March 18, 2006
Final Stats
UNLV baseball got out of the gate quickly once again, scoring five first-inning runs on its way to an 8-1 win over The Citadel on Saturday afternoon in front of 283 fans at Earl E. Wilson Stadium.
Last night the Rebels scored 11 runs to open the game in their 22-6 win and this afternoon was no different, with UNLV getting four hits, with the big blow coming on a fielding error with two outs that allowed two runs to cross the plate. The error came after Keith Smith and Chris Bonnell hit RBI singles that gave the Rebels a 2-0 lead. Braden Walker capped the scoring with an RBI single of his own.
Kevin Skogley (1-1) was dominant on the hill behind the run support, allowing just one run on four hits to pick up his first win of the season, helping UNLV improve to 11-12 on the year. The Citadel dropped to 12-8 and remained winless on the road, with starter Ryan Owens (1-2) taking the loss.
With the Rebels already up 5-0 after the opening inning, that was all that Skogley need, as the big left hander was sharp in putting together his best outing of the year. He started the game retiring 18 of the first 22 batters he faced and only two Bulldog base runners reached second base through the first six innings of the game.
Skogley worked out of a jam in the seventh inning, when with two out Rebel shortstop Mike Cruz committed back-to-back errors to allow to mean to reach base before Skogley got a strike out to end the threat. The shutout was broken in the eighth inning, when Skogley walked Trent Weathers to begin the inning, and then he moved to third on a passed ball and a wild pitch. He later scored on an RBI ground out by Matt Covington for The Citadel's lone run of the afternoon.
In the third inning Rebel rightfielder Keith Smith added to the margin, hitting a solo home run to left field, his third of the year. Another long ball, this one a two-run shot in the fourth inning off the bat of Mike Cruz, pushed the lead to 8-0. It was the second-straight game that Cruz hit a home run, as the senior hit a three-run shot in the Rebels' 11-run first inning Friday night.
UNLV and The Citadel wrap up their three-game series Sunday, with the first pitch slated for 1:00 p.m. (PST) at Earl E. Wilson Stadium. Ryan Tabor is slated to get the start for the Rebels while Matt Crim will start for the Bulldogs.
