SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - No. 5 seed Saint Mary's took advantage of another big inning to knock off No. 1 Gonzaga, 13-4, in the second round of the 2026 West Coast Conference Baseball Tournament from Scottsdale Stadium in Scottsdale, Ariz. 

With the win, the Gaels advance in the winner's bracket and will play the winner of San Francisco and Pacific on Friday at 2 p.m. The Bulldogs will play the non-advancing team between USF and Pacific on Friday at 10 a.m. in an elimination game. 

Saint Mary's took control of the game with a five-run fourth inning. Ian Josephson started the inning with a double to left. After a sacrifice bunt moved him over to third, he scored on a sacrifice bunt by Cody Kashimoto to tie the game at two. A bases loaded hit by pitch gave Saint Mary's the lead back. Makoa Sniffen then recorded a big two-run double to left, increasing the Gaels' lead to 5-2. Following a pitching change, Saint Mary's added another run on an RBI ground out to make it 6-2 Gaels before the Bulldogs got out of the inning. 

The Gaels kept the momenumt rolling after last night's high-scoring affair over Pepperdine with a run in the top of the first. Tanner Griffith led off the game with a triple to right-center before Diego Castellanos singled him home. The Gaels had runners in scoring position with nobody out in the second, as well, but Gonzaga got out of the jam unscathed. 

Gonzaga took the lead in the bottom of the third. After Ryder Young singled, he scored all the way from first on an RBI double by Noah Meffert to deep center field to tie the game at one. Meffert scored on an RBI single by Hudson Shupe to give the Bulldogs a 2-1 lead. 

SMC added two more runs in the top of the fifth. Following an RBI ground out by Kashimoto, Griffith doubled home another run to increased the Gaels' lead to 8-2. 

The Gaels padded their lead in the top of the 8th behind an RBI single by Brady Petit and an RBI double by Cody Kashimoto. The double by Kashimoto increased the SMC lead to 11-2. 

Nick Allred put an exclamation mark on the victory with a towering two-run homer to left in the ninth. 

Griffith went 3-for-5 on the day, a home run short of the cycle. Jared Mettam went 3-for-4 with a triple. 

On the mound for the Gaels, Sam Kretsch struck out the side in the bottom of the fourth. He ended his day going six innings, striking out six and allowing two earned runs on four hits.