Bar rises again in win over No. 4 Texas Tech

Tuesday, April 5

Phoenix, Ariz.

6 p.m.

Grand Canyon

19-11

Texas Tech

24-7

Texas Tech

Grand Canyon

4/5/2022 11:07:00 PM | Baseball, Paul Coro

Box Score Photo Gallery

Lopes beat top-5 opponent for 2nd time this season with Wilson's 3-run homer

By: Paul Coro

Grand Canyon keeps shaking up the college baseball scene, but even a commanding victory against No. 4 Texas Tech, its highest-ranked victim since returning to the Division I ranks, merited nothing more than the customary postgame handshake line Tuesday Night..

That is because victories like the Lopes' 9-4 win against the Red Raiders at GCU Ballpark are an expectation born out of determination. Beating the nation's fourth-ranked team comes less than three weeks after the Lopes won 13-7 at No. 5 Oregon State and two months after winning 19-3 at No. 11 Arizona.

The GCU bullpen kept the nation's No. 4 offense, averaging 10.1 runs per game, to one run over five innings, just two days after not allowing an earned run in five innings to finish a series win against New Mexico State.

Despite missing injured top hitters Juan Colato and Jacob Wilson, the Lopes (19-11) were clutch at the plate from sophomore first baseman Tyler Wilson's three-run home run in the first inning to sophomore third baseman Dustin Crenshaw's three-run double in the eighth inning.

Tyler Wilson and Cade Verdusco

"We really pride ourselves on facing a tough schedule every year," said Tyler Wilson, who went 3 for 5 on Tuesday night. "We want to show that we can hang with these guys. At this point, we're expected to either beat them or hang in with them. We're not really surprised by the outcome or the score. It doesn't matter who we play. We don't fear anyone."

GCU has recorded wins against top-25 teams in six consecutive seasons and has 13 top-25 wins since 2015, when it recorded the program's first two top-25 wins against Texas Tech.

This time, the Red Raiders (24-7) came into Phoenix three days off a 28-run performance at Kansas. Texas Tech emerged as advertised with senior left fielder Easton Murrell's leadoff home run, which was wiped out when Tyler Wilson fought out of an 0-2 count and pulled a full-count, high fastball for a three-run home run to right field.

"That was a pretty good answer back," GCU head coach Andy Stankiewicz said. "They punched us earlier. Tyler Wilson had a great at bat with two strikes and fouling balls off to stay it. Then he gets a big three-run home run and it was, 'OK, that's a good punch back. We're here. Let's keep playing.' "

GCU sophomore starting pitcher Carter Young battled through an off-night, giving up another leadoff home run in the third inning before turning a 4-2 lead over to the bullpen after two walks to start the fifth.

Junior Blake Reilly began the work, holding Texas Tech to one run to maintain the lead. Freshman R.J. Elmore came on in the fifth inning to end a two-on threat and added a shutout seventh. Junior Eli Ankeney struck out two in a perfect eighth as the Lopes bullpen dropped its ERA to 2.45 over the past 12 games.

"Our pitching staff did a great job," Stankiewicz said. "Those guys can hit. To give up ones (one-run innings), that was the key. They had runners on base and we made some big pitches to eliminate the big inning. That's what you've got to do against a ball club that hits like that.

"We have guys down there who can keep getting those big outs for us. It's pretty encouraging. They've been pounding the zone, pitching to contact and getting big outs."

Tyler Wilson's and junior designated hitter Adrian Torres' consecutive singles in the third set up senior shortstop Jonny Weaver's RBI sacrifice fly for a 4-2 lead in the third. After it was reduced to 4-3, Torres reached bases for the sixth consecutive time this week with a single and scored on a steal and two-base error for a 5-3 GCU lead in the fifth.

With each infielder not at his customary position, GCU turned two inning-ending double plays to set up extending the lead to 6-3 on Tyler Wilson's RBI two-out single in the seventh.

"I was telling the boys in the eighth inning that we got to get some more runs," Lopes sophomore third baseman Dustin Crenshaw said.

The Lopes loaded the bases with one out in the eighth, when sophomore left fielder Cade Verdusco knocked his second single before a pair of walks. Sophomore second baseman Elijah Buries popped up, but Crenshaw lived up to his words and roped the next pitch for a bases-clearing double into the left-center gap and a 9-3 lead.

"I'm really excited about Crenshaw's at bat," Stankiewicz said. "That's what we've got to be about. That's great team baseball. Great job by Crenshaw to pick up a teammate."

Crenshaw singled, doubled, walked and laid down a sacrifice bunt. Crenshaw, a WAC Tournament championship hero with the tying hit, was batting .100 until this weekend but is now 6 for 11 in the past three games.

"I saw him working down in the zone a little bit so I was expecting a heater because he was trying to get ahead," Crenshaw said. "I was looking for something to drive early."

The Lopes, who entered Thursday at No. 40 in NCAA Ratings Percentage Index, and the Red Raiders will reconvene at GCU Ballpark at 2 p.m. on Wednesday. Texas Tech will do without junior catcher Cole Stilwell, who was ejected after being called out on strikes in the ninth inning.

"Every time we take the field, we come on the field excited to compete and play good baseball more than anything else," Stankiewicz said.