Gonzaga (8-13, 2-1 WCC) at Washington State (9-14, 4-2 MW)
TUESDAY, MARCH 25 | 6:05 P.M. | BAILEY-BRAYTON FIELD | PULLMAN, WASH.
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GON TBD vs. WSU TBD

LEADING OFF
- Gonzaga and Washington state will face off in their first of four meetings in 2025.
- The Bulldogs and Cougars will play in their 318th all time meetings on Tuesday.
- Gonzaga has won the last two meetings and three of the last five over Washington St.
- The Bulldogs' .983 fielding percentage leads the WCC and ranks eighth in the NCAA.
- Gonzaga's infield has turned 20 double plays tihs season (2nd in WCC, 28th in NCAA).
- In 2024, Gonzaga swept the season series over Washington State (W, 22-7 and 6-4).
- Washington St. is coming off a sweep of San Diego State at home (13-3, 13-3, 12-5).
- In 2024, WSU went 21-32 (9-21 Pac-12) and finished 10th in the Pac-12 standings.
- Under Machtolf, the Zags are 12-11 against Mountain West opponents.
- Mark Machtolf earned his 600th career win on March 14 at Washington, becoming just the second coach in Gonzaga and WCC history to reach that mark. Steve Hertz owns the all-time GU record with 637 career wins.
- Gonzaga has won six of its last seven games dating back to March 14.
- Over their last seven games, all seven GU starters have thrown at least six innings and have earned four of the six winning decisions.
- In the West Coast Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, Gonzaga was picked to finish third behind San Diego and Portland. Just five points are what separated Portland (2nd), Gonzaga (t-3rd), Santa Clara (t-3rd), and Saint Mary's (5th).
- Tommy Eisenstat and Justin Feld were selected to the All-WCC Preseason team.
- Gonzaga is coming off a 21-32 (14-10 in WCC play) season and a third-place finish at the West Coast Conference Tournament in Las Vegas in 2024.
- This season, the Bulldogs return five of their starting eight position players, two of their three regular rotation starters, and three of their high-leverage bullpen arms. Six of Gonzaga's top seven hitters from 2024 also return this season.
- Gonzaga returns all six All-WCC honorees from 2024: Tommy Eisenstat, Justin Feld, Miles Gosztola, Erik Hoffberg, Payton Knowles, and Vincent Temesvary.

SCOUTING THE COUGARS
- Washington State is coming off a weekend sweep of San Diego State at home last weekend (13-3, 13-3, 12-5).
- This will be the Cougars' first lone midweek game of the 2025 season.
- Max Hartman's .400 batting average, 36 hits, 25 runs,  20 RBI, and 1.070 OPS leads the team.
- Of those stats, Hartman leads the Mountain West in hits and runs scored while ranking second in average.
- Former Zag Logan Johnstone leads Washington State with five home runs and also leads the MW in runs (25).
- Through 23 games, Washington State is batting .300 and are averaging 6.1 runs per game and 9.8 hits per game.
- The Cougar pitching staff has combined for a 7.66 ERA, striking out 151 batters over 188.0 innings pitched.
- In 2024, WSU finished with a 21-32 overall record, including a 9-21 record in Pac-12 play (10th place).
- As a team, Washington State has been hit 49 times this season, leading the MW and ranking t-23rd in NCAA D-I.

BULLDOGS BOUNCE BACK
- After a stretch of eight consecutive losses, Gonzaga has bounced back with wins in six of their last seven games.
- The Bulldogs completed their first ever three-game sweep of Washington at Husky Ballpark March 14-16 before getting revenge against Seattle U on March 17, who defeated the Zags earlier this season in Spokane.
- Last weekend, Gonzaga picked up a series win over Pepperdine in their WCC opening weekend.
- After dropping a close game on Friday, the Zags responded to take the final two games and clinch the series.

STEM'S LATE HOMER LIFTS ZAGS OVER WAVES IN GAME TWO
- Sam Stem entered as a pinch runner late in Saturday's game at Pepperdine, but would end up hitting the go-ahead home run in the top of the tenth inning to seal Gonzaga's 5-3 win.
- The home run is Stem's first of the season and ninth of his career. His last long ball came against Portland in the Bulldogs' final game of the 2024 season.

