GCU visits Arizona State for 1st of 3

Tuesday, March 17

Phoenix, Ariz.

6 p.m.

Grand Canyon

Arizona State

3/16/2026 7:23:00 PM | Baseball

Programs set to play 3 times in a season for 1st time since 1997; Lopes will later host Sun Devils twice

By: Josh Hauser

PROBABLE PITCHERS
Tuesday at 6 p.m.	LHP Easton Barrett (0-0, 13.50)	LHP Cody Kiemele (0-0, 5.63)

Grand Canyon and Arizona State meet on Tuesday night for the first in a three-game season series. The Lopes and Sun Devils are scheduled to play three times in a season for the first time since 1997. In the last five seasons, GCU and Arizona State have played twice per season with the teams splitting the series in four of the last five years. GCU will host the second and third meetings of the season on April 7 and May 12 at GCU Ballpark.

Tuesday's 6 p.m. game at Phoenix Municipal Stadium will stream on ESPN+.

3 THINGS TO KNOW

SANKO + SCALDEFERRI: GCU sophomore Jake Sanko and junior Billy Scaldeferri have combined to be the Lopes' two most productive hitters to date. Sanko has a scorching .407 batting average that ranks in the nation's top 75 and No. 3 in the Mountain West. Scaldeferri has flashed power with a .609 slugging percentage that ranks top five in the conference.

LOPES-SUN DEVILS SERIES: GCU and Arizona State have played 122 previous meetings dating back to 1953, the first season of the Lopes program. The two programs only met one time between 2004 and 2020 but resumed regular meetings in 2021. The Lopes and Sun Devils have split two-game season series in four of the last five years. Michael Diaz hit a seventh-inning go-ahead home run for GCU to hold serve on its home field in 2025.

ROAD TRIPPIN': The Lopes play their next five games on the road, although two will be played in the state. GCU plays Arizona State before heading to Washington State for three and visiting Tucson next Tuesday. The five-game stretch matches a season-long streak of road games and is something the Lopes will undertake three times in 2026.

SCOUTING ARIZONA STATE

Arizona State enters the matchup at 14-5 and a 2-1 start in conference play, with the majority of its success coming at home (13-1) compared to limited road and neutral-site results (1-4 combined). The Sun Devils opened the season 8-0 and are 6-5 since. ASU opened conference play with a home series win over TCU.

Offensively, Arizona State is hitting .336 with 39 home runs through 19 games, ranking among the top teams nationally in slugging percentage (.589). Landon Hairston (.417, 8 HR, 29 RBIs) leads a group with four regulars hitting above .320. On the mound, the Sun Devils hold a 3.96 ERA and strong strikeout numbers but have issued 89 walks.

WHAT'S NEXT?

GCU heads to Pullman, Washington, for a milestone series: the Lopes' first in Mountain West Conference play. The three-game set begins on Friday at 4 p.m.

For more GCU baseball news, notes and numbers, click here to view game notes.