Gonzaga's Marco Gonzales threw 11 inning while striking out 15 against LMU

Saturday day night was a big night for WCC baseball. Gonzaga hosted LMU for the first ever ESPN network televised baseball game of the conference. At 7pm one of the most incredible performances of the season began on ESPNU.

Gonzaga sophomore Marco Gonzales and Loyola Marymount freshman Trevor Megill had one of the ultimate pitching duals. Megill is an early enrollee for the Lions, and showed a spectacular outing for seven innings as he struck out eight and did not give up an earned run.

Gonzales did something nearly unimaginable. He threw eleven innings—eleven! In his start, a no-decision I might add, the kid earned fifteen K’s, did not give up one earned run, had no walks, and threw 139 pitches. He was on fire, in the national spotlight. The WCC, Gonzaga, and anyone watching, couldn’t have asked for a better performance on the inaugural West Coast Conference-ESPN network opening night.

Even with Marco having the night of his life, it took pinch hitter Payden Cawley Lamb, to end the game in the bottom of the twelfth, as he hit a shot  into center field to bring home Andy Hunter for a 1-0 victory. Zach Abbruzza earned the win for the Bulldogs, tossing 22 pitches in the twelfth inning and striking out two.

It was electrifying. It is a wonder how one can freeze in Spokane for over three hours with no runs to be scored in that time period only to be on cloud nine moments later when one of the most incredible pitching performances one could witness in college baseball was rewarded with a win.

If Saturday’s game wasn’t a momentum builder, then I don’t know what is. Look for the Zags to take the series Sunday as they are now split with the Lions 1-1.

After taking a home series from Pepperdine last weekend in the rain and wind, the Bulldogs headed to sunny San Diego to face the No. 19 ranked Toreros in the second WCC series of the season. GU took the first of three games Thursday, but lost the remaining two to drop the series to USD.

Thursday, the Zags drove in six to take the contest 6-2. Seniors Alex Stanford and Maxx Garrett each drove in two runs, with Royce Bolinger and Payden Cawley Lamb bringing home the other two. Tyler Olson was the starting pitcher for GU, and tossed the entire game, including four K’s.

On Friday, Stanford and junior Billy Moon brought in the runs, as Eric Lane and Cawley Lamb scored for the Bulldogs. Andy Hunter started on the mound, earning nine strikeouts in seven and a third innings. GU lost the game 5-2.

In the Saturday game, Moon threw the first seven innings, striking out four Toreros in seven innings. The Bulldogs lost 5-3, with RBI’s coming from juniors Clayton Eslick and Brock Slavin, and Cawley Lamb. Lane, Eslick, and Cawley Lamb crossed home plate in the game as well.

After using Easter Sunday as a travel day, the Zags will head to Seattle to play in state rival University of Washington Monday and Tuesday. GU is now 20-9 on the season, and 3-3 in the WCC.

It may have taken a while, but it happened. With the 1,296^th pick in the 2011 MLB First-Year Player Draft the Kansas City Royals selected Tyler Chism.

Chism, better known as “Chis,” reached the next step in his baseball career in the third day of the draft in the 43^rd round.

The Gonzaga right fielder made a huge impact on the Bulldogs’ season. In his 51 starts out of 52 games, Chis maintained a batting average of .313. He had five home runs throughout the year and led the team with seven stolen bases.

The Utah native finished up his career as a Zag with the team high WCC batting average of .378. He also earned All-WCC First Team in his senior season.

The Royal’s system is fortunate to get an athlete and guy like Chism.

Three Zags were drafted into the MLB on day 2!

They may be western boys at heart, but it’s time to pack up the bags and move east, because they have the opportunity of a lifetime calling them to the Eastern Seaboard.

In the second day of the MLB First-Year Player Draft, three Zags were selected by three different East Coast teams.

Cody Martin, Ryan Carpenter, and Cameron Edman were all drafted into the Major Leagues.

Cody MartinÂ

Martin, an ace closing pitcher this past season, was drafted in the seventh round by the Atlanta Braves.

With the 236^th overall pick, the California native moved up nearly 400 spots from last year’s draft. In 2010 he was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the 20^th round, but chose to finish out his education and career at Gonzaga. Martin had 12 saves and a 2-1 record in his senior season.

