SPOKANE, Wash. -- No. 22 Gonzaga baseball hasn't seen the field in a little over two weeks, but the Bulldogs couldn't be returning at a more critical juncture of the season.
 
Starting Friday, this weekend's three-game conference series on the road with fourth-place Portland (21-21, 13-8 WCC) will be the Bulldogs' first action since a 7-5 win against Washington State on April 27, and the beginning of a final stretch that pits them against the other three of the league's top four teams in as many weeks. After Portland, two more conference series with third-place San Francisco (20-22, 15-9) and second-place San Diego (29-10, 15-6) await before the end of a pennant race that will ultimately determine GU's postseason hopes — hopes that national experts are becoming more bullish on in recent weeks.
 
Ranking No. 23 in the nation in RPI and entering D1Baseball.com's Top 25 at No. 21 before the cancellation or postponement of nine games due to COVID protocols, the Zags have won six straight, the nation's eight-longest active streak. 
 
But that streak will be tested on Friday by a Pilots team coming off a series win over Pepperdine and a 10-6 midweek victory over WSU on Tuesday. Both teams squared off in a three-game nonconference series in Spokane in March, a series GU won 2-1, but much has changed since conference play kicked off.
 
Portland's 13-8 record in WCC play is their best through 21 games since 2010, and the best 18-game mark since Geoff Loomis took over as head coach in 2016. In WCC play, Jake Tsukada (.384) and Chad Stevens (.362) currently lead UP in batting average — both combined for just one hit in the first series with the Zags. Stevens leads the team in hits (34), runs (20) and RBI (14) in conference matchups, and his 16 doubles rank 20th in the nation and first in the WCC. On the season, freshman first baseman Sam Brown ranks second on the team in batting average (.327), hits (50), doubles (13) and slugging percentage (.503), ranking first among WCC freshmen in slugging and second in batting average.
 
Friday's game is slated for a 6 p.m. first pitch, with Saturday's matchup starting at 3 p.m. and Sunday's at noon. Live streaming will be available via the WCC Network. Check GoZags.com for up-to-date game day information, live stats and more.
 
Probable Starters
May 14 | 6 p.m. PT  
RHP Alek Jacob (4-1, 3.02 ERA, 56.2 IP, 80 K) vs. RHP Brett Gillis (2-3, 4.91 ERA, 40.1 IP, 58 K) 
 
May 15 | 3 p.m. PT  
RHP William Kempner (2-1, 2.20 ERA, 28.2 IP, 26 K) vs. LHP Brad Mcvay (6-2, 2.98 ERA, 54.1 IP, 59 K) 
 
May 16 | 12 p.m. PT  
TBA vs. TBA
 
Series Review
Since the 2000 season, Gonzaga leads the series 55-14. The Zags won an earlier non-conference matchup against the Pilots in March, dropping the first game 2-0 before taking the second 7-0 and the finale 8-1. Before dropping the 2-0 decision on March 5, GU had strung together 12 straight wins over Portland dating back to 2016. 
 
West Coast Conference Outlook
- During GU's pause, Portland crept into the top spot in strikeouts with 399; the Bulldogs rank tied for second with Saint Mary's with 393, while San Diego ranks fourth with 379.
- The Bulldogs lead the conference in fielding percentage at .983 with 1059 putouts, which ranks eighth. Prior to GU's pause, that number led the WCC. The Zags also have the fewest errors in the league with 24 and rank third in the league in double plays with 28. Last-place Pacific leads the league in double plays with 40.
- The Bulldogs rank second in the WCC in batting average at .285; San Diego leads the league with a .305 average while Pepperdine ranks third at .260.
- The Zags rank second in the WCC in RBI with 235 and in hits with 392; San Diego leads the league in both categories with 273 RBI and 413 hits. 
- Brett Harris leads the league in both batting average at .373 and hits with 56. Harris and Andrew Orzel rank tied for fifth in the WCC with 32 RBI each, while Tyler Rando ranks tied for 14th with 26. Ernie Yake also ranks within the top 20 in the league with 25 RBI.
- GU ranks second in the WCC in runs with 272, trailing only San Diego with 297. San Francisco ranks third with 249.
- Gonzaga was picked to finish second in the WCC behind Pepperdine.
 
