Washington baseball rides eight-run first inning to win over Gonzaga

The Washington Huskies needed just one solid frame to secure a win over the Gonzaga Bulldogs on Tuesday.

The Washington Huskies got off to the strongest start possible in Tuesday afternoon’s matchup with the Gonzaga Bulldogs, putting up eight runs in the bottom of the first inning and cruising to an 8-2 victory over their in-state rivals.

Coach Jason Kelly’s team saw an impressive offensive output from left fielder AJ Guerrero, who went 3 for 4 with a run-scoring single in the first inning and a run scored. Second baseman Blake Wilson also contributed with a two-RBI triple, shortstop Cam Clayton added an RBI double, and catcher Colton Bower plated two runs with a single.

Starter Jase Evangelista earned his third win of the season for Washington, working the first 3 innings of the ballgame and allowing 5 hits and 1 earned run. Matthew Mueller took his first loss of the year for Gonzaga, as he could not escape the first inning, recording just 2 outs and letting up 5 earned runs on 1 hit and 4 walks.

With the win, the Huskies moved closer to .500, improving to 17-20-1 on the season while the Bulldogs fell to 17-24. Next, Washington will travel to Tempe, Arizona on Friday for a matchup with the Arizona State Sun Devils.