings against Michigan State, will start Sunday's series finale…North Dakota State will counter with Riley Johnson on Friday, Blake Stockert on Saturday and Jordan Harms on Sunday…Johnson and Harms are righties, while Stockert is a lefty…Johnson tossed a no-hitter earlier this season against Central Connecticut State in the Snowbird Baseball Classic in Florida…Johnson is 2-1 on the season with a 5.51 ERA…Stockert is 1-0 in five innings and Harms is 1-0 in 11 1/3 innings of work…Mason Pierzchalski leads the Bison with a .362 batting average, having started all 12 games…he has six doubles, two home runs and 14 RBI…Drew Fearing is also above .300 at .333 on the season with 15 hits…Arizona will head back on the road following the series with North Dakota State…The Cats will play at Arizona State, before a three-game series at Washington…Arizona then comes home for a seven-game homestand and 10 of the next 11 at Hi Corbett…Quintana has a modest four-game hit streak going, and has driven in at least one run in four straight as well…He's 6 for 17 during the four-game streak, and has seen his batting average rise from .207 to .261…Catcher Cesar Salazar has reached base in all 12 games this season and is batting .333 on the season…He's also thrown out five of 10 potential base stealers…As a team, Arizona is hitting .327 on the season with runners in scoring position…Rivas is 7 for 14 in such situations and Quintana is 6 for 15.
 
No Runs for You: Arizona hasn't quite gotten off to the start it was hoping for, but that doesn't mean its run prevention hasn't been special. Through 12 games, the Wildcats have surrendered just 34 total runs. That's the fewest runs allowed through 12 games since giving up just 19 runs to start the 1974 season. That year, Arizona went 58-6 and won the WAC Championship. In 2012, when Arizona won the National Championship, the Wildcats gave up 35 runs through their first 12. This year, Arizona has yet to give up more than five runs in a game and have held opponents to three runs or fewer in seven of 12 games. Arizona pitching has been especially good at the start of games. Pitchers have combined to just give up eight of the 34 runs in the first three innings of the game, giving up five in the first, three in the second and none in the third.
Fewest Runs Allowed Through 11 Games Since 1974

Year	Runs Allowed
1974	19
2018	34
2012	35
2011	37
2007	43

 
 
What a Start: Arizona pitching has set the tone for the season thus far. Arizona has a staff ERA of just 2.30 so far this season, allowing just 89 hits in 109 2/3 total innings. Wildcat pitchers have combined to strike out 87, while allowing 48 walks. Opposing batters are hitting just .231 against Arizona pitching with 18 extra-base hits in 12 games. It's been a collective effort for the Wildcats thus far with several different arms contributing to the early season success. Randy Labaut leads the team with 20 2/3 innings and has a 2.18 ERA, giving up just five runs on the season. Labaut has walked just one, compared to 14 strikeouts. Cody Deason, who has had the Friday night honors so far this season, has just a 0.93 ERA in 19 1/3 innings. Michael Flynn and Avery Weems have also logged 12 or more innings. Weems has a 3.26 ERA in 19 1/3 innings, while Flynn was stellar in Minneapolis and has a 3.75 ERA.
 
Digging Deeper: Coach Dave Lawn's pitching staff has done several things very well early in the season. First, left-handed hitters are batting just .216 against Arizona pitching, combining to go 36 for 167 so far. Right-handed starters Cody Deason and Michael Flynn have been especially tough on lefties, allowing them to go just 8 for 57 for a .140 average. Another area where Arizona pitchers have excelled is with runners on base. Opposing hitters are just 38 for 175 with runners on for a .217 average. And once Arizona pitchers get to two outs, there's a good shot they're finishing off the inning clean. Opposing batters are just 22 for 115 (.191) with two outs against Arizona pitching. With runners in scoring position, it's not much better with the opposition hitting 20 for 104 (.192) in that situation.
 
Dominant Deason: Through three starts, junior right-hander Cody Deason has looked a lot like a Friday night starter in the Pac-12 should look. Deason is 1-0 with a 0.93 ERA in 19 1/3 innings. He's given up just two earned runs on the season and has opposing batters hitting just .194 against him. Deason got the Opening Day start against Bryant and threw seven shutout innings. He walked five, but gave up just three hits and paced the Cats in a 4-0 win. The next week, against tonight's opponent San Diego State, Deason went just 5 1/3 innings, but battled, giving up two runs and striking out six, which matched a career high. Against Minnesota, Deason again went seven innings, allowing three hits and one unearned run, while again striking out six.  The junior has lefties hitting 5 for 37 against him, and batters are just 2 for 18 against him with two outs, showing he knows how to shut down an inning. With runners on, Deason is limiting hitters to a .160 average, seeing hitters go 4 for 25. He's yet to allow an extra-base hit.
 
