Gonzaga baseball heads into final stretch with eye on West Coast Conference title
May 8-Gonzaga's baseball team regrouped and reignited its bats earlier this week. Confidence restored, the Zags head into their penultimate West Coast Conference series with their sights set on a championship.
Gonzaga (29-17, 16-5 WCC), with a three-game lead atop the conference standings, visits second-place San Francisco (22-24, 13-8) for a three-game set this weekend, starting at 2 p.m. Friday. GU can wrap up its first regular-season conference title since 2022 with a series win.
"Going to San Francisco is obviously going to be a big one, and I think we're all geared up for it," star third baseman Mikey Bell said after GU raced past Washington State 10-5 on Monday in Spokane.
The Bulldogs, ranked 54th nationally in the RPI, are looking to add another major accomplishment in what's already been a memorable season. Behind an ultra-productive lineup, Gonzaga set a program record with 14 consecutive wins before a bumpy stretch last week.
The team dropped a narrow midweek game at No. 13 Oregon, then lost a WCC series for the first time this year, falling twice at home to Santa Clara. The Zags averaged 9.5 runs on 13 hits per game during their streak, but were limited to 4.25 runs on 8.5 hits per game last week.
GU got back on track, piling up 18 hits and using a seven-run sixth inning to complete a season sweep of its rivals from the Palouse.
"It was only a matter of time before we started swinging it again," top hitter Maddox Haley said. "(Last) weekend wasn't great for our bats. ... It's good for us to go and swing it a little bit going into these last couple games. It's just mentality."
The Zags have enjoyed a hitter's mentality, boasting a .305 combined batting average - 28th nationally - with dangerous bats throughout the lineup.
"There's not one guy that can't change the game with one swing," Haley said. "Our whole lineup can do damage."
Haley, a juco transfer designated hitter/outfielder, paces the group with a .384 average and .696 slugging percentage. He's hit 10 homers and 13 doubles with just 19 strikeouts. The junior from San Diego set a program record with a 29-game hitting streak before an 0-for-13 stretch last week, but he broke the slump with a pair of knocks Monday.
"It wasn't about having a hot streak. I wanted to be consistent," Haley said. "I just wanted one a game, I wanted that one knock to help my team. If I can produce or score and get an RBI, that was the focus. It was about being the consistent player I wanted to be. I didn't know I was going to hit .400, but I'd like to think that one a day - getting on base, helping the team out, that's what I wanted to do."
Bell, the reigning WCC Player of the Year, has been at his best down the stretch. The junior is on a 17-game hitting streak. He's batting .506 with 19 RBIs, 11 doubles and only eight strikeouts during that stretch. For the season, Bell is hitting .362 with team highs in runs (44) and doubles (20).
While it was expected that Bell would be a standout, several newcomers have emerged to help take GU's offense to a nationally notable level.
"I knew we were good coming in, and that was one of the reasons why I wanted to come back," Bell said. "I knew we were going to have a lot of bats coming in. Maddox obviously has had a crazy year. (Junior outfielder Ryder Young) has been consistent for us all year. Top to bottom, it's been super fun. Over expectations, for sure, but I knew these guys were really good hitters."
Young, a juco All-American the past two years at Chaffey College in California, is on a 13-game hitting streak, with 20 of his team-high 50 RBIs and six of his team-leading 12 homers during the streak.
Shortstop Ricky Sanchez, a grad transfer from D-II Pittsburg State, is batting .354 and was recently named a semifinalist for the Brooks Wallace Award, which recognizes the nation's top shortstop. Senior outfielder Noah Meffert, a Coupeville, Washington, product and D-II Point Loma Nazarene transfer, is hitting .312 with 11 doubles and nine homers.
"(The lineup) had a lot of new guys coming in ... just trying to get comfortable, and it took some time for them to do that, and it took some time for us to get the right guys in the right spots," longtime GU coach Mark Machtolf said. Haley, for instance, didn't become a regular in the lineup until about 10 games into the season.
"We had some guys coming back ... that have done it before, and we felt good about the guys coming in, but there's always - you don't know until they come here and do it. And they've really done a good job and excelled, and made the jump."
Although GU's pitching hasn't been as strong as years past, the Zag arms have been steady enough to keep the team in the top four of the WCC in ERA (5.18) and hits allowed (403). Gonzaga leads the league with 433 strikeouts.
Senior righty Justin Feld (6-1, 4.80 ERA) has taken over as the ace, and sophomore lefty Karsten Sweum (6-1, 4.90 ERA) is a capable No. 2, with a team-high 84 strikeouts against 31 walks. Freshman standout Landon Hood (2-1, 2.75 ERA, 59 strikeouts, 18 walks) and Chewelah's Zach Bowman (3-5, 4.19 ERA) are solid out of the bullpen. GU has another five pitchers who have worked at least 25 innings and can be relied on as the postseason approaches.
Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.
This story was originally published May 7, 2026 at 11:43 PM.