GCU falls victim to double plays in weekend finale

Sunday, March 19

Malibu, Calif.

1:00 p.m.

Grand Canyon

5-12

Pepperdine

9-8

Grand Canyon

Pepperdine

3/19/2017 4:53:00 PM | Baseball

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By: Josh Hauser

MALIBU, Calif. - For the second straight day, the Grand Canyon baseball team held an early lead, but the opposition overcame it to claim victory. Pepperdine defeated the Lopes 7-2 on Sunday afternoon at Eddy D. Field Stadium, utilizing five double plays to prematurely end several GCU scoring opportunities.

Pepperdine used double plays to end the second, as well as four consecutive innings from the fourth through the seventh. The Waves retired a runner at the plate on a would-be sacrifice fly to end the second. The fourth inning ended on a strikeout and caught stealing. The fifth and sixth innings saw GCU batters line into double plays, while the seventh inning ended on a fly ball with a runner not returning back to base in time.

"We doubled off on two line drives and then we had a fly ball to the outfield," head coach Andy Stankiewicz said. "When thing's aren't going well, you just have guys trying to do too much. I think that's where we're at right now. We're just trying to manufacture something that isn't there. We need to let the game come to us. We're trying to shove a square peg through a round hole."

Grand Canyon scored one run in the second inning. The frame got off to a good start with Tyler Wyatt singling and Garrison Schwartz drawing a hit by pitch. Kona Quiggle grounded out, but scored Wyatt in the process as GCU jumped out to a 1-0 lead.

The Waves did much of their damage in the middle innings, scoring three runs on four hits in the fourth and three more runs on three hits in the sixth.

Trailing 6-1, GCU got a run back in the seventh inning. Ian Evans and Zach Malis led off with singles and Evans came into score on a sacrifice fly by Wyatt.

Evans and Malis ended with two-hit days for the GCU offense. Josh Andrews pitched a scoreless eighth inning for Grand Canyon, running his season-opening scoreless inning streak to 6.1 innings over seven appearances.

"We look forward to a new week as we get close to conference," Stankiewicz said. "It's just one of those funks you get in and we're working to grind it out. The coaches have to make some adjustments, and the players have to make some adjustments as well. Then we'll get this ship going in the right direction."

The Lopes don't get much of a break from a busy week, quickly turning around and traveling to Albuquerque, N.M. to face New Mexico for a two-game series. First pitch on Tuesday is set for 5:30 p.m. MST.