DENVER – MSU Denver hits the road for a four-game series this weekend, but it's no ordinary road trip.
 
The Roadrunners will travel to California to play Biola. It will be MSU Denver's first games in California since 2019.
 
"I think it's good for our team to travel," MSU Denver coach Ryan Strain said. "We want to get out and go play in California – we did that a few years ago when we went to (Cal State) San Marcos. Every three or four years, if we can afford to make a trip like this, it's definitely worth it."
 
MSU Denver has four California players on its roster – first baseman and cleanup hitter Jake Williams, designated hitter Zach Schuler, starting pitcher Massimo Vega, and reliever Brady Mello.
 
"We've got some California guys, and most of our out of state kids are from the West – either Arizona or California," Strain said. "It'll be good to go out that way. Hopefully it's close enough that their families can drive and see them."
 
The series in La Mirada, Calif., starts with a 3 p.m. MST game Thursday, followed by a noon MST doubleheader on Friday and a noon MST single game on Saturday.
 
MSU Denver, picked to finish second in the nine-team Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, is off to a 3-0 start after sweeping Northwestern Oklahoma State last weekend. Biola, picked fifth in the nine-team Pacific West Conference, is 2-1 after opening the season against Cal State San Marcos.
 
"They've been a good program, and we're learning as much as we can about this team," Strain said. "We're looking forward to the series."
 
MSU Denver broke out the heavy metal in its opening series, scoring 30 runs while sharing the Division II lead in doubles per game (4.7), ranking fifth in slugging percentage (.627) and 13^th with 1.7 homers per game after the first week of the season.
 
Schuler ranks seventh in the country with nine RBIs, and he, Williams and Ross Smith are all among a group of players tied for second nationally with three doubles.
 
"We had a group of guys swing the bats really well," Strain said.
 
As overpowering as the hitters were, perhaps the MSU Denver pitching staff – particularly the bullpen – was the most impressive group last weekend.
 
Reichle Arcilise struck out six of the seven batters he faced in two relief outings, Andrew Hayes struck out six of the 11 he faced in a 3 1/3-inning outing, and closer Eric Cox was nearly untouchable in two one-inning appearances, striking out five of the eight who stood in against him.
 
In addition to those three, Brady McLean (two innings), Zane Covey (one) and Tyler Schultz (one) also had scoreless outings out of the bullpen, and in all nine relievers combined to strike out 30 in 17 innings while compiling a 1.59 ERA.
 
"Our bullpen threw the ball well," Strain said.
 
Now the Roadrunners will try to continue to progress.
 
"We played well," Strain said. "We did a lot of good things, and we did some not so good things. It's nice to win games when you're not playing your best."