SPOKANE, Wash. - The streak continues! Pepperdine baseball opened a three-game series with Gonzaga on Thursday night and stole game one from the Bulldogs, winning 5-2, extending the win streak to four games in a row, the longest streak since winning four straight from March 22-27, 2022.
The Waves improved to 10-19 overall and 5-2 in the WCC, while Gonzaga dropped to 13-14 overall and 4-3 in WCC play. Pepperdine also moved into a tie for second place in the conference standings alongside Portland. Down the road in Los Angeles, Loyola Marymount, 0-6 in the WCC entering their contest tonight against 6-0 San Francisco, came back from down 0-9 to beat SF 12-10, putting Pepperdine just one game back of first place.
"Really proud how we came out and set the tone both offensively and on the mound," said Head Coach
Tyler LaTorre following the contest. "To score first and then add on with a huge two-out rally ending in a three-RBI double by Julien Nunez was awesome. Adding the insurance run late with Laxa getting on base and then a perfectly executed hit and run by
Nash Horton allowed for
Shawn Romero to drive in the fifth run with a sacrifice fly. The quality at bats continue to build up and down the lineup."
Waves starting southpaw
Casey Euper couldn't have pitched any better, tossing a career-high seven innings while surrendering two unearned runs. The Bulldogs tallied only four hits off of Euper, who also struck out four.
"All of the offense early was matched by the brilliance of
Casey Euper on the mound," continued LaTorre. "He did a fantastic job of working quickly and pounding the strike zone."
Pepperdine jumped on the scoreboard first in the opening frame, as
James Dell'Amico smashed a RBI double to the left-center field gap, scoring
Daniel Patterson. The Waves added on in the second inning, getting a two-out, bases-clearing double from
Julian Nunez to extend the lead to 4-0. Gonzaga responded in the bottom of the inning, tallying their first run via a sacrifice fly from Hudson Shupe.
Both offenses stayed quiet until the Waves made some noise in the sixth with a sac fly from
Shawn Romero to bring it back to a four-run advantage at 5-1. Another sac fly from the Bulldogs reeled Gonzaga back within three at 5-2, but on their last breath in the ninth,
Lucien Wechsberg dropped a breaking ball right down John Tyler Drive to get Jacob Wrubleski looking and give Pepperdine its fourth-straight victory.
"
Kam Croghan and
Lucien Wechsberg did their jobs out of the bullpen to seal the victory," added LaTorre. "Great TEAM win!"
GAME NOTES
- After getting consistent traffic throughout the night, Pepperdine stranded nine baserunners, while Gonzaga left four.
- Wechsberg has recorded either a save or the win in seven of the Waves' 10 wins.
- The aforementioned Croghan retired the side in the eighth (three groundouts).
- Patterson, Nash Horton, and Danny Cook each had a two-hit game for Pepperdine.
- The Bulldogs had only eight baserunners all night, putting just four on the basepaths in the first five innings.
The Waves will attempt to run it back tomorrow night with another 6:00 pm PT scheduled first pitch in the second game of the series. The contest can be seen on
ESPN+.
ABOUT PEPPERDINE BASEBALL
Pepperdine baseball has one of the richest traditions and success stories among mid-major baseball programs in the country. The Waves won the NCAA National Championship in 1992 and have made 28 NCAA Tournament appearances in total. Located in scenic Malibu, California, Eddy D. Field Stadium boasts one of the most remarkable views in college baseball and has seen 35 former Waves reach the MLB while seeing 41 All-American selections.
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