May 20, 2009

Final Stats

FORT WORTH, Texas - Fifth-seeded UNLV saw its season come to an end Wednesday, losing to third-seeded BYU, 5-4, in an elimination game at the 2009 Conoco Mountain West Baseball Championship at Lupton Stadium.

The Rebels had come back to tie the game at four by scoring a pair of runs in the top of the eighth, but the Cougars ended the game with a one-out single in the bottom of the ninth by Michael Bowen with one out that scored Kent Walton. The liner went off the glove of Rebel shortstop Anthony Morel, who leaped and nearly made the catch, but the ball caromed off his glove and into left field, allowing the winning run to score.

UNLV ended its season with an overall record of 26-32, and senior reliever Marc Baca took the loss, as he was on the mound when the winning run was scored. BYU extended its season and improved to 29-23 on the year, with Sean Amerson (1-0) picking up the win as he got the final five outs of the game.

"I am proud of our team for battling back and tying the game," UNLV head coach Buddy Gouldsmith said. "Unfortunately we could not get enough runs to get a win and keep playing."

BYU got on the board first, capitalizing on a two-out error and scoring a pair of runs in the first inning, which the Rebels matched in the top of the second. Jesse Wight led off the inning and stole two bases before coming in to score on Morel's single, and then the Rebels tied the game on a sacrifice fly to center that scored Scott Berke.

The Cougars moved back in front in the bottom of the third, scoring a run with two outs as Walton singled, stole second and then scored on a fielding error by Rebel third baseman Jarred Frierson.

From there both starting pitchers settled into grooves, as UNLV's Andrew Beresford and BYU's Jeremy Toole put zeros on the board through the middle three innings, with both posting streaks of retiring at least seven straight batters. UNLV got out of a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the sixth when Kasey Ko tried scoring on a ball that got away from catcher Joe DiMaggio, who quickly got to the ball and got it to Beresford, allowing him to tag out Ko and end the inning.

DiMaggio then lined a two-out double to the gap in right center in the top of the seventh, which ended Toole's day on the mound, as Cougar head coach Vance Law went to the pen for left hander Brandon Michon to face J.J. Sferra. The lefty-lefty matchup worked in the favor of the Cougars, as Michon struck out Sferra on three pitches to get out of the inning with the one-run lead still intact.

BYU would add to its lead after the stretch when Sean McNaughton doubled down the left-field line, moved to third on a sacrifice bunt and then came home on Walton's single to center, ending Beresford's day. UNLV head coach Buddy Gouldsmith brought in Baca to keep it a two-run game and the senior was able to do just that, despite the Cougars loading the bases with two outs.

With one out in the eighth, Ryan Thornton walked and Wight singled to put two runners on, and then they pulled off a double steal, giving the Rebels two runners in scoring position. Pinch hitter Brian Gilberston delivered, singling to center field to drive in Thornton, cutting the BYU lead to just one at 4-3. Right hander Kevin Sloan came in out of the Cougar bullpen and Berke greeted him by hitting a single to left that tied the game at four.

But the Rebels could not take the lead, as Morel grounded out and Bryan Resnick flew out to center against Amerson, ending the inning, setting up the dramatic ninth inning.

UNLV finished the game with six hits and three errors, and Wight scored two of the team's four runs on the day while Beresford allowed the four runs, three earned, on seven hits to go with two walks and a pair of strikeouts. Walton went 2-for-3 for BYU, which finished the game with eight hits and one error, and Toole gave up three hits and two runs in his 6.2 innings on the mound.