GCU wins both games of doubleheader in Reno

Saturday, April 29

Reno, Nev.

1 p.m.

Grand Canyon

25-15

Long Beach State

24-16

Grand Canyon

Long Beach State

4/29/2023 4:35:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

Lopes use early offense to top Long Beach, score late to solidify win over Nevada

By: Josh Hauser

RENO, Nev. — Grand Canyon took both ends of a Saturday doubleheader, defeating Long Beach State 7-6 to start the day and beating host Nevada 8-2 to finish it off at Peccole Park.

"It was a great day of baseball," Lopes head coach Gregg Wallis said. "We played really well. When we play well, we have a shot to beat anyone. We beat a good Long Beach team this morning and a good Reno team this afternoon. We pitched well, we played great defense for the most part, and we got timely hitting. The guys showed up today and played really well."

GCU finishes off the weekend against Nevada at 11 a.m. on Sunday.

Lopes down Dirtbags

GCU jumped on the board with five runs on five hits in the first inning and hung on for a 7-6 win to even the two-game series with Long Beach State.

The Dirtbags wouldn't go away, scoring one run in every inning from the second through the seventh to pull within a run. But junior left-hander Connor Markl and graduate right-hander Brodie Cooper-Vassalakis combined to face just one batter over the minimum on a fielding error in the eighth and ninth. For Cooper-Vassalakis, it was his third save of the season.

"Brodie was outstanding," Wallis said. "He came in and did what you look for from a backend, shutdown guy. He had swing-and-miss stuff. Everything was going today."

In limited meetings, GCU defeated Long Beach State for the first time since 1994. Junior pitcher Carter Young tossed the first five innings to earn his first victory of the season.

During GCU's busy first inning, four of its five hits were doubles. Junior shortstop Jacob Wilson was the first to double, and he and freshman first baseman Zach Yorke scored on a two-run double by sophomore right fielder Maxwell Andeel. Sophomore third baseman Eli Paton drove in a run on a single, and freshman catcher John Sheehan drove in two more with another double.

"It felt good to come back out here after a tough loss yesterday," Wilson said. "Just get back out here, see how the guys were able to put runs on the board, help our pitchers out, and overall just get a team win. We got two today. Overall, it's awesome to see our guys get a win after a tough one yesterday."

While the Dirtbags began a streak of scoring a run in six consecutive innings, it also took fortitude for Lopes pitching to continually strand runners on base to limit the damage. GCU stranded a runner on third base in the second, third, sixth and seventh innings.

Another notable play to limit Long Beach State's damage came in the fourth inning when freshman shortstop Emilio Barreras fired a strike to Sheehan on a relay throw to nab a runner at the plate.

The Lopes also matched the Dirtbags' single-run innings in the fourth (Wilson's RBI single) and sixth (junior center fielder Homer Bush Jr.'s RBI double).

GCU ended Long Beach State's scoring streak just in time, tossing shutdown eighth and ninth innings. Wilson led the Lopes with a three-hit day.

Thornton keys nightcap win vs. Nevada

While early offense carried the Lopes in the first game of the day, it was six runs in the final four innings that secured an 8-2 win against Nevada in the second game.

The pitching duo of left-hander Zach Thornton and right-hander Nathan Ward limited the Wolf Pack to two runs on five hits.

"I felt really good," Thornton said. "I think we were finally able to get the slider down in the zone in those two-strike counts."

Thornton improved to 6-1 on the season after a six-inning outing only ended because of a nonconference pitch count. The junior struck out six and walked one. His only mistake was a two-run home run that accounted for Nevada's only scoring of the game.

Ward earned his first save as a Lope with three innings of scoreless work. The junior struggled with command, walking four and hitting a batter, but repeatedly made big pitches to get out of jams.

"Ward has been big for us," Wallis said. "The last month of the year, he's taken a step forward for us. He's had the closer role in his career before. You feel good when he's on the mound."

GCU scored a run in the first inning when junior designated hitter Tyler Wilson singled up the middle.

"Offense was good," Thornton said. "They came out aggressive in the first inning. We scored one, which is unbelievable for a pitcher's confidence when you go out there without throwing a pitch and already being up one run. It's a huge confidence booster. Our offense has been doing well this week."

The two-run home run gave Nevada a 2-1 lead in the second before the Lopes tied the score on a wild pitch in the fourth.

GCU broke through for a lead in the sixth and continued tacking on runs in each of the final four innings. The go-ahead score came on an infield single from graduate second baseman Zack Gregory.

Senior catcher Josh Buckley and Yorke each came up with a RBI double in the seventh and eighth innings, respectively, to extend the lead. Junior right fielder Cade Verdusco hit his first triple of the season to add another run in the ninth.