Completed Event: Baseball at Stanford on May 9, 2025 , Win , 4, to, 3
Baseball
at Stanford
W 4-3
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Saturday, June 1
Tucson, Ariz.
7 p.m.
Grand Canyon
35-24
2
vs
5
West Virginia
35-22
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Grand Canyon
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
10
0
West Virginia
0
1
0
4
0
0
0
0
X
5
6
0
Photo by: David Kadlubowski
Regional loss to WVU sends GCU to elimination game
6/1/2024 8:46:00 PM | Baseball, Paul Coro
Mountaineers score 4 runs in 4th to break 1-1 tie in Tucson
TUCSON, Ariz. – The difference between Grand Canyon being in command of the Tucson Regional in a Sunday night game and needing to fight for postseason life Sunday afternoon happened in a fourth-inning blur Saturday night at Hi Corbett Field.
GCU suffered a 5-2 loss to West Virginia, returning the Lopes to Hi Corbett Field on Sunday for a noon elimination game against No. 25 Dallas Baptist (45-14). The winner will advance to a 6 p.m. against West Virginia, the Tucson Regional's lone unbeaten team with chances to win it Sunday night and Monday, if necessary.
The Lopes (35-24) came into the weekend being a three-game winning streak from going to a Super Regional and start over with that possibility Sunday.
"The way we finished from the fifth through the ninth is momentum-building to me," said GCU head coach Gregg Wallis, whose team outscored West Virginia 1-0 with opportunities for more. "We had some seniors step up and give us some good zeroes and give us a chance to win that game. It seemed like we weren't in the game, but we were."
The Lopes gave the Mountaineers (35-22) two late-game scares with senior left fielder Tyler Wilson's potential three-run home run getting knocked down by the wind at the right-field wall and the game ending with the bases loaded in the top of the ninth inning.
Wilson, the WAC Player of the Year, had his GCU-record 26-game hitting streak end after senior right fielder Eddy Pelc (11 for his last 22) and sophomore shortstop Emilio Barreras (2 for 3) each singled. Wilson's towering shot with a 102 mph exit velocity pushed West Virginia right fielder Ben Lumsden to the wall to settle under the inning-ending fly out.
"That might have been the best swing he took all year, and he's got 17 home runs," Wallis said. "I still don't know how that ball stayed in the yard. I think the wind had shifted right there. Off the bat, I didn't look at it. I was telling the runner to make sure you touch the base because that ball is gone. The wind held it up. I couldn't believe it."
With seniors Shawn Triplett, Bryan Webb and Carter Young shutting out West Virginia for four innings, the Lopes staged a ninth-inning rally that started with no-out singles from senior center fielder Cade Verdusco and sophomore first baseman Zach Yorke. With one out, senior pinch hitter Dustin Crenshaw cut the Mountaineers lead to 5-2 by pulling a RBI single to right field on the second pitch he saw.
Another pinch hitter, junior Michael Diaz, loaded the bases with a single to right field before the game ended on senior right fielder Eddy Pelc's flare to shortstop and freshman pinch hitter Marcus Galvan's grounder to short.
The Lopes were trying to win with a bullpen start from freshman right-hander Hunter Watkins and middle-innings work from freshman right-hander Connor Mattison. By design, Watkins pitched two innings, following a perfect first inning with a one-run second that included two singles, two stolen bases and two strikeouts.
"We wanted to get him through the lineup one time," Wallis said. "He's been coming out of relief mostly. He's set up for two to four innings. We felt like, with their offense, they've got a lot of good hitters, a lot of good left-handed hitters. They swing the bat. We thought he would throw a lot of strikes early and hopefully do exactly what he did, which was get some early contact and get some ground balls."
Mattison's mix of fastball and change-up set down West Viriginia in order in the third inning, but he loaded the bases with one out on two walks and a hit batsman in the fourth inning. West Virginnia second baseman Brodie Kresser hit a two-run single before a potential ground out took a bad hop for another RBI single and a 4-1 Mountaineers lead. A fielder's choice tacked on the last damage of a pivotal four-run fourth inning that put West Virginia ahead 5-1 until the ninth inning.
"It didn't work out because the fourth inning blew up on us," Wallis said.
