> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Washington State Baseball Wins Mountain West, Earns NCAA Tournament Bid - URL: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/washington-state-cougars-baseball-win-mountain-west-earn-ncaa-tournament-bid/ - Published: 2026-05-25T07:43:25.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-08T06:14:40.000Z - Author: Jacob Stevenson - Tags: Analysis, News, Cougars Baseball, Ryan Skjonsby, Gavin Roy, Nick Lewis The Washington State Cougars baseball team is officially headed back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2010 after defeating San Diego State 14-4 Sunday afternoon to win the Mountain West Championship. The Cougars earned the conference’s automatic bid and completed one of the program’s biggest turnarounds in recent history. The Cougars entered their winner take all game with a 29-26 overall record and finished second in the Mountain West standings with a 15-9 conference record, trailing only San Diego State in the standings. After finishing 18-36 a season ago, Washington State returned much of the same roster and turned that experience into a postseason run that few expected. Washington State opened the conference tournament Friday night with a 5-1 win over Air Force to advance to the semifinals. On Saturday, the Cougars faced top-seeded San Diego State and pulled off a 14-9 upset to move into the championship game undefeated. San Diego State stayed alive later that day by defeating Air Force 11-8 in an elimination game, setting up a rematch with Washington State on Sunday. Because the Cougars had not yet lost in the double-elimination tournament, the Aztecs needed to beat Washington State twice to claim the championship and NCAA Tournament berth. The Aztecs won the first game Sunday by a 9-2 score, forcing a winner-take-all second game. The Cougars responded in dominant fashion, run-ruling the Aztecs 14-4 in seven innings to secure the championship. Washington State trailed 4-3 heading into the fifth inning before the Cougs’ offense erupted. An RBI double from Dustin Robinson tied the game, and a two-run double by Ryan Skjonsby gave the Cougars a 6-4 lead that they would not relinquish. The Cougars kept piling it on, adding another run in the sixth inning before breaking the game open with a seven-run seventh inning. The biggest moment came when first-team All-Mountain West selection Max Hartman launched a three-run home run to extend the lead to 13-4 and put the game out of reach. Skjonsby later added a sacrifice fly for the Cougars’ final run of the afternoon. On the mound, Scott Rienguette delivered a clutch relief performance. The right-hander threw 3 1/3 innings of one-hit scoreless baseball and closed out the championship victory in the seventh inning to force Several Cougars were recognized for their performances throughout the tournament. Luke Meyers, Skjonsby, Gavin Roy, and Nick Lewis were all named to the All-Mountain West Tournament Team, while Roy earned Tournament MVP honors after helping lead Washington State through the bracket. Moving onto the NCAA tournament for the first time in 16 years, the Cougars earned a spot as the No. 3 seed in the Eugene Regional, which will be hosted by No. 1 seed Oregon. They will face No. 2 Oregon State in the opening game of the double elimination regional with the winner facing Oregon or No. 4 seed Yale, who won the Ivy League title. If the Cougars were to advance past the regional, they would play the winner of the Athens Regional in the Super Regional round. Regardless of where the Cougars end up, the accomplishment is significant for a program that had not reached the postseason since 2010\. Washington State has guaranteed itself at least two more games in the 2026 season and now has the opportunity to continue one of the better stories in college baseball this year.