Early lead erased as UNLV gets past GCU

Friday, April 10

Phoenix, Ariz.

6 p.m.

Grand Canyon

11-22, 3-7

UNLV

20-14, 4-6

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
UNLV	0	2	3	0	3	4	1	0	0	13	8	2
Grand Canyon	1	3	2	0	1	1	0	0	0	8	11	1

Photo by: Bryce Fairchild

4/10/2026 10:09:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

Lopes score 6 in first 3 innings; Rebels answer with 11 runs over final 5 frames

By: Josh Hauser

Grand Canyon carried an early lead into the middle innings Friday night, but UNLV's power surge and a decisive sixth inning sent the Lopes to a 13-8 loss in the opener of the three-game Mountain West series at Brazell Field at GCU Ballpark.

GCU (11-23, 3-7 MW) looked in control early, scoring in each of the first three innings to build a 6-5 advantage. Junior first baseman Cannon Peery got the Lopes on the board in the first with an RBI double after junior right fielder Billy Scaldeferri reached and sophomore second baseman Jake Sanko moved into scoring position on a Rebel error.

The Lopes answered UNLV's two-run second with a strong bottom half of the inning. Junior shortstop Camden Bates singled, junior center fielder Griffin Cameron walked and Scaldeferri was hit by a pitch to load the bases before graduate catcher Mito Perez forced in a run with a walk. Junior designated hitter Trevor Schmidt followed with a two-run single to center, giving GCU a 4-3 lead.

After UNLV's three-run third on Cooper Sheff's homer, GCU again countered immediately. Sophomore left fielder Gunnar Penzkover tripled to deep center and Bates lined an RBI double to right before later scoring on a wild pitch, tying the game at 6-6 through three innings.

The turning point came in the sixth, when the Rebels (20-14, 4-6 MW) broke the game open against the GCU bullpen. After two walks, UNLV launched a three-run homer to center, and the Rebels later added another run on a hit batter with the bases loaded to stretch the margin to 12-7. That four-run frame turned a one-run game into a deficit GCU could not erase.

Junior righty JT Guerrero allowed four earned runs over five innings for GCU, battling through early traffic.

There were still bright spots offensively for the Lopes. Bates continued his hot stretch by going 2 for 4 with a double, RBI and two runs scored, while Peery added two hits and freshman third baseman Jose Lopez III chipped in a pair of hits from the lower half of the lineup. Schmidt drove in two, and the Lopes swiped three bases as they kept pressure on the Rebels' defense.

GCU had chances to keep the game closer but stranded 11 runners and went just 4 for 19 with runners in scoring position. After Bates' sacrifice fly in the sixth trimmed the deficit to 12-8, the Lopes were held scoreless over the final three innings while UNLV added insurance in the seventh.

The Lopes will look to even the series Saturday in game two of the three-game set. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. on the Mountain West Network and Arizona's Family Sports.