Ezra Samperi was hit by a pitch and Jack Machtolf singled with one out in the top of the seventh inning. After a pitching change, Enzo Apodaca had an RBI single to pull the Zags within 9-8. Pinales pulled the next pitch down the left-field line for the go-ahead runs. Cade McGee drove in Pinales with a two-out single.
Wild (9-1) got the last out of Wright State’s six-run third and scattered three hits the rest of the way, although he walked six. He also had seven strikeouts.
Pinales also had an RBI single in Gonzaga’s four-run third inning that produced a short-lived 4-3 lead.
Zane Harris had a two-run homer and Andrew Patrick a three-run shot in Wright State’s six-run third.
Friday’s game: Gavin Cross went 5-for-6 with a double, a home run and five RBIs and top-seeded Virginia Tech beat Wright State 15-9 Friday night in the first round of the double-elimination tournament.
Nick Biddison was hit by a pitch to lead off the bottom of the first and Cross followed with a home run to right field to make it 2-0 and the Hokies never trailed. Cross added and RBI single in the second and then swiped second and Biddison scored from third on a double-steal and Cade Hunter hit a solo homer in the third to make it 5-0.
Wright State’s Sammy Sass and Jay Luikart had back-to-back RBI singles in the top of the fourth. Alec Sayre had a two-RBI double and later scored on a sacrifice fly by Sass in the fifth to tie it at 5-all, but Virginia Tech answered with five runs in the bottom of the inning to take a 10-5 lead.
Biddison finished 5-for-5 with an RBI, three steals and four runs scored. Carson Jones and Carson DeMartini combined for four hits, including three doubles, four RBIs and four runs for Virginia Tech.
Zane Harris went 3-for-3 with two RBIs and Julian Greenwell had two doubles and two RBIs for Wright State (30-26). Sayre and Sass each added two RBIs.
Wright State fell to 1-3 against Virginia Tech this season. The teams played a three-game series in Blacksburg in the regular season.
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