April 2, 2006
Final Stats
SAN DIEGO, Calif. - UNLV baseball rallied late but fell short in losing to San Diego State on Sunday evening in the final day of the Mountain West Conference Preseason Tournament, held at Tony Gwynn Stadium.
The Rebels were down at one point 9-5 before scoring three runs in both the seventh and eighth innings to trail by just one at 11-10 entering the ninth but could not pull out the win. UNLV dropped to 14-17 on the year and are 2-2 in the MWC after splitting four games at the tournament. SDSU improved to 9-24 with the win and are 3-1 in league play.
The score was tied at five heading into the fifth inning when the Aztecs pulled away for good, scoring three runs in the inning off of Rebel starter Ryan Tabor to grab an 8-5 advantage. Jordan Swayden hit a double with the bases loaded that cleared the bases, with the third run scoring in a fielding error by Rebel right fielder Ryan Bird. After the Aztecs scored another run in the bottom of the sixth that made the margin 9-5, the Rebels made the first of two three-run rallies.
With two out in the top of the seventh, CJ Lang hit a double and Keith Smith drew a walk, bringing Chris Bonnell to the plate. The junior first baseman singled, scoring Lang and both Smith and Bonnell moved up an extra base on an error. Blake Gailen then hit another single that scored Smith and then Bonnell scored on an error on the next play, brining UNLV to within two at 9-7.
SDSU would pad its lead once again though, scoring two runs in the bottom of the frame to go back up by four, 11-7, with the key play being a UNLV error with the bases loaded and two out that allowed the runs to score. Aztec right fielder Joseph Scaperotta hit a ball to Lang, which the second baseman misplayed into a two-run error.
The Rebels though once again put three runs on the board in the eighth, as Braden Walker led off the frame with a double and Ryan Kowalski drew a walk, bringing Mike Cruz to the plate. The senior shortstop drilled a home run, drawing UNLV to within one at 11-10.
UNLV could not finish the comeback though, as SDSU relievers combined to retire six of the next seven Rebel batters to close out the game. Tabor (1-4) took the loss for UNLV, as he gave up eight runs in five innings of work. Brett Douglas (1-3) got the win in relief and Justin Masterson earned his first save of the season.
The Rebels finished the evening with 12 hits, including three home runs as Lang and Chad Miller each hit solo home runs to go along with Cruz' three-run shot. Lang finished the evening going 3-5 with three RBI and two runs scored, and Bird and Bonnell each had a pair of hits.
TCU and SDSU finished the inaugural MWC Preseason Tournament with a 3-1 record, while UNLV had a 2-2 mark and Air Force and BYU went 1-3. Utah was 2-1 and New Mexico was 1-2 but the game between the two clubs on Sunday was suspended because both teams needed to catch flights home. Utah was leading 11-4 after eight innings and the game will be finished on April 21 in Albuquerque, N.M.
The Rebels will play a non-conference home game against UC Riverside on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. (PST) at Earl E. Wilson Stadium before hosting BYU for a three-game series beginning Thursday.
