Gonzaga Baseball heads to Rocky Top for its most high-profile series of the nonconference schedule this weekend, with the Zags (1-7) slated for three games with No. 3 Tennessee at Lindsey Nelson Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn.

The Volunteers (8-2) are winners of eight straight after dropping their first two games of the season, including a pair of wins at home vs. Alabama A&M, a three-game sweep of Dayton and two more midweek wins against Charleston Southern on Tuesday and Wednesday. Head Coach Tony Vitello's squad is the favorite to repeat as SEC Champs, receiving 12 of 13 possible first-place votes in the preseason coaches' poll. 

UT finished the regular season in 2022 as the consensus No. 1 team in most polls and RPI rankings and earned the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, ultimately falling in a three-game Super Regional to Notre Dame. 

Gonzaga sits at 1-7 through a grueling first two weekends of action, with six of its first eight games as road matchups with Top-60 RPI opponents. The Zags dropped one-run games against Texas Tech and Grand Canyon and led by multiple runs late against the Lopes in both matchups before costly errors and late rallies in the bottom of the eighth undid both leads. 

GU's middle of the order is batting for power at a historic rate, with more homers between Cade McGee and Brian Kalmer alone (7) in the Zags' first eight games than any other GU team has combined for to start the season since 2010. The Bulldogs have eight batters above .300, with a pair of new entries to the lineup in sophomore Tommy Eisenstat and freshman Sam Stem batting .428 and .357, respectively, in their first three starts against Grand Canyon and Ohio State.

Head Coach Mark Machtolf's Bulldogs earned a program-best No. 10 ranking and their second straight year with a win in the NCAA Tournament in 2022  — the first time in program history the Zags have done so under the current format  — after appearing as a #2 seed in the 2022 Blacksburg Regional. The Bulldogs were eliminated by #3-seed Columbia in Game Three after rallying to eliminate #4-seed Wright State in Game Two. The Zags are defending WCC Regular Season Champions and repeat favorites for the second straight season, matching their best record in conference play (20-7) the past two seasons.

All three of Gonzaga's matchups with Tennessee will be streamed on ESPN+. Live stats for the games can be accessed by clicking on the live stats link located on the baseball schedule page on GoZags.com.

GONZAGA (1-7) VS. TENNESSEE (8-2)
Lindsey Nelson Stadium | Knoxville, Tenn.
March 3, 3:30 p.m.: Live Stats | Stream
March 4, 3 p.m.: Live Stats | Stream
March 5, 10 a.m. Live Stats | Stream

ALL-TIME SERIES
This will be the first matchup between Gonzaga and Tennessee, and the second straight season the Zags have faced an SEC foe after defeating Missouri last year. Before that, the last SEC foe GU faced was a four-game series at Arkansas in 2020. The Zags are 15-15 all-time against SEC opponents and 33-39 since 2016 against opponents that made the NCAA Tournament the year prior.

PROBABLE STARTERS
March 3 | 12 p.m. PST  
RHP Owen Wild (11.1 IP, 0-1, 3.97 ERA) vs. RHP Chase Dollander (10.1 IP, 1-1,  3.48 ERA)
March 4  | 12 p.m. PST  
RHP Jacob Rutherford (8.1 IP, 1-0, 8.64 ERA) vs. RHP Chase Burns (11 IP, 1-0, 2.45 ERA)
March 5 | 12 p.m. PST
TBA vs. RHP Drew Beam (11.1 IP, 2-0, 0.00 ERA)

LAST TIME OUT
- The Zags picked up their first win against Ohio State to open their weekend in Phoenix thanks to a breakout performance from Tommy Eisenstat, who smacked a two-hit pinch-hit double in the 10th inning to drive in the winning runs.
- GU dropped a pair of heartbreakers to Grand Canyon on Feb. 24 and 25, up 4-2 in the middle of the eighth in game one and up 16-11 in the middle of the eighth in game two before late surges undid GU's work. The Lopes put up 11 and 6 runs in the bottom of the eighth in both of those games to finish the weekend undefeated.
- The Bulldogs flexed their offensive capabilities in their second game with the Lopes, racking up 16 runs on 19 hits with three doubles and two homers.
- GU's bats didn't get going until late in their second game with Ohio State, with a four-spot in the seventh from the Buckeyes sealing the deal in a 8-2 setback.

ZAGS SWINGING HOT BATS
- The Zags' batters that have played in at least 75% of their games so far this season are batting .297 combined, with nine team homers and 24 extra base hits between them. Four GU players are hitting above .300 through eight games.
- GU batted at a .304 clip over the past weekend, with 11.5 hits and 8.3 runs per game.
- The Zags have drawn at least three walks in seven of their eight games so far and homered in six, homering multiple times twice.
- Cade McGee has homered in each of his last four games, ranking No. 27 among RBI leaders in the nation with 13 and No. 13 in total homers (4). The sophomore is slugging at a .906 clip and 1.432 OPS.
- Brian Kalmer is just behind with 12 RBI, batting .364 with three homers and five doubles.
- The seven homers just between Kalmer and McGee are more than any Gonzaga team has combined for through the first eight games of the season. The duo went yard on back-to-back at-bats against Grand Canyon on Feb. 25.
- Enzo Apodaca moved from leadoff to the 2-hole for the first time in his career, hitting a double and a triple and driving in a pair of runs in the first game of the weekend. The redshirt sophomore batted .375 with one RBI leading off the order for four games vs Texas Tech and batted .250 in four games in the No. 2 spot but drove in six runs and drew four walks. He's tripled at least once in each weekend.