Mountaineers left-handed starter Tyler Switalski, coming off five shutout innings against TCU, used power early and a pitch mix later to give his team 7 2/3 innings with one run allowed on a career-high 101 pitches.
Three of the Lopes' innings ended on double plays, a night after turning three double plays on Arizona. That helped West Virginia face the minimum from the third to the seventh inning. GCU outhit West Virginia 10-6 with six of those coming in the eighth and ninth innings.
"I think 80% of the fastballs that I called were down the middle, at least 80%," West Virignia head coach Randy Mazey said. "Just force contact. And if you force contact with a good team behind you, great things will happen. Unbelievable performance in a huge moment."
After using seven pitchers in the regional's first two games, the Lopes face the prospect of stretching its staff for two Sunday wins to get to a Monday game. Dallas Baptist reached Sunday's game by eliminating No. 13 Arizona, the host, with a 7-0 win earlier Saturday.
Sophomore right-hander Issac Lyon (6-1, 3.56 ERA) will start Sunday's noon game after getting a three-inning save Friday night against Arizona. Dallas Baptist will start sophomore right-hander Jerrod Jenkins, who is 6-0 with a 3.28 ERA and a .178 opponent batting average. This will be Jenkins' sixth start of the season.
"Isaac will have innings available," Wallis said. "Hunter Watkins, we felt like we wanted to use him multiple games. Besides the matchup situation that we were trying to go for this game, now Hunter can come back and give us innings. We haven't used Walter Quinn or Nathan Ward yet. We're in a spot where we can go compete. Somebody is going to need to step up and give us some length, but we have some options."
After an Arizona baseball record crowd Friday night, the turnout became a pro-GCU environment Saturday night. More of that could be used Sunday against Dallas Baptist, the Conference USA champion that made a case to be a regional host with a 9-2 record against Quad 1 opponents.
"It's special," GCU sophomore shortstop Emilio Barreras said. "Every time that travels to a regional, it's kind of tough on fans. But thankfully we're home. It's not too far for a drive. It's definitely special seeing family members and close friends supporting. I just wish we pulled through today."
GCU suffered a 5-2 loss to West Virginia, returning the Lopes to Hi Corbett Field on Sunday for a noon elimination game against No. 25 Dallas Baptist (45-14). The winner will advance to a 6 p.m. against West Virginia, the Tucson Regional's lone unbeaten team with chances to win it Sunday night and Monday, if necessary.
The Lopes (35-24) came into the weekend being a three-game winning streak from going to a Super Regional and start over with that possibility Sunday.
"The way we finished from the fifth through the ninth is momentum-building to me," said GCU head coach Gregg Wallis, whose team outscored West Virginia 1-0 with opportunities for more. "We had some seniors step up and give us some good zeroes and give us a chance to win that game. It seemed like we weren't in the game, but we were."
The Lopes gave the Mountaineers (35-22) two late-game scares with senior left fielder Tyler Wilson's potential three-run home run getting knocked down by the wind at the right-field wall and the game ending with the bases loaded in the top of the ninth inning.Wilson, the WAC Player of the Year, had his GCU-record 26-game hitting streak end after senior right fielder Eddy Pelc (11 for his last 22) and sophomore shortstop Emilio Barreras (2 for 3) each singled. Wilson's towering shot with a 102 mph exit velocity pushed West Virginia right fielder Ben Lumsden to the wall to settle under the inning-ending fly out.
"That might have been the best swing he took all year, and he's got 17 home runs," Wallis said. "I still don't know how that ball stayed in the yard. I think the wind had shifted right there. Off the bat, I didn't look at it. I was telling the runner to make sure you touch the base because that ball is gone. The wind held it up. I couldn't believe it."
With seniors Shawn Triplett, Bryan Webb and Carter Young shutting out West Virginia for four innings, the Lopes staged a ninth-inning rally that started with no-out singles from senior center fielder Cade Verdusco and sophomore first baseman Zach Yorke. With one out, senior pinch hitter Dustin Crenshaw cut the Mountaineers lead to 5-2 by pulling a RBI single to right field on the second pitch he saw.Another pinch hitter, junior Michael Diaz, loaded the bases with a single to right field before the game ended on senior right fielder Eddy Pelc's flare to shortstop and freshman pinch hitter Marcus Galvan's grounder to short.
