Freshmen steal spotlight in Saturday sweep

Saturday, May 8

Phoenix, Ariz.

2 p.m.

Grand Canyon

28-17-1, 21-5

Dixie State

15-28, 13-13

Dixie State

Grand Canyon

5/8/2021 9:30:00 PM | Baseball

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Young tosses 2-hit shutout; Verdusco smacks 10th-inning walk-off

By: Josh Hauser

A pair of Grand Canyon freshmen stole the Saturday headlines at GCU Ballpark as the Lopes completed a doubleheader sweep of Dixie State to claim their seventh consecutive weekend series.

GCU freshman right-hander Carter Young tossed his first complete game in the first game, leading the way in a 5-0 Lopes victory. Freshman Cade Verdusco came through with a 10th-inning walk-off single to claim a 4-3 Lopes win in the nightcap.

The Lopes (29-17-1, 22-5 WAC) have won 15 of their last 18 games and remain one game back of California Baptist in the WAC standings. GCU surpassed its 2018 team (20-4) for most WAC wins in a season. The Lopes have outscored the Trailblazers (15-29, 13-14 WAC) 19-3 in the series thus far.

Game 1

Young improved to 7-0 as the Lopes opened the day with their second straight shutout of the Trailblazers.

The Casper, Wyoming, native logged the first complete game of his career while limiting Dixie State to two hits. He used 88 pitches to navigate the game and struck out seven. Young became the first GCU pitcher to start a season 7-0 since redshirt senior Jack Schneider also started 7-0 as a freshman in 2017.

"I felt like I had everything working for me," Young said. "My plan was to attack them early because I knew they were aggressive from what I saw in Game 1. So if I could just attack them, they'd get themselves out."

Young retired the first 11 batters he faced and didn't allow a runner to advance to third. He entered the day with one of the nation's top 30 ERAs, and he lowered it from 1.99 to 1.75.

"It's amazing," Young said. "Beginning of the year, there were some injuries, so I just got thrown in there and told myself I had nothing to lose. From there on, I tried to give my best stuff. As the season's moved on, I've been talking to Dawson (McCarville), (Zach) Barnes, especially Pierson (Ohl) because I like to think I pitch similar to how Pierson pitches, so they just teach me everything."

For the Lopes, it was their sixth shutout of the season, matching the 2019 mark for most shutouts in a season in the program's D-I history.

GCU broke a scoreless tie in the fourth inning, when senior catcher David Avitia came through with a two-out, run-scoring single to score senior center fielder Brock Burton from second.

With a fragile 1-0 lead in hand, the Lopes had the credit of a defensive gem by Verdusco in right, where he made a diving catch to end the inning and keep the tying run from potentially scoring from first base.

"He just saved me," Young said. "If that ball gets down, then the game is tied and everything changes. That play really changed the whole outcome of the game."

"Off the bat, I thought it was a little more barreled than it actually was, so I just froze," Verdusco said. "Then, I realized it was in so I just took off. And then I said, 'You know what? Do or die.' The ball's not going to bounce very far if it goes past me. I just laid out and made the play."

The Lopes added insurance in the sixth with four runs on four hits. Freshman first baseman Elijah Buries singled and Burton doubled, setting up a two-run single by sophomore designated hitter Tayler Aguilar. Junior second baseman Jonny Weaver tacked on two more runs on a two-out single.

Game 2

Saturday's doubleheader offered a dramatic conclusion with an extra-inning affair that the Lopes won 4-3.

The game went to the international tiebreaker rule, used in WAC doubleheaders, that places a runner on second base to begin extra innings. The Lopes surrendered a run in the top of the 10th but responded with two runs in the home half.

The Lopes pushed their free runner from second to third when freshman third baseman Jacob Wilson poked a ground out to the right side of the infield on a 1-2 count.

On another 1-2 count, junior left fielder Juan Colato drove in Wilson with one out to at least ensure the game would continue.

"I was trying to put the ball in play, not to strike out," Colato said. "Make them play defense. Try to barrel a ball. Thank God, I was able to do that and help the boys get a dub."

The Trailblazers elected to intentionally walk Buries to create a force out, but Colato advanced to third on a wild pitch.

After fouling off the first 2-2 pitch he saw, Verdusco grounded a ball through the hole at shortstop and past a defense playing in to seal the Lopes' victory.

"I was looking fastball away," Verdusco said. "They just keep going slider in, slider in. Got that slider. Kind of just hung it and barreled it up. Nice little knock through the left side. I knew it was hit pretty hard.

"I saw everyone chasing after me, and I saw water going everywhere. I'm not a big guy so I better start running a little bit. It's always fun walking off and your teammates all over you and hyped for you."

GCU walked off with a win for the second time this season after senior shortstop Channy Ortiz homered, also in the 10th inning, to defeat Arizona on April 13.

"He's a great man, man," Colato said of Verdusco. "He's a gritty kid. Great baseball player. He was able to stay in the AB and get a barrel and put the ball in play and win us the game. Did the job."

The Lopes scored in the third and sixth innings with single tallies. Wilson and Colato strung together back-to-back doubles to put GCU on the board in the third. Freshman designated hitter Tyler Wilson drove in Buries after he doubled in the sixth.

Dixie State threatened to claim a late lead in the eighth after a walk and three straight singles plated a run. But sophomore right-handed pitcher Vince Reilly coaxed a pop out and ground out to second base to strand the bases loaded and keep the game tied 2-2.

While GCU senior closer Frankie Scalzo surrendered the placed runner in the 10th, which is scored as an unearned run, he was the winning pitcher after allowing no further damage in the frame.

Lopes senior right-hander Dawson McCarville saw his incredible 32-inning scoreless streak come to a close, but he still turned in a 5 1/3-inning start with one run allowed.

GCU will honor its 15 seniors in Sunday's 1 p.m. series finale where the Lopes will look to sweep the four-game set with the Trailblazers.