LAS VEGAS – In Gonzaga's winner-go-home matchup with No. 3-seed Santa Clara to open the West Coast Conference Tournament Wednesday at Las Vegas Ballpark, got a solid start from RHP Owen Wild and cut the Broncos' lead to 3-2 in the top of the eighth, but didn't get another run across en route to a 4-2 loss that ended their season.

The Bulldogs finish the 2023 season 18-34, with a 14-13 mark in regular-season conference play. This was GU's sixth-straight WCC Tournament appearance.

Wild went 7.1 innings in the start, striking out seven and holding SCU to four runs – three of which were homers. He was tagged for 12 hits in the loss, but didn't walk a single batter. RHP Jacob Rutherford pitched the final ⅔ of an inning to close, retiring both batters he faced without further damage.

GU picked up 10 hits in total, with Connor Coballes, Brian Kalmer and Sam Stem all picking up two knocks each and Enzo Apoca, Tommy Eisenstat, Dylan Johnson and Savier Pinales adding one each. Eight GU runners were stranded on base to keep the Zags off the board until the eighth, when Stem and Eisenstat both drove in a run each to cut the deficit to one and give GU some life. 

But the Broncos plated an insurance run with a blast to dead center from Ben Steck, and back-to-back strikeouts to start the top of the ninth followed by a grounder from Coballes ended the game and GU's season.