Gonzaga Prep joins small fraternity of GSL teams to reach baseball 'final four' | State baseball

May 28-A lot is made of the fact that the Greater Spokane League has never had a baseball state champion since the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association sanctioned the state tournament in 1973.

That doesn't mean, of course, Gonzaga Prep shouldn't try this weekend.

The 2026 Bullpups are the 15th team in GSL history to make it to the baseball "final four," the first such trip in program history - and the first since Mt. Spokane in 2022.

In some cases, that would be a lot of weight to carry for the 10 seniors and the rest of the team. But coach Brian Munhall and the Bullpups don't believe they are any type of underdog heading into the weekend.

Why should they? They've already beaten two of the other three teams in the semifinals - recently, as a matter of fact.

No. 5 Gonzaga Prep has a rematch against No. 1 Richland in one of the State 4A semifinals at 1 p.m. on Friday at Funko Field in Everett, while No. 6 Kamiakin faces No. 2 Sumner at 10 a.m. The state third-place game is Saturday at 10 a.m. and the championship game is at 4 p.m.

"There aren't a lot of state championships on this side of the mountains," Munhall said. "So to have three out of the four, I think we like our chances."

In the district tournament, G-Prep edged Kamiakin 6-5 in extra innings, then knocked off Richland 3-2 at Bomber Field for the district title.

Despite beating the No. 1 team in the state on their home field, Gonzaga Prep was given the No. 5 seed to the state tourney while Richland retained the top seed. And thus, the pair meet again in the semis.

Not coincidentally, the G-Prep basketball team faced No. 1 Richland in the State 4A basketball championship game as well - a game that ended in controversy and a Bullpups loss.

" (It's not that) we don't like each other," Munhall said of Richland. "We certainly respect each other. But there's quite a rivalry because ... in every single sport it seems like it comes down to us and them at a big point in the season."

Munhall said the "confidence in knocking (Richland) off the mountain a little bit goes a long ways."

"They know that the tradition and the track record has certainly been more on their side than ours, but right now we've got a pretty good streak going, and got a couple wins against two out of the three teams that are over there. I don't think this group is scared of anybody. I think they expect to win."

Gonzaga Prep (22-4) has won eight in a row - including the wins over Richland and Kamiakin, a 7-0 win over Puyallup and a 4-3 decision over Curtis during the regional round in Yakima.

"We all believe. I mean, we think we're gonna win," GSL MVP Anthony Karis said. "I think that's the biggest thing is just we're confident in our team and we're gonna go play our game, and whatever happens, happens."

"No one expected us to make it this far. No one even expected us to make the playoffs," senior Jonah Keller said. "We didn't even win our league, but then we turned our season around. We locked in, and we started playing really good, and we're still playing really good. Ending my high school career with a baseball state championship would be awesome."

Karis, who is headed straight to an MLB draft league in West Virginia after graduation, was "in shock" when Munhall told him about the MVP award this season.

"I've been working hard, and that was ... you know, I don't say the goal, but it's pretty cool," Karis said. "It definitely was something I was working towards."

"He's the best hitter we've ever had," Munhall said of Karis. "He's not trying to be the hero, he's not trying to hit every pitch out, and he knows that he's going to get pitched really, really tough by everybody. There's nobody in the state that doesn't know who he is right now."

But it's not a one-man show.

G-Prep put six on the all-league team, including pitcher of the year Dylan Croall, first-teamers Jackson Mott and Jacob Wilson, and second-teamers Keller and sophomore Jacob Wood.

"We have a ton of depth when it comes to pitching," Croall said. "It's not just me, or just (Wilson), or even just (Cole Harvey). I think that we have four or five guys that can really get it done against anyone in the state."

"This is just a fun group. They just love being around each other and they love being at the field," Munhall said. "I think, from the very start, just they're baseball junkies. ... Some of them are three- and four-year guys in this program that have really seen the highs and the lows and really wanted to right the ship and make this year special."

Keller, who is headed to San Diego Mesa College for football and baseball, ran track last spring instead of baseball. But he felt the pull of the game for his senior season.

"I just love being out here with the team," he said. "In this sport, you're going to face adversity. You're not always going to be perfect, you're not always going to go 4-for-4, be perfect in the field, be perfect on the mound. But what's nice about a baseball team is that you always have to play together if you really want to win."

"I knew he'd miss it. I pushed him pretty hard, telling him he was going to miss it too," Munhall said. "He's just such a physical specimen. He's a game changer - his speed, his power, his ability to do everything. You don't have very many high school guys on your team like that."

Even though the baseball team hasn't reached a state final before, there is plenty of championship experience on the roster: Keller, Croall, fellow senior Jack Pierce, juniors Quinn Mudd, Wyatt Machtolf and Brent Castelo and Wood have been part of the Bullpups football team that has reached the semifinals and quarterfinals the past two seasons; Pierce and Mott started in the state basketball title game two years in a row, winning one.

"All of us have been in a situation like this before, so it's not like we're going into it really nervous," Keller said. "We're just coming in there very confident, but we're definitely gonna stay within ourselves and do what we can do."

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This story was originally published May 28, 2026 at 7:05 PM.