WSU baseball (18-12, 5-9) is set for another non-Conference matchup Wednesday as they head to Bellevue to take on Seattle U. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.

Since 2010, the Cougs are 12-5 all-time against Seattle U. The last matchup was April 2022 when the Cougs won 11-6.

The Cougs are coming off a three-game defeat against the Arizona State Sun Devils over the weekend in Phoenix.

The Cougs had chances to win all three games, especially the first game of the series, where they took a two-run lead to the bottom of the ninth but could not see the game through. 

Closer Chase Grillo struggled for the first time this season in closing the game as he could not record an out while giving up three runs. 

So far this season, the Cougar offense has been solid but has not produced enough in big games to complement the pitching struggles they have. Sam Brown leads the team in hits with 39, RBIs with 32, home runs with eight and a batting average of .379. Jonah Advincula is not far behind, posting a batting average of .331 with 39 hits, 25 RBIs and four homers. 

Pitching-wise, this season the Cougs have had their ups and downs, especially within the bullpen. 

Connor Wilford, who has won national accolades and awards already this season has struggled as of late and seems to be in a bit of a pitching slump. Grillo blew his first save against the Sun Devils in a game the Cougars desperately needed to win. 

So far this season Seattle U is 10-19 with a 7-8 Western Athletic Conference record. They started their season with a three-game series against them ranked No. 5 Texas A&M, a series where Seattle U lost all three games. The closest game was the second of the series where the Aggies only won by three runs, the last game of the series saw the Aggies win by 12. 

Against Long Beach State Seattle U only won one game, the second of the series. 

The Cougs and Seattle U have already played once this season, a game where the Cougs won 8-2. Brown and Elijah Hainline both had two RBIs to lead the team. 

The first series win for Seattle U on the season came in the middle of March as they took two games against Utah Valley. Their first game was a 14-0 shutout win and their next win was an 8-6 slugfest.

Hudson Shupe and Cole Kleckner lead the Seattle U offense. Shupe has 40 hits for 14 RBIs and has a batting average of .345, but has yet to hit a homer in 116 at-bats. Kleckner has 24 hits and 12 RBIs this season so far.

If the Cougs want to win again against Seattle U they need to put runs on the board in four or more innings while holding Seattle U to few hits. 

After the one-game series, the Cougs will host the Arizona Wildcats for a three-game series. The first pitch is set for 7 p.m. Friday at Bailey-Brayton Field.