MONDAY, APRIL 21 | 5:35 P.M. | GOSS STADIUM AT COLEMAN FIELD | CORVALLIS, ORE.
TUESDAY, APRIL 22 | 2:05 P.M. | GOSS STADIUM AT COLEMAN FIELD | CORVALLIS, ORE.
- Gonzaga wraps their eight-game road trip at No. 3 Oregon State Mon./Tue.
- The Bulldogs are set to face their first ranked opponent of the 2025 season.
- Gonzaga is off to their best start in WCC play in program history (10-2).
- Last weekend, the Zags dropped a series at USC, losing the final two games.
- Oregon St. has won ten straight games after sweeping CSUN last weekend.
- OSU finished 45-16 in 2024, falling to Kentucky in the Super Regional round.
- Gonzaga has won 16 of their last 21 games, including 12 out of their last 16.
- GU pitching leads the WCC in ERA (5.33), saves (11), hits allowed (281), runs allowed (197), opposing batting average (.248) and hits per 9.0 IP (8.37).
- Gonzaga's 1.42 WHIP leads the WCC and ranks 59th in NCAA Division-I.
- The Bulldogs' .976 fielding percentage is second in the WCC and 46th in D-I.
- In the West Coast Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, GU 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).
- 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 Zags 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 six All-WCC honorees from 2024:
Tommy Eisenstat,
Justin Feld,
Miles Gosztola,
Erik Hoffberg,
Payton Knowles, and
Vincent Temesvary.
SCOUTING THE NO. 3 BEAVERS
- Oregon State is riding a ten-game win streak after sweeping Cal State Northridge on the road last weekend.
- The Beavers moved up to No. 3 in D1Baseball's Top 25 rankings on Monday, their highest mark of the season.
- INF Aiva Arquette leads OSU in average (.383), hits (54), RBI (49), home runs (15), and slugging percentage (.780).
- OF Gavin Turley broke the career Oregon State home run record, hitting his 46th on Saturday against CSUN.
- OF Easton Talt ranks fourth in the country in walks (42), 18th in on base percentage (.525), and 69th in runs (43).
- Through 37 games, Oregon State is batting .304 and is averaging 8.1 runs per game and 10.4 hits per game.
- Beavers pitching owns a 4.56 ERA (27th in D-I), 2.67 K/BB ratio (19th), 10.8 K/9 (14th), and 1.29 WHIP (22nd).
- In 2024, Oregon State finished 45-16, falling out of the postseason to Kentucky at the Lexington Super Regional.
TOP FIVE FOE
- Gonzaga will meet a ranked opponent for the first time this season on Monday and Tuesday.
- GU will play in their 55th and 56th game against a Top Ten opponent under
Mark Machtolf.
- The Bulldogs are 19-35 against Top Ten opponents under Machtolf.
- Oregon State has been ranked in the Top Ten for each of their last three meetings with the Bulldogs.
CRUCIAL WEST COAST CONFERENCE BATTLE ON DECK
- First-place Gonzaga will host second-place San Diego in a crucial West Coast Conference series this weekend.
- Gonzaga (18-17, 10-2 WCC) holds a one-game lead over San Diego (14-24, 9-3) midway through conference play.
- The Toreros are coming off a three-game sweep at Portland, who previously sat in second place behind the Zags.
TOUGH REMAINING WCC SCHEDULE
- Halfway through West Coast Conference play, Gonzaga is 10-2 with sweeps over Pacific and San Francisco.
- Gonzaga also earned series wins on the road at Pepperdine and Santa Clara.
- The Bulldogs' remaining WCC slate includes the remaining three teams currently in the top four of the standings.
- The Zags will face San Diego and Saint Mary's at home and will travel to Loyola Marymount and Portland.
- The West Coast Conference Tournament will be played at Las Vegas Ballpark, home to the AAA Aviators (OAK).
- The top two seeds in the WCC Tournament receive a bye, while the remaining four face off in two play-in games.
RINGING THE BELL
-
Mikey Bell had his home run streak snapped at five games on Friday at Southern California.
- Over the last 12 games, Bell is slashing .571/.654/1.190 with 7 home runs, 18 RBI, 14 runs and 50 total bases.
ZAGS TURNING IT AROUND
- After a 2-12 start to the 2025 season, Gonzaga has won 16 out of its last 21 games to break above .500.
- The Bulldogs have strung together three separate win streaks of four or more during that stretch.
- GU began their run with a three-game sweep at Washington and a midweek win at Seattle U.
- Gonzaga has won five out their last six series, including sweeps over Washington, Pacific, and San Francisco.
ZAGS CONTINUE HOT WCC START, CLINCH SERIES OVER SANTA CLARA
- After back-to-back WCC sweeps, Gonzaga won their series over Santa Clara to improve to 10-2 in WCC play.