Just four picks after Martin, Carpenter “Carp,” was chosen by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Ryan CarpenterÂ

Considering his high round selection, and stellar season as a starting on the mound, it is likely that Carp will forgo his final season for the Zags to pursue a professional baseball career.  The Arizona kid completed his season with an 8-2 record.

Edman was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 29^th round of the draft.

The catcher from Montana broke through this past season topping the Gonzaga offense with a .346 batting average. He hit a team high of nine homeruns. Cam started all 52 games for the Zags and notched 402 putouts from behind the plate in his red-shirt senior season.

Cameron Edman

All three of the young men earned a multitude of honors this past season, including each of them making the All WCC First Team.

Carp was awarded the WCC Pitcher of the Year with his conference record of 5-1. He also led the league in strikeouts, at 107, which was 21^st in the nation.

Martin’s earned run average earned him national honors. He had the lowest ERA in the country at 0.86. In conference play, he nearly cut that number in half with an impressive 0.47 in 20 innings. He was also named to Baseball America’s 2011 Mid-season All-American Team.

Edman collected numerous WCC awards throughout the season, including the player of the month title for April. His team high of 23 doubles propelled Gonzaga to a final record of 32-19-1.

As young boys in the west, they surely dreamt of making it to the Big Leagues. And now, the East beckons to answer that childhood dream for the three young men.

Gonzaga's season came to an end with a 4-2 loss to USF in the WCC championship game Sunday.

So close, yet so far. That was the feeling that filled the Gonzaga baseball community Sunday after a 4-2 loss to San Francisco.

In a must win West Coast Conference championship game at the Patterson Baseball Complex, the Bulldogs attempted to make their final home game the best one yet. Unfortunately, the loss not only gave the WCC title to the Dons, but also the bid to the NCAA tournament—thus ending the Zags’ great season.

It didn’t take long for USF to take control of the game. In the second inning, they scored three runs—started by a leadoff homerun. That lead was never relinquished.

Gonzaga got on the board with an RBI by Tyler Chism in the bottom of the third.

After six and a third innings on the mound, GU’s Tyler Olson was replaced by Cody Martin, and then the 3-1 score changed.The Don’s managed an unearned run in the top of the seventh to make the score 4-1.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Zags had the bases loaded with one out. This was the Bulldog’s chance to comeback!

Yet, Chism and Billy Moon, the next two batters, both struck out swinging—stranding all three base runners.

One inning later, Gonzaga had the same opportunity. Bases were loaded and there was only one out.

Once again, the chance to score was wasted, as Marco Gonzales flied out, and Steven Halcomb struck out looking.

Despite the lack of scoring in the seventh and eighth innings, in the bottom of the ninth the Bulldog’s started a rally.

Thomas Henderson came in late in the game and his addition into the lineup started off the final inning of the 2011 season. He was walked, followed by Chism taking a base after getting hit by a pitch.

Moon was the next Zag batter and reached first base, moving Henderson to third—Chism was out a second on a fielder’s choice.

With runners on the corners, Cameron Edman came up to bat, and did his job. An RBI single to the left field gap allowed Henderson to score making it 4-2.

There was one out, runners on first and second, and the air filled with hope in Spokane. Disappointment followed though, as the next two batters, Eric Lane (flied out) and Andy Hunter (grounded out) were unable to move their teammates forward.

Just like that, everything was over. The aspirations of the season all came crashing down with the final out. No WCC championship. No post season. Nothing but memories resulted from this season.

Gonzaga finished the 2011 season with an impressive 32-19-1 record. They were second in the WCC at 15-6.

It was a fun and successful four months for the Zag baseball program. Congratulations  on a great season gentlemen!

Freshman starting pitcher Marco Gonzales had 12 strikeouts in the Zags win Saturday.

In baseball, this is what you call a “do or die” situation. If the Zags won, their title hopes would remain alive. A loss would give the WCC crown to the USF Dons.

The Saturday game in Spokane proved to be the most pivotal game of the season. USF managed a 4-2 win Friday evening to gain a one game advantage in the conference standings over the Bulldogs. The overall winner of the series will become the West Coast Conference Champions—and earn the automatic bid to the NCAA post season tournament.

Since the game was a must win for Gonzaga, the coaches made a very wise decision in starting Marco Gonzales as the pitcher. Typically, Gonzales pitches the final day of three game series. He has been a lights out pitcher this season compiling a 10-2 starting record.

