SPOKANE, Wash. – Needing a win to clinch the final spot into the West Coast Conference Tournament, Pepperdine completed their three-game sweep of Gonzaga on Saturday at Patterson Baseball Complex and Coach Steve Hertz Field. The Waves scored all seven runs in the first five innings to hold off the Bulldogs for a 7-6 win.
 
Pepperdine (15-37, 9-15 WCC) earns a bid into the WCC Tournament in Las Vegas and will face Saint Mary's on Wednesday. Gonzaga (19-30, 14-10 WCC) will face Santa Clara after the conclusion of the Pepperdine-Saint Mary's game, hoping to avenge their tournament-opening loss to the Broncos last season.
 
The Waves took a quick 3-0 lead in the top of the first on a pair of RBI hits from Connor Bradshaw and Corwin Hemmingsen before tacking on a fourth run in the top of the second. The Zags were scoreless and hitless through the first two frames, but Hudson Shupe ended both of those zeros with a two-run home run in the bottom of the third to cut the Pepperdine lead in half.
 
Looking to respond to Shupe's blast, Pepperdine struck for two in the fourth and one in the fifth to open a 7-2 lead. The lead would hold for one inning before a two-run bottom of the sixth brought Gonzaga back within three. Hank Dunn sent a ball into the right center gap that scored Payton Knowles and Donovan Ratfield as he stood on third base with an RBI triple.
 
Two more runs in the bottom of the seventh brought Gonzaga within one as Daniel Sotelo continued to shut down the Pepperdine offense in relief. Working three and two-thirds innings, Sotelo allowed just one baserunner while striking out three to give the Zags a chance to rally.
 
In the ninth, Gonzaga quickly found themselves with two outs, but after a hit by pitch and a single had the winning run on base. Pepperdine's Matt Queen settled down to strike out the final batter and end the GU rally, clinching the Waves' spot in Vegas with a 7-6 win.
 
UP NEXT
Gonzaga will face Santa Clara at 7:05pm on Wednesday night in Las Vegas and Las Vegas Ballpark. The Zags must win to keep their season alive, hoping to get revenge on a Broncos team that ended their 2023 season at that same ballpark. Follow @ZagBaseball on social media for all the latest updates, and check gozags.com for results and streaming information.