Arkansas shut out by Gonzaga, 3-0

SURPRISE, Ariz. – Gonzaga starting pitcher Marco Gonzales scattered eight hits in a complete game shutout as the Bulldogs defeated No. 2 Arkansas, 3-0, on Friday afternoon at the Surprise Recreation Complex.

The Razorbacks drop to 7-3 on the season with the loss, while the Bulldogs improve to 5-4 with the win.

Gonzales (2-1) was excellent on the mound for the Bulldogs, allowing eight hits and striking out nine en route to a complete game shutout.

Arkansas starter Barrett Astin (1-1) also pitched well, but took the loss. Astin allowed three runs, two earned, on seven hits and struck out two in 5.1 innings. Arkansas reliever Brandon Moore tossed 3.1 shutout innings, while Trent Daniel retired the only batter he faced out of the bullpen.

Brian Anderson, Brett McAfee and Tyler Spoon each had two hits to lead Arkansas at the plate. Spoon extended his hitting streak to 10 games with his two hits. Isaac Hellbusch and Joe Serrano also had a hit in the loss.

Cory Lebrun and Billy Moon each had two hits and a RBI to lead the Bulldogs at the plate. Clayton Eslick and Zach Abbruzza each added a hit and a run scored.

Arkansas had the first scoring chance of the game in the bottom of the second. With one out, Anderson tripled to the wall in right-center field. Jacob Morris then laid down a safety squeeze bunt on the right side of the infield. Anderson appeared to beat the slide in ahead of the tag at the plate, but he was called out by the home plate umpire for the second out of the inning. After Morris stole second, Jake Wise struck out looking to end the threat.

Gonzaga scored the only three runs of the game in the top of the sixth. With one out, Eslick and Abbruzza hit back-to-back singles to put runners on first and second. Lebrun then lined a single to the gap in left-center field to score Eslick with the game’s first run. A base hit to right by Travis Forbes and a fielding error by Spoon in right field allowed Abbruzza to score and advanced Lebrun to third. Moon drove home the third run of the inning on a fielder’s choice groundout to second base.

Arkansas was able to get a runner on in each of the final three innings of the game, but were unable to put together any run-scoring rallies as Gonzaga held on for the 3-0 win.

Arkansas is back in action on Saturday when it faces No. 25 Arizona State at Surprise Stadium. First pitch is set for approximately 5 p.m. or 50 minutes after the conclusion of the preceding spring training game. The Razorbacks are scheduled to start freshman righty Trey Killian (1-0, 0.00), while the Sun Devils will start freshman southpaw Ryan Kellogg (2-0, 1.00).