Completed Event: Baseball at Stanford on May 9, 2025 , Win , 4, to, 3
Baseball
at Stanford
W 4-3
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Sunday, February 20
Phoenix, Ariz.
1 p.m.
Grand Canyon
1-2
15
vs
4
Nevada
2-1
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Nevada
1
0
2
0
1
0
0
0
0
4
9
3
Grand Canyon
0
0
2
1
2
0
6
4
X
15
14
1
Photo by: Skyler Coblentz
Finding fire fuels Lopes' 1st win
2/20/2022 6:21:00 PM | Baseball, Paul Coro
GCU scores 11 unanswered runs after Stankiewicz's 1st career home ejection
There was something lacking more than runs when Nevada's veteran lineup whacked Grand Canyon 20-2 on Saturday.
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Lopes head coach Andy Stankiewicz felt like his team was lacking passion in its comeback. He inadvertently stoked that fire Sunday, when being ejected on his home field for the first time set GCU afire for 11 unanswered runs in a 15-4 victory against Nevada. A crowd of 1,631 fans saw the Lopes' second-highest run total for a game at GCU Ballpark.
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The Lopes (1-2) already had climbed out of a 3-0 hole to tie the game at 4-4 in the fifth inning, when GCU sophomore right fielder Tayler Aguilar was hit by a pitch on his right elbow. Home plate umpire Matt McMahon ruled that Aguilar leaned into the pitch, denying him first base and prompting Stankiewicz to come out of the dugout for an explanation.
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McMahon extended his arm to motion that he would not talk to Stankiewicz, who continued and debated the call before getting ejected as he and McMahon turned from each other.
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"He came out and showed some heart," said Aguilar, who went 4 for 5 with a home run, two doubles and 3 RBIs. "He wanted us to win. That's our grit. That's what we showed."
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A batter later, sophomore center fielder Homer Bush Jr. delivered the game's biggest hit with a two-out single to center field for a 5-4 lead. The Lopes never trailed again with relievers Eli Ankeney and Vince Reilly shutting out the Wolf Pack for the final four innings.
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Ankeney entered when the lead was still at 5-4 and struck out three of the first four batters he faced. Ankeney threw one inning in his first two years at GCU, but the Phoenix Desert Vista High School graduate has developed into a top back-end bullpen option.
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He threw 2 2/3 innings on Sunday, finishing with a perfect eighth as he kept his fastball down and away with breaking balls keeping Nevada unsteady.
Ankeney took the mound sooner than expected with a two-on, no-out jam, but bailed GCU out of it. He opened with two balls but struck out his first batter and then struck out another Nevada batter to leave the bases loaded and GCU leading 5-4.
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"Once I got comfortable, I just kept throwing strikes and knew my teammates had my back," Ankeney said. "We just kept rolling with energy. It was electric after Stank left the game. Adrenaline's going. I have never felt like that in my life. It was a great feeling. I knew if I got my boys back in the dugout, we'd get some runs.
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"It (Stankiewicz's ejection) got everyone juiced up. We knew we were going to win the game from there. We were not going to let down Stank if he got thrown out like that.
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A six-run Lopes seventh inning broke the game open. With the help of a walk and three hit batsmen, GCU gradually pulled away with clutch moments coming from Aguilar hitting a RBI single on a 1-2 pitch and senior third baseman Juan Colato making the lead 11-4 on a two-out, two-run single.
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Wilson and Aguilar opened the eighth with back-to-back doubles, leading GCU add four more runs for a 15-4 lead.
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"I told the guys, 'I got the hint, loud and clear. You don't want me in the dugout,' " Stankiewicz said of the 11-0 response after his ejection. "You feel like you have to defend your guys and maybe that's what we needed to create some more emotion in the dugout."
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Aguilar gives GCU an important punch from the left side but had gone 0 for 4 with two walks in the Friday and Saturday losses. His four-hit day, the second of his career (also April 18 at New Mexico State), included a solo home run that he crushed to right-center field to tie the game in the fourth inning.
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"We're going to need that young man to have days like this, where he puts quality at bats together just to keep the line moving," Stankiewicz said. "That's encouraging for him. I know he's been working at that."
GCU ended the series on a high note Sunday against a Nevada team that also reached the NCAA tournament last year and thrived throughout the weekend with two-out offense (19 of 27 runs).
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"You always want to do better on opening weekend, but it was good to get out of here with a win before we got to Tucson," said Stankiewicz, whose program returns to the site of its first NCAA Division I tournament appearance when it plays Arizona (3-0) in its home opener after the Wildcats thumped No. 14 Texas Tech 13-2 on Sunday.
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Lopes head coach Andy Stankiewicz felt like his team was lacking passion in its comeback. He inadvertently stoked that fire Sunday, when being ejected on his home field for the first time set GCU afire for 11 unanswered runs in a 15-4 victory against Nevada. A crowd of 1,631 fans saw the Lopes' second-highest run total for a game at GCU Ballpark.
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The Lopes (1-2) already had climbed out of a 3-0 hole to tie the game at 4-4 in the fifth inning, when GCU sophomore right fielder Tayler Aguilar was hit by a pitch on his right elbow. Home plate umpire Matt McMahon ruled that Aguilar leaned into the pitch, denying him first base and prompting Stankiewicz to come out of the dugout for an explanation.
