Gonzaga College was founded in September 1887, and the first recorded game of the baseball program was held shortly thereafter, in 1890.[1][2] On September 14, 1910, Dave Skeels became the first Gonzaga player to appear in the major leagues when he pitched in a game for the Detroit Tigers.[3][4] In 1912, the college was recognized by the state of Washington as a university and was renamed Gonzaga University.[1]
Although the team competed in the first half of the 20th century, comprehensive records of its play do not exist prior to the 1960 season, when the team competed as an independent school in District VII of the NCAA's University Division.[5] Prior to the 1964 season, the program joined the Big Sky Conference.[6] Prior to the 1967 season, the program opened Pecarovich Field, named for former Gonzaga football head coach Mike Pecarovich.[7]
Shortly after Larry Koentopp was named head coach prior to the 1970 season, the team won four consecutive Big Sky Northern Division Titles from 1971-1974. The team won the Big Sky Championship Series in three of those four season, thus appearing in the NCAA Tournament in 1971, 1973, and 1974.[6][8][9]
Following the 1974 season, the program joined the Northern Pacific Conference and won four conference championships in the next seven seasons. As a result, Gonzaga appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 1976, 1978, 1980, and 1981.[6]
Under Steve Hertz, who had coached the program in 1978 and returned prior to the 1981 season, the program moved to the Pacific-10 Conference (Pac-10) prior to the 1982 season, where it competed in the Northern Division. The team remained in the Pac-10 until after the 1995 season, and it never finished higher than 2nd in the Northern Division. The Bulldogs appeared in the Northern Division Tournament six times (1986-1991) and hosted the tournament from 1986-1989.[6][10]
Following the 1995 season, the program moved to the West Coast Conference (WCC), which the majority of the school's athletic programs had joined for the 1979-1980 school year.[6][11] Also following the 1995 season, Pecarovich Field was renamed August/A.R.T. Stadium.[12][13]
The program initially struggled in the WCC, finishing 5th, 8th, and 6th in 1996, 1997, and 1998, respectively. However, after the WCC split into two four-team divisions prior to the 1999 season, Gonzaga finished 2nd in its division in 1999 and 2000 and won the Coast Division in 2001. In the best-of-three 2001 WCC Championship Series, Gonzaga lost to Pepperdine 2-1.[6]
Following the 2003 season, Steve Hertz retired after 24 seasons as the program's head coach.[17][6] He was replaced by Mark Machtolf.[18] Under Machtolf, the team qualified for three WCC Championship Series (2007, 2009, 2011). After losing to San Diego in 2007, Gonzaga defeated Loyola Marymount in 2009 to qualify for the program's first NCAA Tournament since 1981. In the Fullerton Regional, the team defeated Georgia Southern in its first game, but it lost consecutive games to Cal State Fullerton and Utah and was eliminated. In the 2011 WCC Championship Series, Gonzaga lost to San Francisco.[6]
The earliest known venue of the program is Underhill Park, located off-campus across the Spokane River.[19] Underhill still functions as a municipal park in Spokane.[20] The team moved from Underhill to its first on-campus home, located in Gonzaga's upper campus, where it played until after the 1966 season.[19]
From prior to the 1967 season to partway through the 2003 season, the program played at August/A.R.T. Stadium, which had a capacity of 1,000 spectators.[21] The stadium opened on April 7, 1967, as Pecarovich Field, named for former Gonzaga football player and coach Mike Pecarovich.[7] Gonzaga swept a doubleheader against Eastern Washington to open the field. Prior to the 1996 season, the venue was renamed August/A.R.T. Stadium.[12][13] Gonzaga used August/A.R.T. until partway through the 2003 season, when it was demolished to allow for the construction of the McCarthey Athletic Center on its location.[19] In the stadium's last game on April 13, 2003, Gonzaga lost to San Francisco 8-3.[14] The team played the remainder of its 2003 home games at Spokane Falls Community College.[22]
From the start of the 2004 season through the end of the 2006 season, the team played at Spokane's Avista Stadium, the home venue of the minor leagueSpokane Indians.[15] The venue, which opened in 1958, has a capacity of 7,162 spectators.[23]
Washington Trust Field and Patterson Baseball Complex
At the start of the 2007 season, the program opened its current venue, Washington Trust Field and Patterson Baseball Complex. In the facility's first game, played on March 15, 2007, Gonzaga defeated Rider 9-4.[16][24] The venue was dedicated on April 20, 2007, and it is named for both Washington Trust Bank, a donor to the field's construction, and Michael Patterson, a Gonzaga alumnus.[15] It has a capacity of 1,500 spectators.[25]
Steve Hertz, who coached the team in 1978 and from 1981-2003, is Gonzaga's winningest and longest tenured head coach. He served in the position for 24 seasons and had 637 career wins.[6]
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
Conference regular season champion
Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
Division regular season champion
Division regular season and conference tournament champion
Conference tournament champion
^ abKingma, David A. (6 October 1995). "History of Gonzaga University". Gonzaga.edu. Archived from the original on 2012-08-11. Retrieved 11 August 2012. Gonzaga College began its first academic year September 17, 1887 with a Mass of the Holy Spirit, a tradition that continues today.
^ ab"History". Gonzaga Baseball. Archived from the original on 2012-08-08. Retrieved 8 August 2012.
^ ab"Big Sky Baseball: Split Loop Planned". The Spokane Daily Chronicle. Spokane, Washington, USA. 19 May 1970. p. 35. Archived from the original on 2012-08-08. Retrieved 8 August 2012. The division winners will meet at the end of the season in a best-of-three series for the conference crown. The loop champion will represent the league in the NCAA District VII playoffs.
^Vlahovich, Mike (10 February 2005). "Hertz, Matlock, Tschirgi Recognized at Inland Northwest Luncheon". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington, United States. p. C6. Archived from the original on 2012-08-11. Retrieved 11 August 2012. Steve Hertz, who retired as Gonzaga University baseball coach following the 2003 season, ...
^ abcBlanchette, John (25 March 2003). "GU Field Rife with Memories". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington, United States. pp. C1, C6. Archived from the original on 2012-07-31. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