Nationally Speaking…
Gonzaga earned its first national ranking of the season on April 26, earning a No. 21 spot in D1Baseball.com's Top 25 rankings. The Zags finished the week with an unblemished 4-0 record, starting with a Tuesday afternoon win at Washington (April 20) and ending with a series sweep over BYU at Patterson Baseball Complex and Coach Steve Hertz Field (April 22-24). Another home win, this time against Washington State to sweep the two-game season series, made it six in a row before the program's COVID pause left to slip one spot to No. 22 in this week's order.
 
Last week, GU was scheduled to face Oregon, which clocked in at No. 15 in this week's Top 25, in a three-game non-conference series that would wield massive national implications for seeding and RPI in potential NCAA Regional matchups. Those games were cancelled, but the two will meet in a single game on May 15 in Eugene, Ore.


Gonzaga earned its first-ever national ranking during the 1971 season, earning a No. 15 ranking by Collegiate Baseball. GU's highest-ever national ranking came in the 1980 season when the Bulldogs were ranked ninth by Collegiate Baseball. Since 2010, Gonzaga has been ranked 19 times, reaching as high as 19th in both Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball national rankings. This season, GU has five wins over ranked opponents (Dallas Baptist, TCU and Oregon State), and is one of only three teams in the country to take a series from the Horned Frogs — the other two are projected National seeds Texas Tech and Texas.
 
National Notables 
- Currently the Zags are 23rd in the RPI rankings (for games through May 13) and rank the highest out of any WCC team. San Diego slots in next at 74th, while San Francisco ranks 119th.
- Brett Harris has been hit by pitches 19 times on the year, tying for fifth-most nationally. In total, GU batters have been hit by pitches 82 times this spring; that number also ties for fifth in the country and leads the West Coast Conference.
- The Bulldogs also rank among the top 10 nationally in fielding percentage with a .983 average. That number ranks sixth nationally.
- Gonzaga's seven shutouts this season tie for fourth-most in Division I.
 
Zags at a Glance
- Brett Harris leads the Zags in batting average (.373) and OPS (1.047), while Ernie Yake ranks second with a .316 average. 
- Tyler Rando leads the fielding effort with a team-high 276 putouts with 14 assists and a .997 fielding percentage. Andrew Orzel ranks second with 174 putouts, 34 assists and a .995 fielding percentage while Guthrie Morrison has 100 putouts.
- On the mound, Alek Jacob leads the team and ranks second in the West Coast Conference in strikeouts with 80 with a 3.02 ERA, good for sixth. Gabriel Hughes ranks second on the team and fifth in the conference with 67 Ks in 61.1 innings pitched.
- The Zags have had multiple conference Player of the Week and Pitcher of the Week honors this season. Grayson Sterling was the most recent Zag to earn WCC Player of the Week, joining Brett Harris (April 19) and Stephen Lund (March 16) who have also earned the nod. This was the first week in nearly a month that a Zag thrower didn't take home WCC Pitcher of the Week honors.
-GU earned three straight WCC Pitcher of the Week awards from April 5-19: Alek Jacob won on April 5 and 19th, and Gabriel Hughes took it home on April 12. Hughes was also named Pitcher of the Week back on March 23, while William Kempner was named Pitcher of the Week on March 9. 
 
Brett Harris has CLASS
Infielder Brett Harris was named as one of 10 finalists nationwide for the Senior CLASS Award, an honor bestowed on an NCAA Division I senior baseball player that has notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. The Senior CLASS Award recipient will be announced during the 2021 College World Series in June — read about Harris' work last fall as a student teacher 
 
Ernie Yake Named to 2021 Brooks Wallace Award Watch List
On April 30, Gonzaga shortstop Ernie Yake was named to the 100-man watch list for the 2021 Brooks Wallace Award, given annually to college baseball's best shortstop. A condensed Wallace Award watch list will be released at a later date, with the final winners' announcement yet to be determined.