PORTLAND, Ore. – Portland pitchers Brad McVay and Eli Morse combined to hold the Gonzaga Bulldogs to five hits and freshman Sam Brown belted a solo home run to lead the Pilots to a 2-0 shutout in a non-conference matchup Friday after Patterson Baseball Complex.

Friday's game was a pitcher's duel through and through, with McVay and Gabe Hughes both putting up stellar pitching displays for their teams. McVay shutout the Zags during his stint while Hughes struck out six Pilots in seven innings of work. McVay, however, helped ensure that the Pilots came out on top.

Portland only cobbled together two hits on the evening, but they were highly important ones. Brown had a solo home run in top of the fifth that put the Pilots in front while Jake Tsukada had the RBI single that gave them a two-run lead and secured the win.

Brown's solo shot in the fifth inning was the first hit on the day for the Pilots. Hughes had put together a solid day up to that point, quickly striking out four Pilots after four innings. But then Brown stepped up and launched a moon ball over the right field wall to end Portland's offensive struggles. It put the Pilots up 1-0.

Portland added to their lead with Tsukada's RBI single in the top of the seventh. The second baseman snuck a line drive through to right field that extended the Pilots' lead to 2-0. McVay continued his dominant performance in his final inning of work, striking out both the first and final batter and finishing the day with no runs allowed and only three hits with four strikeouts.

Morse replaced McVay in the eighth inning and held strong. After allowing two hits that gave the Bulldogs two runners in scoring position, the Pilots retired the next three batters. Morse went on to strike out the final batter in the ninth inning and give the Pilots the 2-0 victory.

The Pilots and the Bulldogs will face off again tomorrow at Coach Steve Hertz Field. First pitch is set for 3 p.m.