April 24, 2005
Final Stats
LAS VEGAS - Matt Fry's single through the left side of the infield with the bases loaded brought home the winning run and gave UNLV baseball a 16-15 win over New Mexico in a wild game Sunday afternoon at Earl E. Wilson Stadium.
Fry's game-winning single was one of 41 total hits on the afternoon, as pitching was at a premium in the slugfest that saw the Rebels come back and score six in the bottom of the eighth inning to tie the game and force extra innings.
UNLV improved to 20-22 on the year and 14-4 in the Mountain West Conference and with the win moved into a tie for first in the league with BYU. New Mexico dropped to 19-22 on the year, 9-9 in the MWC. The Rebels needed another come back in the bottom of the 10th after the Lobos had scored a run in the top of the frame to take a 15-14 lead.
JC Sibley led off the frame with a single off of UNM reliever Jordan Pacheco and then after a pop out Sibley moved to third on a single by Zeke Parraz. Chris Bonnell then popped out for the inning's second out and things looked bleak for the Rebels when Justin Tellam hit a hard grounder to Lobo second baseman Jay Russell. After starting the game as a DH, Russell had moved to second when Pacheco took the mound, and Russell booted the ball off of Tellam's bat, allowing Sibley to score and tie the game.
Ryan Bird then drew a walk to load the bases and Fry then ended the game by driving a single to right field.
Kyle Tabeek, who worked the final two innings of the game, gave up one run in earning the win to improve to 3-1. Pacheco took the loss for his first decision of the season.
Early on UNLV starter Derek Rodriguez was cruising along and had a 4-1 lead heading into the top of the fifth inning. The senior right-hander ran into trouble though in the top of the frame, as the Lobos plated six runs in the inning. UNM reeled off seven-straight hits in the inning and it started a string of three-straight innings that the Lobos batted around.
Trailing 7-4 heading into the bottom of the fifth, the Rebels scored four runs of their own to retake the lead at 8-7. Fry and Parraz each had RBI doubles in the rally.
The lead would be short lived as UNM chased Rodriguez in the sixth inning and the Lobos scored seven runs over the next two innings to take a 14-8 lead into the eighth inning. Jeff Grady and Pacheco each hit home runs in the sixth inning and Garrick Haymore had a two-run single in the seventh for the Lobos.
But in a game that seemingly neither team wanted to win, UNLV fought back in the eighth to tie the game and force extra innings.
Tellam started the rally with a two-run home run, his 11th of the year for the Rebels. Sibley added a two-RBI double and Bonnell had a run-scoring single that tied the game.
Fry finished the game going 4-6 at the plate with three RBI and a run scored while Sibley was 6-7 with three RBI and four runs scored. Parraz finished a strong series by going 4-5 with three RBI and two runs scored. The game before he had two home runs including a grand slam.
The Rebels remain at home for a Tuesday night game against UC Riverside scheduled to start at 6:30 p.m. at Earl E. Wilson Stadium.
