April 25, 2009

Box Score

SANTA CLARA. Calif. - Gonzaga University scored three runs in the 11th inning to post a 12-10 11-inning victory over Santa Clara University Saturday night to move into a three-way first place tie atop the West Coast Conference standings with Loyola Marymount University and the University of San Diego. LMU lost its game at Saint Mary's and USD beat Portland down in San Diego, Calif.

The Bulldogs (27-13, 9-5 WCC) had to rally twice in the game, using a two-out game-tying home run from Mark Castellitto in the ninth before scoring three runs in the games' final frame to earn the win over the Broncos (15-23, 4-10 WCC) for the second straight day.

Jason Chatwood, Jason Chatwood and Tyson Van Winkle also added home runs for the Zags who had eight players each record at least two hits. Castellitto and Chatwood each scored three times as the Bulldogs posted a win in their first extra inning game of the season.

The Bulldogs and Broncos each put up single runs in the first inning as Drew Heid tripled to right field and later came home on a Van Winkle base-hit to left field. SCU then used two doubles to bring a run across off of Gonzaga starter AJ Proszek and even the score at 1-1.

Synegal gave the Zags a 2-1 lead with his solo blast to left field to lead off the second inning. The Bulldogs would had two more runs in the inning as Castellitto followed Synegal with single to centerfield and Chatwood later produced a one-out single to left to put two runners on. After an Ernesto Ortiz fly out, Evan Wells came through with a two-out two-run double to right field to bring both runners across and build the GU lead to 4-1.

After Chatwood added to the Gonzaga lead with a solo home run in the fourth, Santa Clara was able to answer with a run in their half of the inning to make it a 5-2 ball game through four complete innings. In the fifth, Grant Kveder's bases-loaded infield single brought run across for the Zags to make it 6-2 but SCU used three hits, three walks and a hit-by-pitch to score three runs and cut the Zags lead to 6-5.

The two teams traded runs twice more in the seventh in and eighth innings as Castellitto picked up an RBI with a sacrifice fly in the seventh and Heid added an RBI base-hit to left in the eighth for the Zags. Santa Clara would not go away, answering with single a single run in the seventh and then scored three runs in the eighth inning to take a 9-8 lead heading into the ninth.

Santa Clara reliever J.R. Graham retired the first two Bulldogs to start the ninth inning before Castellitto came to plate and launched his team-leading seventh homer over the left field fence to tie the game at 9-9.

Gonzaga reliever Cody Martin retired the Broncos in the order in the ninth to send the game into extra innings. Both teams were then held hitless in the 10th inning before Van Winkle hit his fourth long ball of the season with one out in the 11th to give the Zags a 10-9 lead. Gonzaga then added two very important insurance runs in the inning on Kveder's RBI single and a SCU wild pitch to build a 12-10 lead.

Santa Clara did get a run back in the bottom of the inning but Martin (4-4) struck out David Abraham to end the game and give the Bulldogs the win.

Gonzaga will wrap its weekend series with the Broncos 1 p.m. Sunday.