LUBBOCK, Texas — Gonzaga Baseball found some offensive synergy in the fourth and final game of its season-opening series with No. 24 Texas Tech on Monday afternoon at Rip Griffin Park, with the Bulldogs (0-4) slamming three homers and leaning on a tightened defensive outing to pull ahead late but ultimately falling on a ninth-inning base on balls that allowed the Red Raiders (4-0) to clinch the series sweep.
The combined three no-doubters on Monday is more than in any regular season game GU played in 2022, and the most in a game since the Bulldogs slammed five against LMU in the WCC Tournament on May 26, 2022.
Dylan Johnson,
Brian Kalmer and
Cade McGee all slammed no-doubters — Kalmer and McGee for multiple runs — to keep pace with Tech through eight frames, with the Zags outhitting their opponent 9-8 until the Red Raiders picked up a pair of hits in the bottom of the ninth to set up the winning run. McGee drove in five of GU's runs and scored two more in a 3-for-5 effort that also saw him pitch the final two frames of the game, striking out two.
Kalmer and Apodaca both finished with a pair of knocks each, with Kalmer driving in two runs with his seventh-frame slam and Apodaca scoring a pair of runs.
Brock Bozett, despite going hitless, reached base three times on a pair of errors and a walk, scoring a pair of runs himself in the process.
RHP
Ty Buckner (4.2 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, 6 BB, 3K) went the longest of any GU pitcher this weekend, holding the Red Raiders scoreless for three consecutive frames after a two-spot in the first. RHP
Payton Graham (1.1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 K) and RHP
Kai Francis (1 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 0 K) took over in relief before McGee (1.1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 5 BB, 2 K) closed out the rest of the game.
The Zags hit the road again this weekend for two games each with Grand Canyon and Ohio State in Phoenix, Ariz., with GU set to open with Ohio State on Friday at 1 p.m.
The Action
A day after going hitless until the sixth inning of Game Three, Gonzaga got some base traffic going early in the finale, with the first three batters in GU's lineup reaching base in succession to put up the first run. A catcher's interference call pushed Apodaca to first to start things off and
Connor Coballes followed up with a single before McGee put the Zags on the board with an RBI double.
Three consecutive outs following kept the Bulldogs from capitalizing further, and a two-spot from the Red Raiders retook the lead after Buckner allowed the first four batters he faced aboard in the bottom of the frame. The grad transfer RHP kept things calm from that point on, though, only allowing a pair of hits through the rest of his time on the mound and tossing three scoreless frames in succession.
GU retook the lead in the fourth, thanks to a game-tying solo homer from
Dylan Johnson — Johnson's first of the season and GU's third of the weekend — and a throwing error that gave Borck Bozett time to get home from third after Apodaca pushed him there with a single. Bozett's score cued a pitching change for the Red Raiders, who turned to RHP Brandon Beckel in relief.
Buckner continued to keep things difficult in the bottom of the frame, holding Tech hitless with just one walk. But after the Zags went hitless themselves in the fifth, the Red Raiders finally broke the scoring drought with an RBI single from Kevin Bazell that tied things up again
RHP
Payton Graham entered the game in relief, allowing another run across on an RBI double from Hudson White to break the tie but inducing a flyout to end the frame.
Apodaca and Bozett got things going for the Zags again in the top of the sixth, with Bozett reaching on an error and Apodaca singling to push him to third before a grounder from Coballes nullified the momentum. Tech stretched the lead to two with a solo homer from Gage Harrelson in the bottom of the frame, but Graham induced a fly ball from Bazell to get out without any further damage.
Suddenly needing a surge to keep pace, the Zags got exactly that from their two most prolific power hitters in the next inning. McGee singled to start the frame and Kalmer hit his second homer of the weekend — a scorcher that sailed over the center field wall — to tie things up yet again, before three consecutive groundouts kept the Bulldogs from advancing any further.
Francis entered the game in the bottom of the frame, giving up an RBI triple that gave the Red Raiders the lead again but managing to induce a fly ball to get himself out of a jam with two outs and runners on second and third.
After Samperi flew out to open the eighth, Bozett reached base the third time of the day — despite still being hitless on the day — to again bring up Apodaca with a favorable situation at hand. Another catcher's interference call got Apodaca aboard and pushed Bozett to scoring position, with a flyout from Coballes getting him to third with McGee up to bat and two outs on the board.
McGee delivered in dramatic fashion, blasting the Zags' third homer — this time a three-runner — to put GU up by two. But three consecutive grounders in the next three at-bats held the Zags short of padding the lead yet again, and Tech wasn't going away just yet. After an RBI double to right center from Harrelson pushed Nolen Hester all the way home from first after drawing a walk, McGee moved from third to the mound to take over in relief, picking up a K and inducing a grounder to get out of a bases-loaded jam after a sac fly tied the score for the fifth time of the game.
Tyler Griggs, who replaced McGee at third in the prior inning, struck out to begin the final frame before
Sam Canton drew a walk. Canton stole second with Pinales at the plate to reach scoring position with two outs on the board, but Samperi struck out to keep the game tied heading into the bottom of the ninth.
A double and a single to start the final frame put the Bulldogs' backs against the wall with runners on second and third and nobody out. McGee struck out Harrelson for the first out, but Green drew a bases-loaded walk to complete the rally and win, 9-8.
Play of the Game
Up Next / Follow the Game
The Zags hit the road again this weekend for two games each with Grand Canyon and Ohio State in Phoenix, Ariz., with GU set to open with Ohio State on Friday at 1 p.m. Probable mound starters are to be determined. Live stats and streaming options are available on GoZags.com — follow @ZagBaseball on Instagram and Twitter for live updates, highlights and more.
