Box Score April 28, 2018 Box Score
SPOKANE, Wash. -- Gonzaga baseball came through with clutch at-bats on offense and then turned it over to closer
Casey Legumina for a 3.0-inning save to win 5-3 over Loyola Marymount on Saturday night at Patterson Baseball Complex and Washington Trust Field.
After giving up three in the third inning to fall behind by a run, GU (21-19, 11-9) battled back on offense and shut out LMU (20-23, 12-8) over the last six innings. Gonzaga scored single runs in the fourth, fifth and eighth on the way to the win.
GU starter Alek Jacob pitched the Zags into a lead, working his way through 6.0 innings, giving up three runs on seven hits while striking out three and walking one. He gave way to Legumina, who blew away the LMU hitters with six strikeouts in his three innings of work for his league-leading 11th save the year.
Freshman Ernie Yake led the way on offense with a 3-for-4 night that included two runs scored and a stolen base. Austin Pinorini had two hits and reached four times, adding an RBI and a run scored, and Branson Trube knocked home a pair of runs.
"We had a lot of quality at-bats tonight, and did a good job being ready to go right away," associate head coach Danny Evans said. "I thought a really understated performance was Alek Jacob, he really leaned on what he's been doing all year and battled through some things tonight. He did a really good job getting it to Casey [Legumina]. And he's one of the best guys in the country in the end of the game. Casey's got electric stuff, and he's just been ready when his name is called. Some nights it's a one-inning save, sometimes its two or three like tonight."
The Zags got on the board right away posting a pair of runs in the bottom of the first to give Jacob an early cushion. Trube brought home one with an RBI groundout and then Pinorini got his big day started with an RBI single on a line drive to centerfield.
LMU took the lead with a three-spot in the top of the third, but GU answered with single runs in the fourth and fifth to go ahead 4-3. Designated hitter Slade Heggen tied it with his first RBI as a Zag on a single past the diving LMU shortstop. Then in the fifth, Yake trotted home on a wild pitch to regain the lead.
GU added another run in the eighth to push the lead to 5-3 on a bases loaded fielder's choice from Trube before turning the ball over to Legumina for the ninth. The righty closer nearly had the perfect inning, striking out the first two batters on three pitches and then working an 0-2 count before a foul ball prolonged the third strikeout by two pitches.
The Zags and Lions will play the series finale at 12 p.m. at Patterson Baseball Complex and Washington Trust Field. Live coverage will be available on GoZags.com, while the game will also be broadcast locally on SWX.
