April 20, 2009

Box Score

SPOKANE, Wash. - Gonzaga University had Ryan Wiegand hit a grand slam and Ernesto Ortiz record three doubles but the Bulldogs could not get by the University of Arizona, dropping a 8-7 non-conference game Monday afternoon.

Wiegand finished with two hits to go along with his second grand slam of the season. Ortiz went 3-for-5 with those three doubles and also scored three times. A three-run Arizona seventh inning proved to be the downfall for the Zags (25-13).

Arizona (17-19) was the first to get on the board, receiving a solo home runs from Jett Bandy and Hunter Pace in the second and third innings take a 2-0 lead. The Wildcats added another run in the top of the fifth inning on an RBI single from Bryce Ortega to open up a 3-0 lead.

After being held to just two hits in the first four innings, Gonzaga finally got the bats going in their half of the fifth inning. Ortiz led off the inning with a lined shot off of a diving Arizona third baseman for double. One batter later Drew Heid earned a walk and after a fly out by Tyson Van Winkle, Anthony Synegal was hit by a pitch to load the bases with two outs for Wiegand. After taking a couple pitches low in the strike zone to run the count 3-2, Wiegand jumped on the next pitch, hammering a ball half way up the batter's eye in straight away centerfield for the grand slam and giving the Zags a 4-3 lead.

The Wildcats answered with two runs in the top of the sixth off of Gonzaga reliever Andy Hunter who had entered the game after starting pitcher Ryan Carpenter had thrown five innings. Steve Selsky brought home two runs with a two-out bases-loaded single through the left side to regain the lead for the Wildcats, 5-4.

Gonzaga came right back with a run in their half of the sixth to tie the game at 5-5. Ortiz reached on a two-out hustle double into left center then was driven home on a RBI base-hit back up the middle by Evan Wells. In the seventh, the Wildcats received a couple gifts from the Bulldog defense to score three runs in the inning. A hit-by-pitch, a wild pitch and a lost fly ball in the sun led to the Arizona runs and gave them an 8-5 lead.

The Zags missed out on a big opportunity in their half of the seventh inning as the first three batters reached base to load the bases. Arizona reliever Daniel Workman was able to limit the damage, getting Mark Castellitto to foul out to first for the first out of the inning. Grant Kveder did follow with a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Van Winkle but that would be the only run to score as Workman got Jason Chatwood to hit into an inning-ending fielder's choice to end the threat.

Gonzaga chipped away at the Arizona lead once more in the seventh as Ortiz was at it again, leading off the inning with his third consecutive double of day. He moved to third on Heid's base-hit to right field and then came home on an Arizona fielding error to cut the Wildcat lead to 8-7.

The Bulldogs made it interesting in the ninth as Castellitto led off the inning with a base-hit past a diving Wildcat third baseman and into left field. Kveder then put down a perfect sacrifice bunt along the third base line and beat the throw at first for the bunt single to put two runners on. Chatwood then chopped a ball to the shortstop, too slow to turn a double play, allowing both runners to move up a base. Ortiz followed with a ground ball to second base and the Arizona second baseman, already playing in to get the runner at the plate, fielded the ball to his right and threw home in time to tag out Castellitto. Wells followed with a hard hit line out to left field to end the ball game.

Reedy Berg (2-3) suffered the loss after allowing the three runs in the seventh. Carpenter struck out three in his five-inning start. Van Winkle saw his eight-game hitting streak come to an end with and 0-for-4 day, he did pick up and RBI and scored one run. Synegal and Kveder each finished with two hits for the Bulldogs.

Next up for Gonzaga is a three-game West Coast Conference series at Santa Clara University this weekend.