Randy's Dandy: Sophomore left-hander Randy Labaut has wasted no time carving out a niche in this season's pitching staff for the Wildcats. Labaut has pitched a team-best 20 2/3 innings, giving up 19 hits and five runs. He's walked just one, compared to 14 strikeouts and has hitters batting .247 against him this season. Labaut appeared out of the bullpen for his first two appearances of the season, but has started three straight. In that span, Labaut has gone 19 1/3 innings, giving up 15 hits, five runs, no walks and 13 strikeouts. Against Arkansas, Labaut was on the unlucky end of a 1-0 loss, despite going seven innings and giving up just one run on a solo home run. Last weekend against Michigan State, Labaut went a career best eight innings. He pitched eight scoreless, before starting the ninth and giving up back-to-back hits to start the inning, before exiting. Hitters are just 3 for 21 against him with two outs. The one walk on the season has been a big improvement for the lefty. Last season, Labaut walked 22 in 31 2/3 innings, compared to 23 strikeouts. He's allowed just four extra-base hits this season.
 
First Up: Junior Alfonso Rivas manned left field as a freshman, before mainly handling the designated hitter role last year as a sophomore. This year, Rivas will move to first base to take over for JJ Matijevic. Rivas was named first-team preseason All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) and a second-team pick by D1Baseball and a third-team selection by Baseball America. He's already backing it up this season, leading the team in hits, RBI, total bases and slugging percentage. Rivas went 3 for 5 with four RBI against San Diego State and hit his second home run of the season. The left-handed hitting first baseman has both of Arizona's home runs this year. He's hitting .306 with 15 hits, three doubles, two home runs and 15 RBI, while boasting a .531 slugging percentage. Rivas drove in a career-high six runs against Michigan in Arizona's 9-5 win in San Diego. He went 3 for 5 against the Wolverines, finishing a triple short of the cycle. He had a double and a triple in the Saturday game against Illinois.
Most RBI by an Arizona Underclassman Since 2000

Player (Class)	Year	RBI
Jeff Van Houten (Sophomore)	2003	72
Alfonso Rivas (Sophomore)	2017	63
Brad Glenn (Sophomore)	2007	62
Jordan Brown (Sophomore)	2004	57
Robert Refsnyder (Sophomore)	2011	55
Bobby Dalbec (Sophomore)	2015	53
Steve Selsky (Sophomore)	2010	52

 
 
A Very Good Avery: Junior left-hander Avery Weems will undoubtedly draw comparisons to another recent Arizona lefty this season in JC Cloney. Weems, who is wearing the same number Cloney donned – 27—has looked as dangerous as Arizona's Opening Day starter in 2016 and 17. Weems made his Arizona debut in the finale of the Bryant series, drawing the Sunday start. He had an impressive start to his career, going 5 2/3 innings, allowing just one run on six hits, while striking out three and walking two. Weems then showed off his versatility, appearing in relief at San Diego State the following Friday. Weems tossed 2 2/3 hitless innings against the Aztecs, striking out four. Two days later, Weems drew his second start of the season against San Diego. He didn't allow a hit until the fifth inning and went six innings total, allowing just three hits. He allowed four runs, but only one was earned in a 5-3 loss to the Toreros. Weems started against Illinois, and went just 3 1/3 innings, but gave up just two runs and didn't issue any walks, battling and keeping his team in the game. A Flagstaff native, Weems spent the previous two seasons as Yavapai Junior College in Prescott.
 
Ball Haug: Senior Ryan Haug has patiently waited to become an everyday player for the Wildcats, and this year it has paid off. Haug has started the past seven games for Arizona, and had three-straight multiple-hit games last weekend in Minneapolis. Against Minnesota, Illinois and Michigan State, Haug went 6 for 12 total with a pair of runs scored and a double. He was named to the Dairy Queen Classic-Pac-12/Big 10 Challenge. Perhaps more impressive than his offense, has been Haug's defense. Against New Mexico State, Haug played left field and threw out a runner at home, trying to score on a sacrifice fly. Against Minnesota, Haug, again in left, made a diving catch into the stands on a foul ball, and then later threw out a runner at the plate to send the game into extra innings. Against Illinois, Haug moved to right and again had a hand in throwing out a runner at home, starting a 9-4-2 putout at home on an extra-base hit. Haug then started behind the plate against Michigan State, giving Cesar Salazar, who DH'ed a blow. The senior drew a pair of walks Tuesday against San Diego State, starting in left field. He hit in the three-hole for the Wildcats.
 
