Robison pitches BYU to a 6-5 win over Gonzaga

SPOKANE, Wash. — BYU won game two of a three-game series with Gonzaga, 6-5, on a pitching gem by Bryce Robison at Patterson Complex on Friday night. Robison threw 125 pitches over 8.2 innings, striking out six Bulldogs for the victory. 

“I didn’t have my best stuff early on and gave up some runs, but our guys kept battling and got us back in it,” said Robison. “Towards the end I got some adrenaline going which gave me the energy to close things out. It was a great team win.”

With the victory, the Cougars improve to 9-16 (3-5 WCC) while the Zags fall to 10-14 (5-2) on the year.

“I can’t say enough about what Bryce did on the mound,” said BYU head coach Trent Pratt. “He just kept battling. As the game went on, you could see in his demeanor that he was determined to give us a chance to win tonight. I was proud of the way the whole team just kept battling.”

Game Summary
  •  BYU scored six runs on 10 hits, while GU scored five runs on 11 hits
  •  Cougar lefty Boston Mabeus got the final out of the game on a strikeout for the save 
  •  Luke Anderson, Cole Cambill and Easton Jones had multiple hits for BYU

Player Highlights
  •  Cole Gambill: 2-3, 2 RBI, HR, 2 BB
  •  Easton Jones: 3-4, Run, RBI, BB
  •  Luke Anderson: 3-5, Run, 2B
  •  Bryce Robison: 8.2 IP, 125 pitches, 6 K (3-1)

A solo home run by Cole Gambill to straightaway center gave BYU an early 1-0 lead in the first inning. 

Gonzaga answered with a run of its own in the bottom half of the first, then scored a pair of runs in both the second and third innings for a 5-1 advantage. 

BYU scratched out a run in the top of the fourth on walks by Parker Goff and Easton Jones, followed by a ground ball by Chad Call that advanced both runners. A wild pitch then allowed Goff to score and close the gap, 5-2. 

Two more runs in the BYU fifth made the score 5-4. Gambill walked to lead off the inning, followed by a Ryan Sepede single. Two outs later, back-to-back singles by Goff and Jones scored Gambill and Sepede to cut into the Bulldog lead. 

The Cougars then tied the game, 5-5, in the sixth on a single to right by Gambill that scored Luke Anderson, who had singled and advanced to second and third on back-to-back wild pitches. 

BYU took a, 6-5, lead in the top of the seventh on a double by Jones, followed by a sacrifice bunt by third baseman Cam Decker and a groundball by Chad Call that scored what would turn out to be the winning run. 

Robison (3-1) got the win for BYU, while Jack Moffitt (0-1) took the loss for GU. BYU lefty reliever Boston Mabeus came on with two outs in the ninth inning with runners on first and second and struck out Bulldog right fielder Sam Stem for the final out.  Robison and Mabeus combined to hold the Zags scoreless over the final six innings. 

The Cougars and Zags will face off in the rubber game of the series on Saturday at 6 p.m. PDT at Patterson Complex in Spokane. 

The game will be broadcast live on the BYU Radio App and simulcast on 107.9 in the northern Utah market. The voice of the Cougars, Greg Wrubell, will have the call. Gonzaga will broadcast the game live on ESPN+.