GOOD THINGS COME IN PAIRS
- Gonzaga's defense has turned 20 double plays this season, ranking second in the WCC and 28th in NCAA D-I.
- The Bulldogs' 0.95 double plays per game also ranks second in the WCC and 18th in NCAA Division-I.
- Over the last seven games, Gonzaga has turned eight double plays.

NEARLY FLAWLESS DEFENSE
- GU's .983 fielding percentage ranks eighth in the nation, while their 10 total errors are tied for fourth-fewest.

ON THIS DAY
- Gonzaga is 10-5 on March 25 under Mark Machtolf, including an 0-1 record vs. Washington State.
- On March 25, 2008, GU fell to No. 28 WSU 6-2 at Bailey-Brayton Field. Grant Kveder and Ryan Wiegand each picked up two hits in that loss.
- On March 25, 2017, Gonzaga swept San Francisco in a doubleheader at Patterson Baseball Complex that saw game one last 16 innings before the Bulldogs completed the sweep with an 8-1 win in the nightcap.
- The Bulldogs have won four consecutive games on March 25 entering this season.

MACHTOLF ECLIPSES 600, THEN 601, 602, 603
- After an eight-game losing skid that kept Gonzaga Head Coach Mark Machtolf at 599 career wins, the Bulldogs held on for a 4-3 win over Washington on March 14 despite a late ninth-inning rally by the Huskies.
- Machtolf becomes the second coach in Gonzaga and West Coast Conference history to eclipse 600 wins.
- His win total ranks second in GU history behind Steve Hertz, who holds the high mark with 637.
- GU caught a stride after Machtolf's 600th win, rattling off wins in their next three games to open a four-game streak heading into West Coast Conference play this weekend.

STARTING PITCHING KEYS ZAGS 4-0 WEEKEND
- Gonzaga starting pitchers combined for 27.0 innings, 19 hits, 12 runs, and 22 strikeouts over the perfect 4-0 weekend, with each earning the winning decision in their respective starts.
- Finbar O'Brien made his second career start on Friday, pitching six innings while allowing just three runs on six hits and striking out five to earn his first career win.
- Miles Gosztola dominated in game two on Saturday, facing the minimum through three innings, not allowing a hit through five, and keeping UW scoreless until the last pitch of his outing. His eight strikeouts were one shy of a career high.
- Justin Feld was next on Sunday, pitching seven strong innings while striking out five in his longest start of 2025.
- Gabe Brabec completed the weekend with a seven-inning outing against Seattle U, striking out four while allowing just one run through the first five innings.

ZAGS COMPLETE COMEBACK IN FINALE AT BAYLOR
- Gonzaga scored twice in the ninth and once in the tenth to defeat Baylor 8-7 on Sunday in Waco, Texas.
- Hudson Shupe was 3-for-4 with two runs scored and an RBI, scoring the winning run in the top of the tenth.
- Vincent Temesvary was 3-for-6 with a double and a three-run home run.
- Erik Hoffberg earned his first career win, throwing four innings in relief. (W, 4.0 IP, H, 2 R, 3 K, 4 BB).
- Michael Cunneely sealed the win with his second save of the season, striking out one over a scoreless inning.

BUCKLEY MAKES HISTORY AT BAYLOR
- Ethan Buckley, a native of Cape Town, South Africa, made history on Feb. 23 at Baylor by becoming the first ever South African native to play NCAA Division-I baseball.
- While others have played Major League Baseball, Buckley is now the first South African to play collegiately at the Division-I level.
- Buckley transferred to Gonzaga last fall from Linn-Benton Community College.

SHUPE FIRST TO HOMER AGAIN
- For the second straight season, INF Hudson Shupe hit the first Gonzaga home run of the year.
- On Feb. 16, Shupe hit a one-out solo home run at UC Davis to break the ice for the Zags.
- In 2024, Shupe hit the first pitch of the season out to right field at UCLA, also on Feb. 16.