Home Sweet Home: While Arizona is only hitting .229 as a team this season, the Wildcats are hitting .306 in five home games and have a perfect 5-0 record at Hi Corbett Field. A few Wildcats in particular are enjoying hitting at the friendly confines of Hi Corbett. Cesar Salazar is 8 for 14at home this year and has a .619 on-base percentage. Cal Stevenson has also been tough at home and is 8 for 15 with three extra-base hits and four RBI. He's slugging .867 in five games at home with a .611 on-base percentage. Cameron Cannon, Nick Quintana and Alfonso Rivas are all batting .333 or better at home with Cannon at .412 with six of his eight RBI coming at home. Rivas started 2 for 10 at Hi Corbett, but is 4 for 8 since. The pitching has also been dominant at home with a combined 1.60 ERA. Freshmen Jonathan Guardado and Gil Luna have combined for 5 scoreless innings at Hi Corbett with six strikeouts.
 
He's Been Juanderful: Spanning back to last season, senior right-handed pitcher Juan Aguilera has given up just one earned run over his last nine appearances. During that span, Aguilera has pitched 12 1/3 innings, allowing seven hits, one earned run, six walks and nine strikeouts. He's 3-0 in that span. Over his final four appearances last year, Aguilera didn't give up a run over 5 2/3 innings, giving up just one hit, three walks and four strikeouts. He earned the win in Arizona's win over Delaware in the NCAA Tournament. This year, Aguilera is the first Arizona pitcher to two wins and is 2-0. He's pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowing six hits, three walks and striking out five, while giving up just one earned run. Aguilera tossed a career-high three innings against San Diego State to earn the win.
 
All Hail, Cesar: Cesar Salazar returns for his third consecutive season as Arizona's primary backstop. The junior from Hermosillo, Mexico, was named All-Pac-12 first-team last year, and was also a member of the Lubbock All-Regional team last year after a strong three-game performance in the postseason. Salazar's offensive production increased last season in several areas. Salazar improved his average, doubles, home runs, RBI and walks total, while striking out three fewer times. He's also posted back-to-back fielding percentages of .992 behind the plate. Salazar threw out 11 of 37 potential base stealers last season. This season, Salazar has thrown out five of 10 potential base stealers. He's also leading the team in batting with a .333 batting average. He's 13 for 39 and has reached base in all 12 games this season. He's been hit by a pitch in three straight games and four of the last five. He's been hit six times total this year. Salazar already has three multi-hit games on the year, including two three-hit games, including Tuesday where he went 3 for 4 with a run scored.
 
"T" Time: Junior right-hander Tylor Megill has been strong at the end of games for Arizona so far this season, already totaling three saves in just 11 games. The senior righty has already matched his save total from last year. Megill closed out the New Mexico State game, pitching two scoreless innings. He allowed a leadoff double to start the eighth, and then retired the next six batters he faced. This came on the heels of tossing 2 1/3 perfect innings against Michigan on Saturday in San Diego. He struck out three, needing just 32 pitches total. Megill pitched twice in Minneapolis, going two total innings, allowing one run. He has a 1.86 ERA on the season, striking out 11 in 9 2/3 innings. Opposing hitters are batting just .200. He's been Arizona's most effective pitcher against righties, with opposing right-handed hitters just 3 for 22 against Megill.
 
Gil's Hill: Arizona has gotten a strong contribution in the early season from freshman left-hander Gil Luna. Listed at 5-11, 170, Luna has a big left arm on a frame that's still growing. The Casa Grande native has already appeared six times and has struck out 10 in 6 1/3 innings. Luna has allowed just two hits. He was especially impressive in relief of Labaut against Arkansas, coming in and throwing 1 1/3 hitless innings, while striking out three against one of the SEC's best offenses. He allowed his first run of the season against Michigan, going 1 1/3 innings again. Luna tossed 1 1/3 scoreless Tuesday against San Diego State. Luna has been especially tough on lefties, holding them to 1 for 13 hitting on the season. Batters are 0 for 6 against him with two outs.