Gonzaga prevails in series finale at No. 13 Oklahoma | College baseball roundup
Gonzaga salvaged its series at No. 13 Oklahoma with a well-rounded win Sunday. Washington State regrouped and swept Long Beach State. Whitworth got off to a winning start in Northwest Conference play.
Here’s a rundown on how the area’s college baseball teams fared this weekend.
Gonzaga
The Zags bounced back from mercy-rule losses to Oklahoma on Friday and Saturday, taking the series finale 7-1 on Sunday at Kimrey Family Stadium in Norman, Oklahoma.
Gonzaga (3-7) struggled on the mound in the first two games, butgot a sparkling pitching effort Sunday from starter Karsten Sweum and Landon Hood, a fast-rising true freshman.
Sweum (1-1), a sophomore southpaw from Snohomish, struck out seven batters, allowing one run – a solo shot in the sixth inning –on three hits and one walk over six innings. Hood, in his third collegiate appearance, fanned seven batters and gave up two baserunners (walk, hit by pitch) over the final three innings.
Hood has become an instant GU standout after earning Arizona Gatorade Player of the Year honors last season at Canyon View High on the outskirts of Phoenix. The right-hander hasn’t surrendered a run over 11⅓ innings this year. He’s struck out 17 against just three hits and two walks, and boasts a stellar WHIP of 0.44.
Sweum has been the Bulldogs’ most effective starter so far after coming out of the bullpen last year. He has an ERA of 4.02 and has punched out a team-high 18 while allowing seven runs on 12 hits over 15⅔ innings.
GU’s other primary starters, junior All-WCC first-teamers Finbar O’Brien and Erik Hoffberg, saw their ERAs swell after tough outings this weekend.
O’Brien (0-1) walked nine batters and OU totaled 12 walks during a 14-4 rout of the Zags on Friday. O’Brien’s ERA now stands at 8.31. He’s given up 12 runs on 13 hits and 16 walks while striking out 12 in 13 innings.
Hoffberg (1-2) surrendered seven runs on nine hits and struck out one over four innings in an 11-1 loss Saturday. His ERA is up to 5.63. He’s conceded 10 runs on 15 hits and six walks with 14 strikeouts over 16 innings.
Hoffberg didn’t get any support from the lineup, which managed one single and one walk, and struck out nine times in the seven-inning game.
But the batters came through Sunday, turning a 2-1 lead into a runaway win with a four-hit, five-run ninth inning. Sophomore catcher Rece Schuerman, a Mt. Spokane High grad, had a two-run double in the inning for his second hit of the year.
GU’s top offensive performer this weekend was star infielder Mikey Bell, the reigning WCC Player of the Year who seems to have found his rhythm. He hit 4-for-10 with four RBIs and his first two homers of the year. Bell leads GU with a .316 batting average on the year – he’s the only Zags regular hitting .300 or better.
The Bulldogs open a three-game series at Creighton on Friday.
Washington State
The Cougars dropped two games in agonizing fashion against BYU to open their weekend in Long Beach, California, but WSU responded with a two-game sweep of Long Beach State, winning 10-4 on Friday and 9-7 on Sunday to improve to 5-6 on the year.
WSU broke a 7-7 tie in the eighth inning of the finale on senior Ryan Skjonsby’s two-run single. The Cougs’ offense led the way in two games against the Dirtbags (4-7), recording 17 hits (four for extra bases) and 16 walks. WSU batters tallied six doubles and three triples during the four-game weekend.
True freshman center fielder Trevor Smith has been on a torrid stretch recently. He was 0-for-5 Sunday, but hit 10-for-20 with three doubles over the previous five games, and logged four RBIs in Friday’s win. Smith, from the San Diego area, is hitting .302 on the year.
Another freshman, outfielder Mason Pirello, had a breakout weekend, hitting 7-for-12 with five RBIs. The Sammamish product boosted his batting average to a team-best .444.
WSU’s steadiest hitter, senior outfielder Max Hartman, went 5-for-12 with five runs and six walks this weekend. He’s hitting .351 on the year. Fellow senior Gavin Roy batted 6-for-13 with five RBIs over the four games.
Griffin Smith gave WSU a decent start on Sunday, allowing three runs on four hits with three strikeouts in 4⅔ innings. Relievers Rylan Haider and August Richie had bounce-back games in the finale after rough outings against BYU, holding Long Beach State hitless over the final 2⅔ innings.
Haider had allowed two runs in the eighth inning against BYU on Thursday, and Richie gave up a three-run homer in the top of the ninth in the 6-4 loss. WSU met a similar fate a day later, losing 5-4 when BYU hit a walk-off double against reliever Taber Fast.
The Cougs’ bullpen also held up in Friday’s win over the Dirtbags. Three relievers combined to allow four hits in 4⅓ scoreless innings, preserving WSU’s lead.
While the bullpen still needs some work, the Cougs seem to have serviceable starters in senior righty Luke Meyers (1-1, 4.11 ERA) and sophomore lefty Nick Lewis (0-1, 4.30 ERA). Meyers was sharp Thursday against BYU, yielding one run (unearned) on four hits and no walks, and punching out three in seven innings. Lewis went 5⅓ innings Friday, allowing four runs on five hits and four walks with three strikeouts.
The Cougars next visit Texas State for a four-game series, beginning Thursday.
Whitworth
The Pirates (6-8) opened Northwest Conference play with a series win, taking two of three against Puget Sound (8-3) in Tacoma.
Whitworth prevailed 7-5 on Sunday after splitting a Saturday doubleheader, winning the opener 10-2, then falling 7-4.
Senior catcher Ty Komoda was the standout in the first two games, launching a pair of home runs and driving in five. Outfielder Nate Gray Jr. had a productive series, batting 6-for-12 with a homer and four RBIs. Utility man Caleb Gray, a West Valley High grad, had two homers over the weekendand first baseman Carson Coffield, a Mt. Spokane product, hit a triple and a double. Shortstop Kyle Memarian, the NWC’s reigning MVP, extended his hitting streak to eight games.
Coffield paces Whitworth on the season with a .386 average, three homers and 14 RBIs. Caleb Gray has a team-high four home runs. Nate Gray Jr. (.349) and Memarian (.319) are settling in.
The priority for Whitworth is developing consistency on the mound. The Pirates may have found something in sophomore Dillon Hartman (1-0, 2.84 ERA), who impressed in his first start Saturday. He went six innings, fanning three while allowing two runs on six hits. Hartman has worked 12⅔ innings this season, giving up four earned runs on nine hits and five walks with eight strikeouts.
Junior Dylan Huntsman (1-1, 4.50 ERA) has been the team’s go-to starterwith 19 hits and nine runs allowed with 14 strikeouts over 18 innings. He took the loss Saturday.
Sophomore Nathaniel Kurano improved to 2-1 on Sunday, conceding four runs on five hits with two strikeouts in 5⅔ innings. His ERA sits at 5.74.
The Pirates next travel to Azusa, California, for a four-game nonconference series against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, starting Friday.