PULLMAN, Wash. (April 23, 2024) – Washington State brought the winning-run to the plate in the ninth inning but the rally was turned away as Gonzaga claimed a 6-4 victory at Bailey-Brayton Field Tuesday evening.
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Washington State (18-21) traded single runs with the Bulldogs (17-20) in the fourth and sixth innings before Gonzaga scored four in the ninth. The Cougars scored twice and put two runners on in the ninth before the potential game-winning run struck out to end the game.
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Third baseman
Cole Cramer tallied two hits and scored twice while first baseman
Joey Kramer drove in a pair of runs. Cougar starter
Spencer Jones allowed just one earned run while working into the sixth.
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KEY MOMENTS OF THE GAME
In the fourth inning, both teams traded runs as Gonzaga used a pair of singles and double steal to score a run before WSU evened things up with a
Cole Cramer single, stolen base, GU error and
Joey Kramer RBI-groundout to second base.
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Jones was impressive, working into the sixth inning and exited after retiring the first batter he faced. GU rallied with two outs, reaching on a single, followed by a balk and wild pitch before a single through the right side brought home the go-ahead run.
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In the bottom of the inning,
Alan Shibley earned a leadoff walk, moved to third on a
Kyle Russell single and scored on a GU wild pitch to even things at 2-2.
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Haider fired scoreless seventh and eighth innings and nearly got out of the ninth inning but a couple pitches were called off the plate and GU pulled an RBI-single through the left side to score the go-ahead run. GU added three more runs to push their lead to 6-2. In the WSU ninth, the Cougars scored twice to make it a two-run game before the potential game-winning run struck out with two runners on.
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INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Kyle Russell singled in 6th inning to extend on-base streak to 14 games
Max Hartman had his 10-game on-base streak snapped
Joey Kramer had his 7-game on-base streak
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NEXT UP
WSU hosts Fresno State for a weekend series beginning Friday at 6:05 p.m.
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