Tyler Olson, the typical game-two starter for the Zags, has struggled with consistency this season, and has not been the most reliable as of late. Coach Machtolf and his staff definitely demonstrated their coaching talent by adjusting the starting rotation. Starting Gonzales instead of Olson was the best bet for a win.

Obviously the Zags wanted the win Saturday, but the necessity of victory was due to the loss Friday night.  Ryan Carpenter started the game on the mound for the Bulldogs. In six and a third innings he gave up three earned runs and struck-out seven batters.

Andy Hunter finished the pitching for the Zags, as he notched four strikeouts and gave up one earned run.

Five Bulldogs earned hits, with Keegan Acker going 2-3 at the plate; he also drove in a run. Tyler Chism had the other RBI and a hit for the Zags. Gonzales, Billy Moon, and Steven Halcomb were the other Gonzaga batters to collect a single hit.

Saturday afternoon started exactly how the Zags would have dreamt it would. Gonzales struck out the first three batters in the first inning—talk about a perfect start!

The second inning, well, it wasn’t so perfect. An early run and then a double with runners on first and second gave the Dons a 3-0 lead.

In the bottom of the second, Gonzaga got one run on the board with three consecutive singles. Clayton Eslick scored after he, Andy Hunter, and Halcomb all connected for base hits.

Acker tripled and then scored on a sac fly by Chism to make the score 3-2 Dons in the bottom of the fifth inning.

In the top of the seventh, a leadoff home run by USF’s Jason Mahood put the Don’s up 4-2. The seventh inning stretch must have really boosted the Zags though, because the boys came out and rallied in the bottom of the seventh inning!

Chism singled to start things off for the Zags. Moon doubled, and then Cameron Edman followed with a double—tying the ball game at 4.

An RBI single by Eric Lane gave the Bulldogs a 5-4 edge. Three more consecutive singles by Royce Bolinger, Eslick, and Hunter resulted in two more runs and 7-4 lead heading into the top of the eighth.

Gonzales pitched one and two thirds shutout innings before Cody Martin came into the game for the final out.  Marco also finished the game with a career high 12 K’s.

One run scored making it 7-5. Then the bases were loaded. (Let’s just say I was freaking out a lot at this point.)

Martin did his job though. With a 2-2 count and 2 outs, Moon caught the pop up to left field and the game was over. Zags won!

Now, it really all comes down to one game. The conference title and bid for the road to Omaha are on the line in the WCC finale. Gonzaga will host San Francisco at 1pm Sunday.

Thomas Henderson batted in three runs Sunday to give the Zags a 5-0 win.

Friday was nice, Saturday sucked, and Sunday was a beauty. Gonzaga took the two of the three games at Pepperdine to make it an interesting race in the WCC title hunt.

Friday, in the usual Zag fashion, Ryan Carpenter pitched seven solid innings giving up only one earned run. He struck out nine batters.

Closer Cody Martin took the mound in the eighth inning and tossed two scoreless innings with only 22 pitches. The defensive efforts by the Zags gave the Bulldogs a 3-2 win over the Waves.

Billy Moon, Andy Hunter, and Steven Halcomb all collected RBI’s on the offensive end. Both Tyler Chism and Thomas Henderson had multi-hit games with two apiece.

Saturday’s contest was not so nice for the Zags. The 3-0 loss was credited to Tyler Olson, who was relieved by Mark Phillips in the sixth inning. Olson gave up six hits, three earned runs, and only had one strikeout on the mound. Phillips didn’t give up a hit.

Offensively, Keegan Acker went 2-3 at the plate. Chism, Clayton Eslick, and Marco Gonzales each had one hit.

Gonzales took the mound Sunday and earned yet another win (10-2). He now has the most wins in the conference. The freshman ace had eight K’s an only three hits in seven shutout innings—he did not walk a batter. Martin closed out the game, securing the win.

Cameron Edman went 2-2, while Royce Bolinger and Moon also notched two hits for Gonzaga. Bolinger and Hunter each had an RBI in the game.

Yet, it was an unfamiliar face that was the most valuable offensive player for the Zags in the game—Henderson. Thomas Henderson played second base in his fourth start of the season. He batted in three runs and went 2-3 at the plate.

Henderson has only played in 17 games for Gonzaga with 18 at bats, but is batting .389. This could be a very promising addition to the starting lineup. The junior transfer may be just what the Bulldogs need to make a push for the postseason.