WILD KEEPING IT DIFFICULT
-Wild didn't give up an earned run in a seven-frame start against Grand Canyon on Feb. 24, looking sharp in his second start while only giving up three hits in that span and striking out six. 
- The 6-1 righty was named a Preseason All-American by Collegiate Baseball News and a Preseason All-WCC pitcher to open the season.
- Initially appearing as a reliever last spring before taking over as a starter in the absence of William Kempner due to injury in 2022, Wild gained momentum as the season went on, accumulating a 9-1 record to go with a team-best 3.03 ERA and 83 strikeouts in 16 appearances. Wild's breakout year culminated in an All-Blacksburg Regional Team nod after pitching six shutout innings of relief to help cue a Bulldogs rally in an NCAA Tournament game against Wright State, as well as All-WCC Tournament and All-WCC Honorable Mention honors.

NEWCOMERS IMPRESS
- Tommy Eisenstat and Sam Stem both played their way into starting roles over the weekend, with Eisenstat hitting a game-winning double in his only at-bat of the game vs. Ohio State on Feb. 24 and Stem making his first appearance in the same game before going 2-for-4 in his first start against GCU with a double and a run driven in, incluing hits in his first two at-bats.
- Eisenstat picked up a hit in all four games on the weekend, batting .428 in those games while driving in four runs.
- Stem batted .357 in the same four games, going 3-for-4 and scoring a run in the Zags' weekend finale on Feb. 26.
- Tyler Griggs made his first start at second base against Grand Canyon and went  1-for-2 with a pair of runs, going 1-for-3 against Grand Canyon to bat .400 on the weekend with double play, five putouts and 12 assists with just on error in that span.

SEASON-OPENING NOTES / EARLY RETURNS
- Gonzaga was picked to win its third straight WCC Crown in the 2023 Coaches' Poll, receiving 6 of 10 first-place votes. San Diego, which won the 2023 WCC Tournament to get an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, earned the other four.
-A league-leading four Zags were named to the WCC Preseason Team, with Grayson Sterling, Savier Pinales, Cade McGee and Owen Wild all earning nods.
- GU is coming off a program-best No. 10 ranking and its second straight year with a win in the NCAA Tournament in 2022  — the first time in program history the Zags have done so since 1984 — after appearing as a #2 seed in the 2022 Blacksburg Regional. The Bulldogs were eliminated by #3-seed Columbia in Game Three after rallying to eliminate #4-seed Wright State in Game Two.
The Zags are defending WCC Regular Season Champions for the second straight season after winning their sixth WCC title in 2022, matching their best record in conference play (20-7) the past two seasons as well as cracking thirty wins for the sixth consecutive full season. Since 2016, GU has the most regular-season conference wins (112), the highest regular season conference winning percentage (.691), the most WCC Tourney appearances (5), Regular or Tournament Championships (5) and Regional appearances (4) among West Coast Conference teams.
- The Zags return 22 players from 2022 (38 on roster).
- Owen Wild was named a Preseason Second Team All-American by Collegiate Baseball News. GU was ranked No. 38 nationally in Collegiate Baseball's Preseason Poll, and received votes in the USA Today Preseason Coaches' Poll.

'MADE-FOR-RPI' SCHEDULE
- 13 of GU's 19 opponents in 2023 finished last season in the Top 150 in the NCAA's final RPI ranking, with two of those opponents  — Tennessee and Oregon State — finishing No. 1 and No. 2 in those final rankings before hosting NCAA Regionals. GU will play 22 games that currently project as Quad 1 and Quad 2 games.
- After four games with the Raiders, GU faced Grand Canyon and Ohio State in Phoenix before hosting UC Irvine and heading to Minnesota for multiple games each before entering WCC play.
- Other highlights include a three-game series with 2022 College World Series Runner-Up Oklahoma in Spokane and a two-game midweek matchup with Oregon in Eugene.
- Zags will have a pair of crucial home series back-to-back with BYU (March 30-April 1) and 2022 WCC Tournament Champions and NCAA Regional qualifiers San Diego (April 6-8) coming to Patterson.
- A road trip to Corvallis, Ore. for two midweek games with Oregon State is up next on April 10-11, marking the 13th and 14th time they've squared off in the last five years. The Zags went 1-3 against the Beavs in 2022, dropping a pair of neutral site games in Surprise to start the year but splitting a pair on the road, with GU's 13-6 win becoming their highest-ranked win in history.

