April 7, 2002

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The UNLV baseball team scored eight runs in the fourth inning and rolled to a 13-4 win over Air Force in the series finale of a three-game set on Sunday afternoon. With the win, the Rebels improve to 16-18 overall, 5-7 in Mountain West Conference play. The Falcons fall to 17-17, 5-7 in league play.

UNLV took a 3-2 lead into the fourth inning where they broke the game open with eight runs on six hits and three hit batsmen.

Robbie Van (3-5) picked up the win as he went six innings, allowing just two runs on six hits with nine strikeouts. Giovanni Pupo, Chad Harris and Joe Maruffi combined to close the game, pitching a single inning each. Maruffi and Harris kept the Falcons scoreless on a combined three hits, while Pup gave up two runs on three hits.

Air Force's Matt Kaercher gave up nine runs on eight hits in three innings of work. He picked up the loss and moved to 5-6 on the season.

Ryan Ruiz and David Trujillo each homered in the contest. Ruiz finished the game 3-for-5 with five RBIs and two runs scored. Trujillo went 1-for-5 with two RBIs and one run scored.

Eric Nielsen finished 3-for-4 from the plate, while Tony Schuler and Joe Wickman added a pair of hits each.

UNLV returns home for a single game on against Southern Utah on Wednesday. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.