- The Bulldogs won the first two games before dropping a heartbreaker in game three.
-
Mikey Bell was 7-for-12 in the series, extending his home run streak to four games after one in each contest.
BELL EARNS GONZAGA'S SECOND STRAIGHT WCC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
-
Mikey Bell was named the West Coast Conference Player of the Week on April 7.
- Bell batted 7-for-9 (.778) performance in Gonzaga's sweep of San Francisco, where he compiled a 2.068 OPS.Â
- In game one of the series, Bell was 2-for-3 with a double and two RBI and a run scored.Â
- In game two, he picked up two more hits in a 2-for-3 outing, adding two runs and an RBI.
- In game three, Bell was 3-for-3 with a home run and a go-ahead RBI single in the bottom of the seventh inning.
BULLDOGS SWEEP SECOND-STRAIGHT WCC HOME SERIES
- Gonzaga's bats remained hot against San Francisco as they picked up their second straight WCC sweep Apr. 4-6.
- Despite trailing in games one and three, the Bulldogs battled back for two-run wins in each.
- In game two, the Zags put up 14 runs to earn the mercy rule win, their second of the season.
HANKINS TABBED WCC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
-
Josh Hankins was named WCC Player of the Week on March 31, the first weekly award for Gonzaga this season.
- In four games, Hankins batted 10-for-16 (.625), adding a line of 6 R, 3 RBI, 3 2B, 1 HR, 2 SB, and a 1.632 OPS.
- In GU's midweek win over Washington State, Hankins went 4-for-5 with two doubles and an RBI.
- In Friday's 8-1 win over Pacific, Hankins went 2-for-2 and clubbed his first home run of the season.
- In game two, Hankins went 3-for-5 before extending his hit streak to eight games in game three, adding a hit.
GONZAGA SWEEPS PACIFIC
- Gonzaga completed the three-game sweep of Pacific March 28-30 in their first WCC home series of the season.
- During that series, GU batted .370 and recorded a team OPS of 1.090 with a perfect 9-for-9 on stolen bases.
- The pitching staff combined for a 1.80 ERA with the Tigers hitting just .140 off the Bulldogs.
ZAGS TAKE ROUND ONE OVER WAZZU
- In their first of four midweek meetings this season, Gonzaga defeated Washington State 4-1 on March 25.
-
Gabe Brabec threw 6.2 strong innings, surrendering WSU's only run in the bottom of the first inning.
-
Kai Francis earned his first career save, pitching 2.1 perfect innings while striking out two.
BULLDOGS OPEN WCC PLAY WITH SERIES WIN OVER PEPPERDINE
- After dropping the WCC opener at Pepperdine, Gonzaga battled back to win the series March 21-23 in Malibu.
-
Sam Stem lifted a go-ahead home run in the tenth inning in game two despite entering late as a pinch-runner.
- Gonzaga's pitching staff combined for a 2.33 ERA in the series win, with the Waves batting .186 off of GU.
GONZAGA COMPLETES 4-0 WEEKEND IN SEATTLE
- After a stretch of eight consecutive losses, Gonzaga bounced back with a 4-0 weekend in Seattle March 14-17.
- The Bulldogs earned their first-ever road sweep of Washington at Husky Ballpark before defeating Seattle U.
- Gonzaga had not faced the Huskies in a three game series at Husky Ballpark prior to that series in March.
- The Zags completed the weekend with a revenge win over Seattle U, who defeated the Bulldogs March 5.
MACHTOLF NOTCHES 600TH CAREER WIN
- Gonzaga Head Coach
Mark Machtolf earned his 600th career win on March 14, a 4-3 victory over Washington.
- Machtolf becomes the second coach in Gonzaga and West Coast Conference history to eclipse 600 wins.
- Machtolf's win total ranks second in program history behind Steve Hertz, who holds the high mark with 637.
- Machtolf brings a .543 win percentage into his 22nd season in 2025, the third-highest in Gonzaga history.
BUCKLEY MAKES HISTORY AT BAYLOR
- C
Ethan Buckley made Division-I history on Feb. 23 at Baylor when he entered the game for the Bulldogs.
- Buckley, a native of Cape Town, South Africa, is the first 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 at the D-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 was the first on the team to hit a home run.
- On Feb. 16, Shupe hit a one-out solo home run at UC Davis to break the ice for the Zags.
- Exaclty one year prior, Shupe hit the first pitch of the season out to right field at UCLA on Feb. 16, 2024.
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 received 44 points, resulting in a tie for third with Santa Clara. Five points separated 2nd/5th place.
- San Diego topped the Preseason Poll with 64 points and eight first-place votes.
PAIR OF ZAGS PICKED PRESEASON ALL-WCC
- 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 GU's leading returner in seven pitching categories and one of five All-WCC Honorable Mentions in 2024.
- 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.
Â
-GoZags.com-