Gonzaga (12-14, 5-1 WCC) vs. San Francisco (14-15, 4-2 WCC)
FRIDAY, APRIL 4 | 6 P.M. | PATTERSON BASEBALL COMPLEX & COACH STEVE HERTZ FIELD | SPOKANE
SATURDAY, APRIL 5 | 6 P.M. | PATTERSON BASEBALL COMPLEX & COACH STEVE HERTZ FIELD | SPOKANE
SUNDAY, APRIL 6 | 1 P.M. | PATTERSON BASEBALL COMPLEX & COACH STEVE HERTZ FIELD | SPOKANE
- Gonzaga wraps up its seven-game homestand, hosting San Francisco this weekend.
- The Bulldogs (t-1st) and Dons (3rd) will battle atop the West Coast Conference.
- Gonzaga has won ten of their last 12 games, including six of their last seven.
- GU has won 15 of the last 17 meetings with USF, including each of the last seven.
- The Bulldogs' .982 fielding percentage leads the WCC and ranks 14th in the NCAA.
- Gonzaga's infield has turned 25 double plays this season (2nd in WCC, 23rd in NCAA).
- The Zags own a 1.44 WHIP, leading the WCC and ranking 69th in NCAA Division-I.
- San Francisco won 2-out-of-3 against Saint Mary's last weekend (14-6, 3-7, 10-4).
- In 2024, USF went 21-34 (4-20 WCC) and finished ninth in the WCC standings.
- Over their last 11 games, ten GU starters have thrown at least six innings and have earned eight of the 11 winning decisions, averaging just under 6.2 IP in each start.
- 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).
- 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 DONS
- San Francisco won two out of three against Saint Mary's last weekend and sits alone in second place in the WCC.
- Patrick Keighran .329 batting average leads the Dons, while hits 27 hits, 24 RBI, and four home runs are second.
- USF's weekend rotation consists of all three graduate students and is a combined 7-7 with a 4.73 ERA.
- Through 29 games, San Francisco is batting .262 and is averaging 6.2 runs per game and 8.6 hits per game.
- The Dons pitching staff has combined for a 5.52 ERA, striking out 180 batters over 249.2 innings pitched.
- In 2024, San Francisco finished with a 21-34 overall record, including a 4-20 record in WCC play (ninth place).
- As a team, San Francisco has turned 29 double plays which leads the WCC and ranks fourth in the nation.
HANKINS TABBED WCC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
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Josh Hankins was named WCC Player of the Week on Monday, the first weekly award for Gonzaga this season.
- In four games last week,
Josh Hankins batted 10-for-16 (.625) with six runs scored, three RBI, three doubles, a home run, and two stolen bases, combining for a 1.632 OPS.
- In Tuesday's win over Washington State, Hankins went 4-for-5 with two doubles and an RBI.
- In Friday's 8-1 win over Pacific, he went 2-for-2 and clubbed his first home run of the season before a 3-for-5 performance on Saturday.
- In the finale, Hankins extended his hit streak to eight games, adding two runs scored with a hit.
SIX OF SEVEN, TEN OF TWELVE
- Gonzaga has now won ten of their last 12 games, including wins in six of their last seven.
- During those 12 games, the Zags are batting .292 while averaging 6.8 runs per game and 10.5 hits per game.
- Gonzaga pitching has collected a 3.20 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP in that stretch, while opponents are hitting .196.
BULLDOGS SWEEP TIGERS
- Gonzaga completed the three-game sweep of Pacific last weekend, defeating the Tigers 8-1, 13-4, and 10-0 (7).
- 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.
GOOD THINGS COME IN PAIRS
- Gonzaga's defense has turned 22 double plays this season, ranking second in the WCC and 47th in NCAA D-I.
- The Bulldogs' 0.88 double plays per game also ranks second in the WCC and 30th in NCAA Division-I.
NEARLY FLAWLESS DEFENSE
- GU's .982 fielding percentage ranks tenth in the nation, while their 16 total errors are tied for fifth-fewest.
ZAGS TAKE ROUND ONE OVER WAZZU
- In their first of four midweek meetings this season, Gonzaga defeated Washington State 4-1 on Tuesday.
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Gabe Brabec threw 6.2 strong innings, surrendering WSU's only run in the bottom of the first inning.
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Kai Francis earned his first career save, pitching 2.1 perfect innings while striking out two.
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Josh Hankins continued his hot hitting, bumping his average up to .244 after a 4-for-5 performance Tuesday.
STEM'S LATE HOMER LIFTS ZAGS OVER WAVES IN GAME TWO
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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.
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.
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.
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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.
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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.
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Justin Feld was next on Sunday, pitching seven strong innings while striking out five in his longest start of 2025.
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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.
BUCKLEY MAKES HISTORY AT BAYLOR
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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.
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
- 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.
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