OWEN WILD NAMED PRESEASON ALL-AMERICAN
- Gonzaga RHP Owen Wild was named a Preseason Second Team All-American by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, the outlet announced.
- The honor makes it back-to-back years that a GU pitcher picks up preseason All-America honors from the outlet after Gabriel Hughes did the same in 2022. 
Initially appearing as a reliever last spring before taking over as a starter in the absence of William Kempner due to injury, Wild gained momentum as the season went on, accumulating a 9-1 record to go with a team-best 3.03 ERA and 83 strikeouts in 16 appearances. Wild's breakout year culminated in an All-Blacksburg Regional Team nod after pitching six shutout innings of relief to help cue a Bulldogs rally in an NCAA Tournament game against Wright State, as well as All-WCC Tournament and All-WCC Honorable Mention honors.
-Wild's .900 career winning percentage entering 2023 is the highest of any GU pitcher with at least 10 games of record, and the fourth-highest in a single season.

PITCHING OUTLOOK
- The Zags lost three starters (Gabriel Hughes, William Kempner and Trystan Vrieling) and a crucial reliever (Brody Jessee) to the MLB Draft as well as two more (Michael Spellacy and Nico Zeglin) to graduation, but return RHP Owen Wild (9-1 in 2022, 3.03 ERA), moved into the Friday starting role after a strong finish to 2022 that saw him pick up All-WCC Tournament and All-Blacksburg Regional honors. 
- GU brings in some experienced newcomers in RHP Ty Buckner (Missouri St transfer, ) and RHP Jeff Nelson, who was the NWAC Pitcher of the Year in 2022 at Mt. Hood CC (Ore.).
- Jacob Rutherford held opposing batters to a .169 average in 2022, the third-best in a single season in program history. He earned his first win of the season vs. Ohio State on Friday with 2.2 innings of relief.
- Blue-chip freshmen Payton Graham (No. 8 overall recruit in WA on Perfect Game, No. 5 RHP) and Matthew Mueller (No. 1 LHP in WI, No. 12 overall) both have seen action.

RETURNER-FILLED LINEUP
- GU returns 5 of its top 6 hitters by average from last spring, led by 2022 Freshman All-American Cade McGee, Savier Pinales, Grayson Sterling, Enzo Apodaca and Ezra Samperi, who all started more than 30 games each last season.
- The Zags get back starters at every position except first base, including WCC Defensive Player of the Year Connor Coballes at shortstop, who finished the season ranked among the Top 50 in the nation's toughest to strike out and 130 assists to just 7 errors.
- DH Brian Kalmer, the 2022 NJCAA Player of the Year out of Wabash Valley, brings some power to the lineup to help replace the loss of 2022 All-WCC C/DH Tyler Rando to graduation. Kalmer batted .421 to go with 20 homers and 109 RBI against JuCo opponents in 2022.

2022 HIGHLIGHTS  
- The Zags' 37 wins match the fifth-most in program history and are the most under Head Coach Mark Machtolf. The 37 victories are also the most in 32 years when GU won 37 games in 1990.
- The Bulldogs appeared in the NCAA Tournament for the 12th time in program history, and for the fourth time in the last six tournaments (2022, 2021, 2018, 2016).
- The Zags clinched their second straight regular season conference title and the sixth in program history. GU has won either the WCC's regular season or tournament title in five of the last six seasons.
- The Bulldogs appeared in the NCAA Tournament for the 12th time in program history, and for the fourth time in the last six tournaments (2022, 2021, 2018, 2016).
- Mark Machtolf was named the WCC Coach of the Year, while Connor Coballes and Cade McGee were named the league's Defensive Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year. Machtolf earned the honor for the fifth time, and second straight season, and for the third time since 2017. 
- Gonzaga won all nine of its West Coast Conference series  in 2022, finishing 20-7 in conference play. It marked the first time the Bulldogs have ever won every WCC series in a season since joining the league in 1996. The Zags lost only one weekend series this season, dropping a pair of games to Long Beach State on the road in March.
- GU matched its record for most West Coast Conference wins in a season at 20. The Bulldogs were 20-7 in WCC play in 2017, 2021, and 2022.
- The Bulldogs were 10th in the country with six shutouts and seventh with 10.7 strikeouts per nine innings. They led the WCC in both of those stat categories. GU was 15th in the nation in Earned Run Average (3.95) and 19th in Fielding Percentage (.979).
- The Bulldogs' No. 10 ranking was the highest under Mark Machtolf's 19 seasons at the helm.
- GU boasted three wins over Top-5 teams, going 4-1 versus Top-10 competition, including a 13-6 victory at No. 2 Oregon State on April 18, the highest-ranked foe the Zags have ever beaten. GU also swept No. 4/6 Oklahoma State in a three-game series in Stillwater.

30 WINS AGAIN IN 2022
Gonzaga surpassed 30 wins for the sixth straight full season and ninth time in the last 11 seasons in 2022, finishing the season with a 37-19 overall record. During head coach Mark Machtolf's now 20 years at the helm, GU has won at least 30 games 12 times.