BULLPEN SHINES DESPITE SERIES LOSS AT UC DAVIS
- Despite dropping their season-opening season, Gonzaga's bullpen made a strong showing over UC Davis.
- Bulldog relievers combined for 11 and two-thirds innings, scattering six hits and just two runs while striking out ten and walking six.
- Ryan Hernandez appeared twice in the UC Davi series, combining for two and two-thirds innings without allowing a baserunner. The Cal Baptist graduate transfer needed just 27 total pitches, striking out two.
- In his lone relief appearance, Finbar O'Brien threw two and two-thirds of shutout baseball, allowing just one baserunner on a walk while striking out two in game two.
- In the season opener, Michael Cunneely threw four innings to close out a 6-1 win, picking up his first career save after allowing just one run on four hits and striking out four.

ZAGS PICKED THIRD IN WCC PRESEASON POLL
- Gonzaga was picked to finish third in the West Coast Conference Preseason Poll on Feb. 6.
- The Zags accumulated 44 points, resulting in a tie for third with Santa Clara.
- San Diego topped the Preseason Poll with 64 points and eight first-place votes.
- Just five points separated the poll's second-place and fifth-place teams.

PAIR OF ZAGS PICKED PRESEASON ALL-WCC
- Tommy Eisenstat and Justin Feld were selected to the West Coast Conference Preseason Team on Feb. 6.
- Eisenstat led the Bulldogs in seven offensive categories in 2024: avg (.301), runs (34), hits (58), and RBI (30).
- Eisenstat also earned West Coast Conference Honorable Mention with one WCC Player of the Week honor.
- Feld is Gonzaga's leading returner in seven pitching categories.
- Amongst WCC ranks, Feld's 4.16 was tenth last season while allowing the fourth-fewest total earned runs (29). - Feld struck out 62 batters over 62.2 IP, averaging just under nine strikeouts per nine and was the second of five Bulldogs to earn All-WCC Honorable Mention in 2024.

IMPACT TRANSFERS
- Gonzaga's 2025 roster includes five transfers from four-year colleges: two pitchers and three position players.
- Cooper Ciesielski (OF) spent two seasons at UT Permian Basin, batting .349 with nine home runs and 46 RBI.
- Luca DiPaolo (C) arrives from Southern Cal., batting .107 in limited action over two seasons for the Trojans.
- Ty Yukumoto (INF) spent three seasons at Pacific University (OR), batting .329 with 156 hits and 75 RBI.
- Jared Glenn (RHP) spent two seasons at Arizona St. in '21-'22, appearing at the 2021 Austin Regional for ASU.
- Ryan Hernandez (LHP) is a gradute transfer from Cal Baptist, holding a career 2.50 ERA over 44 appearances.

ABOUT THE 2025 SCHEDULE
- Gonzaga's non-conference slate features teams from five different conferences, including five teams from the Big 12 and Big Ten. For the second straight season, the Bulldogs will not play any neutral site games during their non-conference schedule.
- Mark Machtolf is 408-315-1 all-time against the 2025 slate, including a 315-202 record against WCC opponents.
- Gonzaga's 2025 schedule spans six different states: Washington, Oregon, California, Utah, Arizona, Texas.
- Among the 2025 opponents, GU will face Baylor and Utah Tech for the first time under Mark Machtolf.

GONZAGA TO JOIN THE PAC-12
- Gonzaga is headed to the Pac-12 Conference in all sports beginning July 1, 2026.
- The Zags will join Oregon State, Washington State, Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State, and Utah State.
- Of the eight current members, five schools compete in baseball: Gonzaga, Oregon State, Washington State, Fresno State, and San Diego State.
- The final RPI rankings for those five teams from the 2024 season...
18. Oregon State 172. Gonzaga
176. Fresno State 194. Washington State
235. San Diego State

ZAGS IN THE PROS
- MLB Spring Training kicked off last month with seven former Zags reporting to big league camps.
- Brett Harris, Gabe Hughes, Alek Jacob, Troy Johnston, Casey Legumina, Wyatt Mills, and Eli Morgan reported.
- Liam Paddack is the most recent Zag to be drafted, selected by the Chicago White Sox in the 18th round (2024).
- Four former Bulldogs played in the big leagues in 2024: Gonzales, Eli Morgan, Alek Jacob, and Brett Harris.
- Two former Zags made MLB Playoff rosters in '24: Morgan (Cleveland Guardians) and Jacob (San Diego Padres).
- On Nov. 20, Eli Morgan was traded from the Guardians to the Chicago Cubs for prospect Alfonsin Rosario.
- After one season with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Marco Gonzales elected free agency and will enter 2025 unsigned.