SURPRISE, Ariz. — Gonzaga baseball found itself locked in a defensive battle in its season opener against New Mexico at the Sanderson Ford Collegiate Baseball Classic Friday evening at Surprise Stadium, but a huge walkoff in the ninth from Ezra Samperi brought in the winning run to lift the Bulldogs to a 3-2 win in dramatic fashion.
Samperi's two-out drive came in his first career game in a Zags uniform, giving GU a 1-0 start with a season-opening win over UNM (0-2) for the second straight year. GU's 4-3 win over the Lobos in 2021 was completed in similar fashion, with a walkoff RBI double from Andrew Orzel scoring Stephen Lund to break the tie in the bottom of the ninth.
"Very solid win on opening day," said GU Head Coach Mark Machtolf. "I thought our guys did a good job of battling when things didn't necessarily go perfect. Great job on the mound from Hughes and Spellacy, only 1 free base was a big reason we came away with that win.
"Happy for Ezra to have such a huge hit in his Zag debut!"
The Bulldogs got a dominant start from their No. 1 guy in righthander Gabriel Hughes, who recovered from the Lobos' two-run second to hold them to just two hits through the rest of his six innings on the mound, striking out 10 and only walking one in the process. Of his 96 pitches on the day, 63 were strikes.
GU tied the game up in the fifth when Mason Marenco and Jack Machtolf scored on a wild pitch and a groundout from Connor Coballes, respectively, but didn't find the game-winner until late while resisting multiple pushes from UNM's hitters.
After taking the mound in the seventh, Michael Spellacy threw two K's without a walk while holding UNM scoreless for three more innings, despite the Lobos reaching scoring position in each frame.
Samperi, Grayson Sterling, Marenco and Machtolf all picked up a hit apiece for GU, with Marenco scoring two of the Zags' three runs and Machtolf scoring the third. Samperi and Coballes both finished with an RBI each in the winning effort.
The Action
GU picked up three quick outs to start the first frame, with Apodaca collecting a popup from Adam Schneider in center field, Hughes striking out Kamron Willman, and Coballes snagging a foul drive off the third base line to move into the bottom of the inning without any advance. But the Lobos' defense responded in kind with the top of the Zags' lineup, with Egloff striking out Apodaca and Lund in succession before Sterling was put out at first.
In UNM's two-run second, Jeffrey David picked up the first base hit with a blooper to left field at the top of the second, and Kyle Landers moved him to third with a deep double to the left field corner. Justin Olson followed up with another deep drive that bounced off the left field wall to score the first runs of the game and put the Lobos up 2-0.
Hughes responded with three consecutive strikeouts to end the frame without any more damage, and he only gained momentum as the game continued.
Neither team picked up a hit again until David doubled down the right field line in the top of the fourth, but Hughes collected a popup from Landers before striking out Olson and Willie Cano swinging to end the frame. Hughes kept rolling in the fifth, striking out Shan Podsednik and Lance Russell to make it four consecutive K's before Schneider was put out at first to end the frame.
GU's offense shifted gears in the next frame, finding the runs to equalize after getting their first hit of the season from Marenco, a single that split down the middle. Up next, Jack Machtolf extracted a walk to push him to second without any outs on the board, and Ezra Samperi connected on a high chopper to load the bases and threaten to cut into the Lobos' lead. A wild pitch scored Marenco in the next at-bat, and a groundout from Coballes got Machtolf home to tie the game at 2-all.
UNM's Lenny Ashby picked up a walk off Hughes to start the inning and moved to scoring position on a wild pitch, but the righthander cracked double-digit strikeouts on the day with consecutive K's on David and Landers to end another frame in shutdown fashion.
Sterling connected on hit No. 2 for the Zags with two outs in the bottom of the inning, going on to reach second base on a play that was as much a wild pitch as a steal. But a groundout to first from Marenco ended the inning with the score still even, and the Zags still searching for an advantage.
Spellacy took the mound in the seventh, weathering two more hits from the Lobos before Apodaca snagged a fly to center field that ended the inning with two runners stranded on base. He kept rolling in the eighth and ninth, striking out two more batters to undo a single and stolen base from Ashby in the eight before three outs with balls in play got him out of the ninth with a clean sheet.
Deep into the bottom of the ninth, Marenco got aboard with a walk and stole second after strikeouts from Machtolf and a lineout from Sterling left no room for error, and Kramer was hit by a pitch in the ensuing at-bat, leading UNM to make a pitching change and turn to RHP B Russell.
With the Zags facing extra innings, Samperi came up to bat next, delivering a deep drive that scored Marenco to end the game with a GU win.
Play of the Game
Series at a Glance
With the win, Gonzaga is now 7-4 against the Lobos all-time, having won three straight. Their last five matchups have all been neutral site games at Surprise Stadium, of which the Zags have won four.
Up Next
The Zags are set for a doubleheader on Saturday with their first matchup against Oregon State and a rematch with New Mexico. GU faced both teams in Surprise last year, defeating the Lobos 4-3 before falling to OSU 20-4. The Bulldogs' date with the Beavers is the first of four this season, with GU set to face them twice in Corvallis April 18-19.
RHP William Kempner is the Zags' probable starter against OSU RHP Jake Pfennings, while Zags LHP Bradley Mullan is slated to take the mound against Lobos RHP Miguel Reyes Jr. in the second half of the doubleheader.
Follow the Game
GU will face Oregon State at 11 a.m. and New Mexico at 4 p.m. Saturday (both times PST). Live stats and streaming options are available on GoZags.com — follow @zagbaseball on Instagram and Twitter for live updates, highlights and more.
