Completed Event: Baseball at Fresno State on April 4, 2026 , Win , 7, to, 5
Baseball
at Fresno State
W 7-5
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Wednesday, February 25
Cicerone Field at Anteater Ballpark • Irvine, Calif.
2 p.m. (MST)
Grand Canyon
3-6
9
at
4
UC Irvine
6-3
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Canyon | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 12 | 0 |
| UC Irvine | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 1 |
Photo by: Braden Dohrmann
GCU plates 5 in 10th to top UC Irvine
2/25/2026 7:08:00 PM | Baseball
Lopes strand Anteaters' potential winning run on 3rd to force extras
IRVINE, Calif. — Grand Canyon stranded UC Irvine's potential winning run on third base in the ninth inning and erupted for five runs in the 10th inning to win 9-4 and split the series Wednesday at Anteater Ballpark.
The Lopes (3-6) collected 12 hits, drew seven walks and used five pitchers to outlast the Anteaters (6-3), finishing strong behind a dominant four-inning relief effort from senior right-hander Cam Cunnings, who earned the win.
The victory also carried added significance for Gregg Wallis, who returned to his alma mater for the first time as GCU's head coach.
"This is obviously a special place to me," Wallis said. "I went to school here. I started my coaching career here. So it was cool … It was great to get a win because they're a great program."
GCU struck in the opening inning when senior catcher Mito Perez worked a walk, stole second and came home on junior right fielder Billy Scaldeferri's double to left-center field.
The Lopes extended the lead in the fourth as senior designated hitter Dominic Chacon launched a solo home run to right field before junior center fielder Griffin Cameron later scored on sophomore third baseman Jake Sanko's RBI single.
UC Irvine answered midway through the game, scoring two runs in each of the fifth and sixth innings to lead 4-3.
GCU continued to answer throughout the afternoon, regaining momentum in the seventh when Perez singled and Scaldeferri delivered again with another RBI double to left field.
Scaldeferri finished 2 for 4 with two doubles and three RBIs while helping anchor the middle of the lineup.
"It was great, seeing the ball well today," Scaldeferri said. "Just trying to put my team in a good position to go win a game today. So I want to go out there, get some wins, get going."
Cunnings had to bear down in the bottom of the ninth to make sure the game didn't slip away for GCU. With two outs, UC Irvine's Tommy Farmer tripled to center field, placing the winning run just 90 feet away. Cunnings responded by inducing a flyout to center, forcing extra innings.
Wallis said the moment reflected the resilience his team showed Wednesday.
"In this game, the fight was there, win or lose," Wallis said. "I was excited about the toughness and the fight that we brought to the ballpark, and then to come out and get a W against a really good team on the road. It was a good way to end the road trip."
GCU quickly seized control in the 10th inning. Freshman left fielder Tanner Johns opened with a single, and Chacon followed with another base hit before junior second baseman Troy Sanders moved both runners into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt. After pinch-hitter Marcus Galvan was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Cameron was also hit by a pitch to score the go-ahead run.
Sanko and Perez followed with bases-loaded walks, and a wild pitch scored another run. Scaldeferri capped the rally with a sacrifice fly, giving GCU five runs on two hits while capitalizing on walks and hit batters to break the game open.
"It was definitely important to get one," Scaldeferri said. "We do play great competition. Oklahoma State was a great team. These guys are a great team. … And today we ended on a good note."
Cunnings closed the door in the bottom half, working around a leadoff walk by inducing a double play and game-ending pop-up that secured the victory. The right-hander allowed just two hits across four scoreless innings while striking out five in relief.
"Eight of our first nine games were against regional opponents, so we had to fight every single pitch," Wallis said. "To get a win against a really good team on the road, it was a good way to end the road trip."
GCU returns home for a three-game set against Pacific starting on Friday at 6 p.m.
The Lopes (3-6) collected 12 hits, drew seven walks and used five pitchers to outlast the Anteaters (6-3), finishing strong behind a dominant four-inning relief effort from senior right-hander Cam Cunnings, who earned the win.
The victory also carried added significance for Gregg Wallis, who returned to his alma mater for the first time as GCU's head coach.
