Lopes walk off Lobos again, clinch big MW series

Saturday, May 9

Phoenix, Ariz.

7 p.m.

Grand Canyon

19-28, 9-11

New Mexico

26-22-1, 11-11-1

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
New Mexico	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	8	1
Grand Canyon	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	0	2	4	10	0

Photo by: Jayden Todd

5/9/2026 10:51:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

Grand Canyon rallies with 2 in 9th, wins 3rd straight home game on walk-off finish

By: Josh Hauser

Grand Canyon's late-game belief delivered another celebration into center field Saturday night.

For the third consecutive home game and second straight night against New Mexico, GCU won in walk-off fashion, rallying for two runs in the ninth inning to beat the Lobos 4-3 at Brazell Field at GCU Ballpark and clinch a critical Mountain West series.

With the bases loaded and one out in the ninth, graduate catcher Mito Perez was hit by a pitch to force in freshman right fielder Tanner Johns with the winning run. It was a far different walk-off from Cannon Peery's home run one night earlier, but the celebration looked familiar as the Lopes poured out of the dugout and chased the moment into center field again.

"The whole year, the whole motto was just keep believing in each other," Perez said. "Marcus (Galvan) led off the inning, a great at bat, gets on first base. Then we worked our way. (Camden) Bates did his job, got the bunt down. No matter what happens, the guy behind you has your back."

The win kept GCU (19-28, 9-11 MW) in a sixth-place tie with UNLV, which also won Saturday. It also moved the Lopes closer to New Mexico (26-22-1, 11-11-1 MW) and gave GCU the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Lobos, who play their conference finale Sunday in Phoenix while most Mountain West teams still have another league weekend remaining. The top six teams qualify for the MW Championship.

"I have not until this team," GCU interim head coach Nathan Bannister said of being part of three straight walk-off wins at home. "That just shows the fight that they have. Playing all nine innings. It was a sloppy first inning. Just to persevere and continue to fight and fight and fight. They found a way in the ninth inning."

The ninth-inning push began with Galvan working a pinch-hit walk on a nine-pitch plate appearance. Johns followed with a walk, and Bates dropped down a sacrifice bunt that the Lobos couldn't turn into an out.

Sophomore center fielder Griffin Cameron lifted a sacrifice fly to center to tie the score. Sophomore second baseman Jake Sanko then singled through the left side to reload the bases before Perez took a pitch inside to end it.

"No one needs to be the hero," Bannister said. "No one needs to throw the haymaker. We just want to throw jabs. We just want to get the line moving. Get it to the next guy."

GCU had been forced to chip away after New Mexico scored three times in the first inning. Junior right-hander JT Guerrero settled in from there, giving the Lopes 7 1/3 innings while allowing three runs on six hits with six strikeouts. After the opening frame, Guerrero held the Lobos scoreless into the eighth and gave GCU time to mount its comeback.

"After the homer (in the first), I saw him look at the scoreboard and he started shaking his head," Bannister said. "Almost like, 'Alright, I got it,' or 'so-what' type mentality. He took that to heart, and he did not let that affect his second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh."

Perez, who caught Guerrero, saw the same response.

"That's the JT we all know," Perez said. "When he's dialed in, I told him he's one of the best pitchers I've ever caught."

The Lopes first broke through in the sixth when Sanko doubled to left-center, Perez singled him to third and senior designated hitter Trevor Schmidt grounded into a double play that brought Sanko home. GCU added another run in the seventh when junior left fielder Carson Ohland singled, senior Kade Huff followed with a pinch-hit single and Bates delivered an RBI single to right after a wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position.

Junior righty Nicholas Robb entered with two on and one out in the eighth and kept the deficit at one. After a single loaded the bases, Robb got a strikeout and a groundout to escape the inning, then stranded a leadoff double at third in the ninth to earn the win. He finished with 1 2/3 scoreless innings.

"He's just nails," Perez said. "This is your job. This is what you're going to do. And that's that. He takes the bull by the horns and he runs with it."

The series-clinching win gives GCU three straight home walk-off victories dating back to its April 29 comeback against Arizona, and it sends the Lopes into Sunday's regular-season home finale with a chance to keep tightening the MW race. First pitch against New Mexico is set for 12 p.m. at Brazell Field at GCU Ballpark, where the Lopes will honor 15 seniors in a postgame ceremony.