Upcoming Event: Baseball versus Yaquis de Obregón on September 26, 2026 at 5 p.m.
Baseball
5 p.m.
vs Yaquis de Obregón
Grand Canyon University Athletics
2026 Baseball Roster
Roster
UTIL
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/ BaseballC
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/ Baseball
Jersey Number 31
Elijah Higginbottom
- Position:
- RHP
- Ht./Wt.:
- 6-0 / 215
- Class:
- Senior
- B/T:
- R/R
- Hometown:
- Sumner, Wash.
- HS:
- Sumner
- Prev School:
- Tacoma CC
 |
Grand Canyon |
2026 | Senior
- Made 17 appearances with three starts, throwing 38 1/3 innings.
- Struck out 28 and walked only eight, giving him a 3.50 strikeout-to-walk ratio and 1.88 walks allowed per nine innings.
- Threw five shutout innings with six strikeouts and no walks at UC Irvine on Feb. 24 in one of GCU's best early-season pitching performances.
- Worked 3 1/3 innings of one-run relief against UNLV on April 10.
- Started the season finale at Nevada and kept GCU in front, allowing three runs, two earned, with no walks and four strikeouts over four innings.
- Closed a March 9 game at Utah with a clean eighth inning.
- Made 18 appearances with all but one coming out of the bullpen.
- Had the No. 2 WHIP (1.34), No. 3 ERA (4.32), No. 3 strikeouts tally (42) and No. 4 innings pitched (50) on the team (disregarding innings requirements).
- Went 6-0, the most wins in a GCU undefeated pitching record since Jack Schneider went 7-0 in 2017. His six wins came against Nebraska, Texas Tech, California Baptist, UT Arlington, Stanford and Utah Tech. Tied for fourth in the WAC in wins.
- In walking just nine batters in 50 innings, had the 14th-best walk rate (1.62) in GCU history and third in the program's D-I era.
- In GCU debut, threw five scoreless, one-hit innings with five strikeouts and was the winning pitcher against No. 23 Nebraska on Feb. 17.
- Combined with Garrett Ahern to toss a shutout at Utah Tech on April 18, chipping in two scoreless frames.
- Earned first career save with four innings of no-hit shutout work in a series-clinching win at Texas State on March 1.
- Lone start came on April 13 vs. Utah Valley, throwing five innings of two-run baseball with five strikeouts in a Lopes' win.
 |
Tacoma CC |
Tacoma, Wash. |
- Spent the 2023 and 2024 seasons with the Titans.
- Earned All-Northwest Athletic Conference West Region honors both seasons including first team as a freshman and second team as a sophomore.
- As a freshman in 2023, made 13 appearances and nine starts spanning 65 2/3 innings. Went 6-2 with a 1.10 ERA, striking out 67 and limiting opponents to a .162 batting average.
- As a sophomore in 2024, made 10 appearances and nine starts spanning 59 innings. Went 4-3 with a 2.59 ERA, striking out 64 and limiting opponents to a .215 batting average.
- Began a 2024 postseason run for the Titans with an eight-inning, one-run performance in the NWAC conference tournament.
Summer Leagues |
- 2024: Victoria HarbourCats | West Coast League | Victoria, B.C. (stats)
Sumner HS |
Sumner, Wash. |
- Was a two-time first-team All-South Puget Sound League pitcher.
- Tossed 60 2/3 varsity innings as a junior and senior, posting a 1.38 ERA and a 5-1 record.
- Also played football as a freshman.
- Played club for Diamond Sports Premier.
Personal |
- Parents are Kevin and Cindy Higginbottom.
- Off the field, enjoys golf, spikeball, going to the lake and video games.
- Chose GCU for the Christian school, Arizona, good coaches and MLB Draft history.
- If he wasn't playing baseball, it'd be soccer.
- Favorite TV show is Breaking Bad.
- Favorite athletes to watch growing up include Russell Wilson, Richard Sherman and Felix Hernandez.
Thursday, September 03
Thursday, September 03
Saturday, August 29
Thursday, August 27
