SPOKANE, Wash. — A hot start proved to be all Gonzaga needed in its series finale with Saint Mary's at Patterson Baseball Complex and Coach Steve Hertz Field Sunday afternoon as the Zags defeated SMC 2-1 for the series win.
 
After earning two runs in the first frame, the Zags didn't score again, and ultimately didn't need to, holding on for a 2-1 win as the game shifted into a battle between pitching staffs highlighted by another shutdown outing from Zags starter William Kempner.
 
The 6'0 freshman righty gained momentum frame by frame, striking out three and holding the Gaels (14-15, 4-8 WCC) to five hits in just over six frames of work. GU's fielders took care of the rest, collecting 12 groundouts to keep Saint Mary's scoreless through the first four for the third game in a row.
 
On the other side of the ball, GU's lineup followed Saturday's record-breaking 21-hit performance with a more subdued outing, led by Guthrie Morrison and Mason Marenco with two hits apiece. Brett Harris drove in a run to lead four other Zags who finished with one hit.
 
The Bulldogs (19-12, 9-3 WCC) produced all of their offense in the game's first three at-bats — Yake was walked as leadoff hitter and Morrison tripled in the next at-bat for a 1-0 game with no outs. A sac fly from Harris came next, getting Morrison home to make it 2-0.
 
The Zags loaded the bases in the fourth, fifth and eighth, but timely putouts from SMC's infield closed each inning before they could make a difference in the score. 
 
"[Saturday] we had so many clutch, two-out RBI's and today we just had runners in scoring position a ton and just didn't bring them home," Head Coach Mark Machtolf said. "So that's just baseball. You gotta win all kinds of ways."
 
The Gaels got within one in the seventh, with Eric Smelko flying out to center field for a score from Nick Mistone, but relievers Bradley Mullan (one K, one walk, 0 hits) and Brody Jessee (3 K's, one walk, one hit) finished the game without giving up a tying run.
 
With two outs and runners on base for Saint Mary's, Jessee threw three strikes in a row in the game's final at-bat to secure the series win.
 
Inside the Series
After snapping a four-game losing streak to the Gaels Saturday night and winning again on Sunday, Gonzaga is now 47-29 against Saint Mary's all-time and winners of two straight against them for the first time since 2017.
 
Next Up
The Zags head to Pullman, Wash., for a weekday matchup against local rival Washington State. The Cougars (15-11, 3-8) are coming off a 2-1 series win against Utah, their first series win since topping Seattle U in the first weekend of March.
 
Follow the Game
Live streaming will be available on GoZags.com, with Tuesday's start set for 3:05 p.m.