MALIBU, Calif. – The Pepperdine baseball team is back at Eddy D. Field Stadium for the second weekend of West Coast Conference play, hosting Gonzaga for a three-game series beginning on Friday, March 24 and concluding on Sunday, March 26. On Saturday, prior to game two, the Waves will unveil the new videoboard dedication in memory of former Pepperdine baseball coach, Dave Gorrie.
 
SCHEDULE:
Friday, March 24 - Pepperdine (5-13, 0-3) vs. Gonzaga (6-12, 3-0) at 3 PM
Saturday, March 25 - Pepperdine vs. Gonzaga at 1 PM
Sunday, March 26 - Pepperdine vs. Gonzaga at 1 PM
 
COVERAGE: All three games will be broadcasted live on the WCC Network. The videoboard dedication will also be broadcasted and will be available prior to first pitch on Saturday. Links to broadcasts as well as live stats are available at pepperdinewaves.com.
 
TICKETS: For any games played at Pepperdine, patrons must have an e-ticket prior to arriving on campus. Pepperdine students, staff and faculty just need their Pepperdine ID card for entry. Tickets can be found at pepperdinewaves.com/tickets.
 
ENTRANCE/PARKING: Due to construction on campus, stadium parking and entrance guidance has changed. Please review the most updated information at www.pepperdinewaves.com/tickets.
 
DAVE GORRIE: Dave Gorrie is the all-time winningest head coach in Pepperdine baseball history. Gorrie spent 10 seasons with the Waves (1979-88) and collected a 409-202-11 all-time record, good for an impressive .666 winning percentage. Gorrie was at the helm when Pepperdine made its first-ever appearance at the College World Series in just his first year and led the team to a third-place finish. During the 1979 season, Gorrie and the Waves compiled a Pepperdine program-record of 53 total victories, which still stands today.
 
SERIES VS. GONZAGA: Pepperdine holds the overall series lead against Gonzaga, 60-45. The Waves and Bulldogs matched up in the third week of conference play last season, but Gonzaga collected the series 2-1 at Eddy D. Field Stadium.
 
LAST GAME: During opening weekend of West Coast Conference play, Pepperdine fell 3-0 in the series to Portland. In game one, the Waves and Pilots exchanged the lead four times and were tied three times, but Portland scored the go-ahead run in the bottom of the eighth inning and Pepperdine was unable to rally back and ultimately dropped 5-4. Grant Schoen had a career-high night with three hits going 3-for-4.
 
On Saturday in game two, the Waves tried to make a comeback but was a little too late and fell 8-6 to the Pilots. Both squads were scoreless for the first three innings, but a four-run fourth inning for Portland put them on top. Pepperdine trailed the rest of the way and tried to make a late comeback in the top of the ninth with four runs. Lincoln Orellana was 2-for-4 on the day including his first home run in a Pepperdine uniform. Brandon Llewellyn struck out a career-high nine batters.
 
In the series finale, Pepperdine was unable to get the bats going and dropped 5-2 to Portland. The Waves and Pilots were in a pitching duel for the first four innings, but a five-run inning for Portland put them ahead. The Waves earned two runs in the top of the fifth, but that was not enough as the Portland pitching staff stood strong. Schoen was the only Wave with two hits including a double. Jack Goodman had one hit which also was a double. Devon Walczykowski hit his first career triple.
 
On Monday, the Waves fell 5-4 to CSUN in a midweek road matchup. Pepperdine had the lead over the Matadors, but CSUN tied it up in the seventh inning and added two more to take the lead and hold onto the win. Jack Basseer was 2-for-3 including an RBI and a double. Basseer also had a walk. Quintt Landis was 1-for-3 and had two RBI.
 
HONORS: Ryan Johnson notched the season's first West Coast Conference weekly honors for the Pepperdine baseball team when he was named Player of the Week on March 6. He batted a .571 and had an 11 RBI week, while posting back-to-back games with two home runs and five RBI to tie a career-high in RBI. In four appearances last week, Johnson only had two strikeouts and scored seven runs. He ended the week with five homers and a double.
 
WCC LEADERS: The Waves rank top-five in two different categories on the WCC leaderboards. Pepperdine is third in the conference in home runs (18) and fifth in hits (140).
 
Pepperdine also has multiple Waves in the top-20 in WCC stats. Ryan Johnson is tied for first in home runs (seven), second in the conference in slugging percentage (.778), fifth in on-base percentage (.475), tied for sixth in RBI (18), seventh in hits (23) and 12th in batting average (.365). Greg Mehlhaff and John Peck are both tied for 11th in home runs with three each. On the pitching side, Shane Telfer is eight in ERA (2.89) and tied for 12th in strikeouts (26). Brandon Llewellyn is tied for 20th in strikeouts (19).