Sunday was a must win for the Zags, as the team is in the mix for a WCC crown. With their 5-0 victory, Gonzaga moves into a first place tie with USF in the West Coast Conference standings.

The Dons travel to Spokane next weekend to wrap up conference play and the chase for the title. The winner of the series will also earn a berth to the NCAA Baseball Championship Tournament.

The Oregon Ducks shut out the Bulldogs in the midweek matchup

Billy Moon has a 10 game hit streak going for the Zags. Some freshmen got some quality field time for the Bulldogs.

And that’s about all you need to know about the final two non-conference games Gonzaga played Tuesday and Wednesday.

At the University of Oregon, the Ducks blanked the Zags 6-0 Tuesday and 9-0 Wednesday.

In the first game, three Bulldogs notched hits: Billy Moon, Steven Halcomb, and Maxx Garrett. Starting pitcher Andy Hunter recorded five strikeouts in his four innings on the mound. He gave up only one run.

Wednesday’s afternoon contest was a little more productive in the hitting category for the Zags; yet scoring appeared to be unattainable.

As a team, they tallied seven hits. Moon rallied for two, as did Eric Lane. Freshmen Marco Gonzales and Payden Cawley Lamb each earned a hit. Sophomore Clayton Eslick collected the other Zag hit.

Gonzaga’s pitching crew showed their inexperience in the loss. Freshman Aaron Brooks started his first game of the season and gave up five earned runs in five innings.

There were two rare appearances on the mound for the Zags as redshirt sophomore Ryan Leahy and redshirt freshman Karl Myers filled in as relievers for two innings. Each gave up an earned run.

Senior Cody Martin closed the game for the Zags tossing the ninth inning.

Gonzaga closes out their 13 game road trip at Pepperdine this weekend. As the Bulldogs resume conference play against the Waves, their race for first place in the WCC resumes as well.

Cameron Edman had three home-runs and six RBI's against BYU Monday afternoon.

Cameron Edman is very familiar with home plate; he’s the catcher for the Bulldogs, so he is always protecting the plate on defense. In Monday’s game at BYU, Edman became comfortable attacking home plate as he drove in three home-runs for the Zags in the 12-5 Gonzaga victory.

He had a standout game, going 5-5 at the plate, collecting six RBI’s, and the three home-runs gave him a season total and team high nine. His stellar offensive effort moved him into first on the roster with a .371 batting average. Edman’s slugging percentage of .700 is the highest in the WCC.

Edman seems to be racking up all the attention for Gonzaga’s baseball team, as this week he also earned a spot on the Capital One Academic All-District 8 team.  The red-shirt senior is working on his master’s degree in Organizational Leadership and has a current GPA of 3.92.

Defensively against the Cougars, freshman pitcher Marco Gonzales notched eight strikeouts and gave up only one hit in his scoreless five innings on the mound. Junior Tyler Olson pitched three innings for the Zags giving up the five earned runs. Rookie sophomore Kenny Smith had a solid ninth inning as he struck out two in his stint on the mound.

On top of Edman’s impressive performance, the Bulldogs tallied a total of 17 hits and 11 runs batted in. Leadoff hitter Eric Lane went 4-6 and drove in one run, while right fielder Tyler Chism notched 3 RBI’s in his 3-6 outing at the plate.

The Bulldogs will face the Cougars for the second game of their two game series Tuesday at 5pm Pacific in Provo.

As several Zag baseball players graduated this weekend from Gonzaga University with their various degrees, a few other WCC teams faced off allowing the Bulldogs to move into first place in the conference standings.

Because of finals and graduation, the baseball team had the week off from games and heavy practice. With a 9-3 conference record, the Zags sit atop the standings with a .750 winning percentage. USF trails at .733 due to dropping two of three games against San Diego this weekend.

Gonzaga will play BYU Monday and Tuesday in a nonconference two game series before heading to Portland next weekend to resume WCC play.

Congratulations to all the Gonzaga students that graduated this weekend, but a special shout out to the baseball players that walked the line. These student-athletes may have finished their academic career up at GU, but they are still competing with pride for the Zags. So, Keegan Acker, Tyler Chism, Cody Martin, Mark Phillips, and Chris Sturdivant, congratulations and best wishes!