"This is obviously a special place to me," Wallis said. "I went to school here. I started my coaching career here. So it was cool … It was great to get a win because they're a great program."
GCU struck in the opening inning when senior catcher Mito Perez worked a walk, stole second and came home on junior right fielder Billy Scaldeferri's double to left-center field.
The Lopes extended the lead in the fourth as senior designated hitter Dominic Chacon launched a solo home run to right field before junior center fielder Griffin Cameron later scored on sophomore third baseman Jake Sanko's RBI single.
UC Irvine answered midway through the game, scoring two runs in each of the fifth and sixth innings to lead 4-3.
GCU continued to answer throughout the afternoon, regaining momentum in the seventh when Perez singled and Scaldeferri delivered again with another RBI double to left field.
Scaldeferri finished 2 for 4 with two doubles and three RBIs while helping anchor the middle of the lineup.
"It was great, seeing the ball well today," Scaldeferri said. "Just trying to put my team in a good position to go win a game today. So I want to go out there, get some wins, get going."
Cunnings had to bear down in the bottom of the ninth to make sure the game didn't slip away for GCU. With two outs, UC Irvine's Tommy Farmer tripled to center field, placing the winning run just 90 feet away. Cunnings responded by inducing a flyout to center, forcing extra innings.
Wallis said the moment reflected the resilience his team showed Wednesday.
"In this game, the fight was there, win or lose," Wallis said. "I was excited about the toughness and the fight that we brought to the ballpark, and then to come out and get a W against a really good team on the road. It was a good way to end the road trip."
GCU quickly seized control in the 10th inning. Freshman left fielder Tanner Johns opened with a single, and Chacon followed with another base hit before junior second baseman Troy Sanders moved both runners into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt. After pinch-hitter Marcus Galvan was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Cameron was also hit by a pitch to score the go-ahead run.
Sanko and Perez followed with bases-loaded walks, and a wild pitch scored another run. Scaldeferri capped the rally with a sacrifice fly, giving GCU five runs on two hits while capitalizing on walks and hit batters to break the game open.
"It was definitely important to get one," Scaldeferri said. "We do play great competition. Oklahoma State was a great team. These guys are a great team. … And today we ended on a good note."
Cunnings closed the door in the bottom half, working around a leadoff walk by inducing a double play and game-ending pop-up that secured the victory. The right-hander allowed just two hits across four scoreless innings while striking out five in relief.
"Eight of our first nine games were against regional opponents, so we had to fight every single pitch," Wallis said. "To get a win against a really good team on the road, it was a good way to end the road trip."
GCU returns home for a three-game set against Pacific starting on Friday at 6 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Cunnings, Cam (1-0)
L: Rodgers, Peyton (1-1)
Batting:
2B: Scaldeferri, Billy 2 ; Sanders, Troy 1
HR: Chacon, Dominic 1
RBI: Sanko, Jake 2 ; Perez, Mito 1 ; Scaldeferri, Billy 3 ; Chacon, Dominic 1 ; Cameron, Griffin 1
SH: Perez, Mito 1 ; Sanders, Troy 1
SF: Scaldeferri, Billy 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Sanko, Jake 1 ; Perez, Mito 2 ; Johns, Tanner 1 ; Chacon, Dominic 2 ; Bates, Camden 1 ; Cameron, Griffin 2
SB: Perez, Mito 1
CS: Sanko, Jake 1
HBP: Galvan, Marcus 1 ; Cameron, Griffin 1
Batting:
2B: Fjelstad, Zach 1
3B: Farmer, Tommy 1
RBI: Fjelstad, Zach 2 ; Farmer, Tommy 1 ; Hillman, Dylan 1
SF: Hillman, Dylan 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Doyle, Zach 1 ; Carney, Frankie 1 ; Reyes, Alonso 1 ; Dietsch, Connor 1
HBP: Reyes, Alonso 2 ; Castagnola, James 1
Game Leaders
AB
5
R
1
H
3
RBI
2
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
3
AB
5
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
AB
3
R
2
H
1
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
OF
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
C/3B
/ Baseball
1B/OF
/ BaseballC
/ Baseball
INF
/ Baseball
INF
/ Baseball
INF
/ BaseballSingles off BOTH bags. ONE inning. 🤯 #baseball
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