SPOKANE, Wash. — Gonzaga baseball got a two-run homer from
Troy Johnston and 2.2 hitless innings from
Trent Schulte to close an 8-5 win over Washington State on Tuesday night in Spokane, Wash.
Gonzaga (20-17) jumped out to a 5-2 lead and then answered the Cougars (8-28-1) after WSU had tied it at 5-5 with three runs over their own.
On offense, the Zags got two hits each from Johnston and
Austin Pinorini, including a two-run homer and two runs scored by Johnston.
Josh Bristyan and
Slade Heggen each had two RBI in the game.
On the mound, the starter
Justin Blatner went the first 4.1 innings, allowing four runs on seven hits.
Daniel Naughton came on in relief and threw 2.0 innings of one-run ball before giving way to Schulte, who finished the game. The left-hander didn't allow a hit over 2.2 innings and walked just one to get his second save of the season.
Gonzaga got off to a quick start with three runs in the second and two more in the third to take a 5-2 lead. Bristyan provided the offense in the second with a hard-hit two-run double down the left field line. GU got one more on a fielder's choice off the bat of Heggen.
Then in the third, Johnston came to the plate with one aboard and promptly deposited the first pitch of the at-bat over the right field fence for his second home run of the season.
WSU battled back to tie the score at five-all with three in the fifth, but GU answered with two in the sixth and one in the seventh. Heggen did more damage with another RBI on a single and then later scored on a wild pitch to cap the sixth.
Nick Nyquist added a sacrifice fly for an 8-5 GU lead through seven innings.
Schulte came on in the seventh and shut down the Cougar offense the rest of the way to get the save.
Gonzaga will be back home on Friday night with the start of a three-game series against San Francisco at 7 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPNU. Check GoZags.com for links to live coverage.