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McMahon extended his arm to motion that he would not talk to Stankiewicz, who continued and debated the call before getting ejected as he and McMahon turned from each other.
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"He came out and showed some heart," said Aguilar, who went 4 for 5 with a home run, two doubles and 3 RBIs. "He wanted us to win. That's our grit. That's what we showed."
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A batter later, sophomore center fielder Homer Bush Jr. delivered the game's biggest hit with a two-out single to center field for a 5-4 lead. The Lopes never trailed again with relievers Eli Ankeney and Vince Reilly shutting out the Wolf Pack for the final four innings.Â
Ankeney entered when the lead was still at 5-4 and struck out three of the first four batters he faced. Ankeney threw one inning in his first two years at GCU, but the Phoenix Desert Vista High School graduate has developed into a top back-end bullpen option.
Â
He threw 2 2/3 innings on Sunday, finishing with a perfect eighth as he kept his fastball down and away with breaking balls keeping Nevada unsteady.
Ankeney took the mound sooner than expected with a two-on, no-out jam, but bailed GCU out of it. He opened with two balls but struck out his first batter and then struck out another Nevada batter to leave the bases loaded and GCU leading 5-4.
Â
"Once I got comfortable, I just kept throwing strikes and knew my teammates had my back," Ankeney said. "We just kept rolling with energy. It was electric after Stank left the game. Adrenaline's going. I have never felt like that in my life. It was a great feeling. I knew if I got my boys back in the dugout, we'd get some runs.
Â
"It (Stankiewicz's ejection) got everyone juiced up. We knew we were going to win the game from there. We were not going to let down Stank if he got thrown out like that.
Â
A six-run Lopes seventh inning broke the game open. With the help of a walk and three hit batsmen, GCU gradually pulled away with clutch moments coming from Aguilar hitting a RBI single on a 1-2 pitch and senior third baseman Juan Colato making the lead 11-4 on a two-out, two-run single.
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Wilson and Aguilar opened the eighth with back-to-back doubles, leading GCU add four more runs for a 15-4 lead.
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"I told the guys, 'I got the hint, loud and clear. You don't want me in the dugout,' " Stankiewicz said of the 11-0 response after his ejection. "You feel like you have to defend your guys and maybe that's what we needed to create some more emotion in the dugout."Â
Aguilar gives GCU an important punch from the left side but had gone 0 for 4 with two walks in the Friday and Saturday losses. His four-hit day, the second of his career (also April 18 at New Mexico State), included a solo home run that he crushed to right-center field to tie the game in the fourth inning.
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"We're going to need that young man to have days like this, where he puts quality at bats together just to keep the line moving," Stankiewicz said. "That's encouraging for him. I know he's been working at that."
GCU ended the series on a high note Sunday against a Nevada team that also reached the NCAA tournament last year and thrived throughout the weekend with two-out offense (19 of 27 runs).
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"You always want to do better on opening weekend, but it was good to get out of here with a win before we got to Tucson," said Stankiewicz, whose program returns to the site of its first NCAA Division I tournament appearance when it plays Arizona (3-0) in its home opener after the Wildcats thumped No. 14 Texas Tech 13-2 on Sunday.
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Nelson, Jason (1-0)
L: BURFIELD, Casey (0-1)
Batting:
2B: GOMEZ, Dario 1 ; ZAMORA, Joshua 1
HR: STINSON, Jacob 1 ; GOMEZ, Dario 1
RBI: STINSON, Jacob 1 ; GOMEZ, Dario 2 ; ZAMORA, Joshua 1
Base Running:
RUNS: STINSON, Jacob 2 ; GOMEZ, Dario 2
CS: CAULFIELD, Patrick 1
HBP: ZAMORA, Joshua 1 ; WOODHOUSE, Jaxon 1 ; BALL, Michael 1
PO: CAULFIELD, Patrick 1
Batting:
2B: Buries, Elijah 1 ; Wilson, Tyler 1 ; Aguilar, Tayler 2
HR: Aguilar, Tayler 1
RBI: Buries, Elijah 3 ; Wilson, Jacob 1 ; Colato, Juan 2 ; Wilson, Tyler 1 ; Aguilar, Tayler 3 ; Bush Jr., Homer 1 ; Snedeker, Sy 1 ; Crenshaw, Dustin 1
SF: Buries, Elijah 1 ; Snedeker, Sy 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Colato, Juan 2 ; Torres, Adrian 1 ; Verdusco, Cade 1 ; Wilson, Tyler 2 ; Aguilar, Tayler 3 ; Bush Jr., Homer 2 ; Snedeker, Sy 2 ; Crenshaw, Dustin 2
SB: Colato, Juan 1
HBP: Buries, Elijah 1 ; Colato, Juan 1 ; Bush Jr., Homer 1 ; Crenshaw, Dustin 1
Game Leaders
AB
5
R
3
H
4
RBI
3
cf/lf
AB
4
R
2
H
3
RBI
1
AB
6
R
0
H
2
RBI
1
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
OF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ BaseballOF
/ BaseballUTIL
/ Baseball
RHP
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