On Sunday, Cougar baseball wrapped up a tough home series against Utah with a thrilling 5-4 win over the Utes to pick up their first win in two and a half weeks. Tuesday night, WSU was looking to keep things rolling in one of their toughest tests of the season so far.

For the first time in the 2022 slate, the Cougs continued their long-running series against the Gonzaga Bulldogs. The Zags entered the game ranked 15th in the country, and the Cougars got a front row seat Tuesday night to see just how good GU is this season.

WSU sent sophomore Jack Lee to the hill for the start, but the first frame for the Aussie didn’t quite go as planned. After a quick first out, Lee gave up a single followed by a two-run home run off the bat of Gonzaga’s Tyler Rando. The next batter, Cade McGee, followed suit with a home run of his own to complete the back-to-back. Lee would give up a walk and an RBI triple to push the lead to 4-0 in the second inning before he got the hook.

From that point, the WSU bullpen was able to lock things down for the next few innings. Tyler Hoeft, Cameron Liss, and Chase Grillo combined for 3.2 one-hit innings, striking out 7. The trio was also supported by some slick defense behind them.

However, as we all know, some good things just won’t last. The Bulldogs were able to jump all over the WSU pen from there, pulling away even further in the 6th inning. Three more WSU relievers combined to allow 5 runs on 2 hits, 4 walks and an error as the Zags extended their lead to 9-0. The Zags would add on again in the 8th on their way to the 12-0 win.

The loss means that the Cougs have now lost four in-a-row to their rivals from Spokane. It also means that WSU has now lost 11 of their last 12 contests and fall to 10-18 on the season. The good news is that the team will have a chance to turn things around in just a couple of days time when they return to the field on Friday night. The bad news is that game comes on the road against another top-15 team in #13 Arizona. First pitch for game one in Tucson is set for 6 p.m. on Friday.

Links

Washington State coach Jake Dickert: Running the ball a 'mentality and mindset that we'll always have in this program' | The Spokesman-Review
PULLMAN – Don’t be fooled by the name of Washington State’s new offense. The Cougars’ Air Raid system won’t lack a ground game.

Washington State guard Noah Williams enters transfer portal after three seasons in Pullman | The Spokesman-Review
Noah Williams, once considered a fast-rising name in the Pac-12 and perhaps the best player on Washington State's basketball roster, has entered the transfer portal after an underwhelming third season in which his role and productivity diminished.

Bob Bowlsby to step away from role as Big 12 commissioner later this year
Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby announced Tuesday he will step down later this year, saying that the past two years have been "particularly stressful."

What does that have to do with WSU, you might be asking...