The Lopes were trying to win with a bullpen start from freshman right-hander Hunter Watkins and middle-innings work from freshman right-hander Connor Mattison. By design, Watkins pitched two innings, following a perfect first inning with a one-run second that included two singles, two stolen bases and two strikeouts.
"We wanted to get him through the lineup one time," Wallis said. "He's been coming out of relief mostly. He's set up for two to four innings. We felt like, with their offense, they've got a lot of good hitters, a lot of good left-handed hitters. They swing the bat. We thought he would throw a lot of strikes early and hopefully do exactly what he did, which was get some early contact and get some ground balls."
Mattison's mix of fastball and change-up set down West Viriginia in order in the third inning, but he loaded the bases with one out on two walks and a hit batsman in the fourth inning. West Virginnia second baseman Brodie Kresser hit a two-run single before a potential ground out took a bad hop for another RBI single and a 4-1 Mountaineers lead. A fielder's choice tacked on the last damage of a pivotal four-run fourth inning that put West Virginia ahead 5-1 until the ninth inning.
"It didn't work out because the fourth inning blew up on us," Wallis said.
Mountaineers left-handed starter Tyler Switalski, coming off five shutout innings against TCU, used power early and a pitch mix later to give his team 7 2/3 innings with one run allowed on a career-high 101 pitches.
Three of the Lopes' innings ended on double plays, a night after turning three double plays on Arizona. That helped West Virginia face the minimum from the third to the seventh inning. GCU outhit West Virginia 10-6 with six of those coming in the eighth and ninth innings.
"I think 80% of the fastballs that I called were down the middle, at least 80%," West Virignia head coach Randy Mazey said. "Just force contact. And if you force contact with a good team behind you, great things will happen. Unbelievable performance in a huge moment."
After using seven pitchers in the regional's first two games, the Lopes face the prospect of stretching its staff for two Sunday wins to get to a Monday game. Dallas Baptist reached Sunday's game by eliminating No. 13 Arizona, the host, with a 7-0 win earlier Saturday.
Sophomore right-hander Issac Lyon (6-1, 3.56 ERA) will start Sunday's noon game after getting a three-inning save Friday night against Arizona. Dallas Baptist will start sophomore right-hander Jerrod Jenkins, who is 6-0 with a 3.28 ERA and a .178 opponent batting average. This will be Jenkins' sixth start of the season.
"Isaac will have innings available," Wallis said. "Hunter Watkins, we felt like we wanted to use him multiple games. Besides the matchup situation that we were trying to go for this game, now Hunter can come back and give us innings. We haven't used Walter Quinn or Nathan Ward yet. We're in a spot where we can go compete. Somebody is going to need to step up and give us some length, but we have some options."
After an Arizona baseball record crowd Friday night, the turnout became a pro-GCU environment Saturday night. More of that could be used Sunday against Dallas Baptist, the Conference USA champion that made a case to be a regional host with a 9-2 record against Quad 1 opponents.
"It's special," GCU sophomore shortstop Emilio Barreras said. "Every time that travels to a regional, it's kind of tough on fans. But thankfully we're home. It's not too far for a drive. It's definitely special seeing family members and close friends supporting. I just wish we pulled through today."
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Switalski, Tyler (5-2)
L: Mattison, Connor (6-5)
S: Estridge, Carson (4)
Batting:
RBI: Crenshaw, Dustin 1 ; Pelc, Eddy 1
SF: Pelc, Eddy 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Verdusco, Cade 1 ; Ankeney, Beau 1
Batting:
RBI: Kresser, Brodie 3 ; Lumsden, Ben 1 ; King, Skylar 1
SH: White, Sam 1 ; Hussey, Grant 1
Base Running:
RUNS: White, Sam 1 ; Chumley, Reed 2 ; Perazza, Michael 1 ; Kresser, Brodie 1
SB: Chumley, Reed 2 ; Kresser, Brodie 1
HBP: Chumley, Reed 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
0
H
2
RBI
0
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
INF
/ Baseball
INF
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
C/3B
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ BaseballOF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
LHP
/ Baseball
UTIL
/ Baseball1B
/ Baseball
RHP
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Baseball vs. Arizona (5/6/25) - Yorke homers twice to break record
Wednesday, May 07
GCU Baseball - Eli Paton walk-off single vs. UTA
Saturday, April 26