Area roundup: Gonzaga baseball defeats Tulane

Two series into a young season and the Gonzaga baseball team can already claim their first series win.

The Bulldogs (7-7) used a five-run third inning to defeat Tulane 7-2 in New Orleans Saturday afternoon, taking the second game of a three-game series that caps this afternoon.

The Green Wave (11-4) entered the game ranked No. 30 by the National College Baseball Writers of America.

Mitchell Gunsolus batted 2 for 3 with three runs scored, Justin Jacobs and Cory LeBrun each drove in a pair and starter Andrew Sopko (2-1) pitched six solid innings allowing two runs - none earned – and striking out five.

Wyatt Mills picked up his second save of the season, after allowing one hit in three innings of work.

Washington State 5, Sacred Heart 2: Ben Roberts hit his first home run of the season and the Cougars (10-5) won their second-consecutive home series by defeating the Pioneers (0-7).

Starter Nick Leonard (1-2) picked up his first win of the season, allowing two runs in four innings, and three Washington State relievers combined for eight strikeouts and one hit in five innings

Whitworth 2-5, George Fox 1-16: Whitworth (9-6, 3-2) got stellar pitching in the series-opener, but in the second game – not so much, in splitting a Northwest Conference doubleheader in Spokane.

Dan Scheibe overcame a second-inning home run by Jacob Woehler, pitching eight strong innings, allowing one run and striking out six, keeping the senior at a perfect 4-0 on the season, and lowering his conference-leading ERA to 1.04.

In the nightcap, Whitworth catcher Joshua Davis homered and drove in three runs on a bases-loaded double, but five Whitworth pitchers couldn’t contain the Bruins’ bats as four George Fox (7-8, 5-3) hitters had multiple hits, led by a 4 for 6 night by Jake Thran.

CCS 14-13, University of Calgary 3-3: Kasey Kelly carried over his four-hit game in Game 1, adding two more hits in the nightcap, and the Sasquatch (4-2) bats lit up the scoreboard in a doubleheader sweep of the Dinos at Spokane.

Evan Douglas and Jordan McGowan both homered in the opener, as six Spokane hitters collected multiple hits.

Michael Heaton and Darian Barlow led the team with three hits in the second game.

Softball

Whitworth 3-9, Pacific Lutheran 0-1: Pirates’ shortstop Tessa Matthews batted a combined 4 for 6 with six RBI and Whitworth (12-4, 5-1) defeated the Lutes (3-7, 2-4) in a Northwest Conference doubleheader in Spokane.

Whitworth sent 11 batters to the plate in the sixth inning of the second game, scoring nine runs in the frame.

Peyton McMahon scored twice and Matthews had three RBI in the inning, which ended after the eight-run rule.

Madi Perez pitched a five-hit shutout in the opener.

Track and Field

Whitworth sweeps UPS 5-Way Meet: Katie McKay set a meet record in the 800-meter run, freshman Kayla Brase won the long jump and triple jump, and the Pirates’ women won six individual events en route to 191 points and a meet win, hosted by the University of Puget Sound, in Tacoma.

Nicholas Gosselin won the 200 and the 400 and helped lead the Whitworth men’s 4x100 and 4x400 relay to victory and Whitworth to 232 points and the meet title.