Hard to picture a better start than this.
 
Entering as not only the top seed in the tournament but as the top-ranked team in the nation, the Grand Canyon University Club Baseball Division 2 team ran away from 5^th-seeded State University of New York-Brockport in the middle innings en route to a 9-2 victory in the second round of the National Club Baseball Association Division 2 World Series in Alton, Illinois. It was the second straight game that the Lopes had allowed just two hits after making it look easy in their first-round matchup Friday night against 8^th-seeded Colorado State University-Pueblo, 13-0. The Lopes advanced to the semifinal round of the tournament and a showdown against 3^rd-seeded Grand Valley State University (Michigan) Monday morning – although heavy rains overnight and in the morning delayed the original 10AM (Arizona time) first pitch by several hours.
 
1^st Round (Friday): #1 GCU 13, #8 CSU-Pueblo 0
 
With CSU-Pueblo emerging from the Rocky Mountain Region Tournament (as the third seed) relying solely on offense, there was little doubt that they'd have to jump on the Lopes' stellar starting pitching early to have a chance. They tried to rattle Lopes' starter Kolby Klein with a two-out rally in the leadoff inning, thanks to a double by CSUP's Caton Lodice, but when the next hitter, C.J. Lucero, singled to right, Lodice was gunned down at the plate on a brilliant throw by GCU's Troy Taylor to end the threat. The Lopes' pitching trio of Klein (five innings), Nathan Amy & Zach Williamson (an inning each) threw a perfect game from there, retiring the final 18 Thunderwolves' hitters in order. Meanwhile, the Lopes' offense drained the suspense about the game's outcome in the bottom of the 1^st inning by sending 10 hitters to the plate to take a 5-0 lead, and a seven-run 4^th inning completely flattened the Thunderwolves' sails. The Lopes' 12-hit attack (11 of them singles) was balanced, with catcher Troy Mirande going 3-for-4, Taylor adding a pair of hits, with seven others adding one hit apiece.  
 
2^nd Round (Saturday): #1 GCU 9, #5 SUNY Brockport 2
 
Brockport wasn't fazed by that outcome, though, since they entered the matchup after taming higher-seeded Penn State University, 6-2, in Round 1. Like Pueblo, though, the Golden Eagles' cages were rattled by a four-run GCU 1^st inning – three of them coming home on one swing by Lopes' 1^st baseman Ryan Peterson. SUNY held off rallies by the Lopes in the next two innings, then made things interesting in the 4^th when a Lopes' error gave SUNY's Cael Banks a chance to hit, and his two-run triple cut GCU's lead in half. That's when the Lopes' rallies took over, scoring in every inning after that, including three runs in the 5^th - courtesy of a Taylor two-run single and an RBI triple by Landon Hagenow to put the game away. Once the game was in hand, Lopes' Head Coach Kim Carpenter used the opportunity to rest Lopes' starter Anthony Wilson, who - like Klein - pitched a two-hitter (with no earned runs) over five innings, fanning six hitters to get the win. Once again, Carpenter had to love the balanced offense, with Gavin Coke providing a three-hit day from the 8^th slot in the order, and the top three – Taylor, Hagenow and Kaden Drish – chipping in two hits apiece.
 
The championship game is slated for 5PM Arizona time tomorrow (Tuesday), but that could change if the driving thunderstorms pelting the area wash out part of Monday's schedule. The double-elimination tournament features a winner-take-all championship game, so that means that in the semifinals, the undefeated Lopes need just one win to get there, but Grand Valley State (who's beaten Stephen F. Austin University twice but lost to 2^nd-seeded University of South Carolina) must beat GCU twice in a row to advance. The Lopes (27-1 overall, 12-0 Pacific Region South) are seeking their second national title after winning their first one back in 2022.