Box Score

SAN DIEGO (UNLVRebels.com) - The UNLV baseball team (12-17, 5-8 Mountain West) rallied from a three-run deficit and defeated the San Diego State Aztecs (7-20, 2-8 MW) by one run, 7-6, Friday night at Tony Gwynn Stadium. The Rebels outscored the Aztecs by four runs over the final three frames of action with two of those coming in a pinch-hit, ninth-inning at-bat by Max Smith.

Friday night's triumph was the third straight for the Scarlet & Gray after it claimed a 6-5 decision at New Mexico and a 7-2 win at Grand Canyon last Sunday and Monday, respectively.

The comeback bid would not have been made possible if not for UNLV reliever Cody Roper (1-1), who entered the affair in the third inning after starter D.J. Myers had to unexpectedly leave the game. Roper came into an unenviable situation with the bases loaded and his Rebels trailing by one run, 2-1.

The Aztecs started the third with four straight hits, three singles and one triple. The second (triple) and third (single) hits of the quartet provided RBI to turn a one-run deficit into a one-run lead. Myers then walked the fifth batter of the inning before his exit. SDSU scored twice on Roper's watch with one due to a wild pitch and another off a sacrifice fly.

Both of UNLV's early tallies resulted from sacrifice flies, as Andrew Yazdanbakhsh and Justin Jones traded fly ball outs for runs in the second and fourth innings, respectively. Ironically, Jones was the runner that scored on Yazdanbakhsh's sac fly, while teammate Payton Squier was the one that scored on the latter effort.

Roper's only blemish came in the fifth when he allowed SDSU to compile two straight singles followed by an RBI groundout.

"That was a great comeback win for us," said head coach Stan Stolte. "Our bench did a great job keeping us in the game. Roper threw six strong innings and helped stabilize the game and that was the difference. We stepped up and had some great at-bats late in the game. We need to come back tomorrow with the same toughness."

UNLV turned things around in the seventh when its offense culled together three runs off of three hits and help from an Aztec fielding error. With one out, A.J. VanMeetren was walked on six pitches and then motored home from first off a double by Cooper Esmay and the miscue by the home team's left fielder. Moments after SDSU starter Harison Pyatt notched second out via strikeout, Kyle Isbel and Nick Rodriguez cranked out an RBI triple and an RBI single, respectively, that pulled the affair even at 5-all.

In the ninth, Yazdanbakhsh and VanMeetren were walked by Jacob Erickson (3-4) and, subsequently, brought about a pitching change. Brian Heldman was summoned from the bullpen to replace Erickson, while UNLV countered by bringing Austin Anderson in to pinch run for Yazdanbakhsh. Cooper Esmay then welcomed Heldman to the affair with a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt that pushed both runners into scoring position. Smith was then summoned from the dugout, and he hit a chopper through the right-side of the infield to plate Anderson and VanMeetren.

Ben Wright was brought in to pitch the bottom of the ninth to preserve the Rebel lead. Wright alternated outs and hits en route to his seventh save of the season. The two hits â€" a double and a single â€" he allowed produced one run.

Roper earned his first win of the season in six innings of relief. He struck out a pair and was touched for only one run off of seven hits and three walks. His predecessor, Myers, only lasted two frames and gave up four runs off of five hits with four walks against three strikeouts.

Pyatt earned a no-decision after he lasted 6.2 innings and gave up five runs (four earned) off of seven hits. He struck out seven and walked two.

Erickson was saddled with the loss in 1.1 relief innings. He did not allow a hit, but gave up two runs and two walks.

Due to looming inclement weather in the Golden State, Saturday's contest will now start at 11:00 am â€" instead of 2:00 pm â€" at Tony Gwynn Stadium. UNLV's Kenny Oakley (3-3, 3.89 ERA) and SDSU's Cody Thompson (0-5, 7.67 ERA) are probable starting pitchers in game two of the series.

NOTES: Isbel extended his season-best hitting streak to 13 games with help from two hits … Isbel also has reached base in 13 straight games, which is the second-longest stretch by a Rebel this season, as Squier reached safely in 18 straight … Esmay extended his season-best hitting streak to six games with help from two hits … UNLV improved to 6-3 in one-run games … UNLV improved to 5-5 when its offense scores six or more runs … UNLV won for only the second time â€" in 18 tries â€" when its opposition scores six or more runs … Friday's win was the first win â€" in 14 tries â€" for UNLV when it trailed after eight innings of play … UNLV won for only the fourth time â€" in 17 tries â€" when it is out-hit by its opponent.