RENO, Nev. (UNLVRebels.com) – The UNLV baseball team jumped back in the win column with a 9-3 win over the San Diego State Aztecs on the first day of the 2019 Mountain West Championship at Peccole Park. The Rebels (28-27), who are playing as the tournament's No. 2 seed, scored five times in the top of the second to give starter
Ryan Hare (8-4) all the run support he needed to get past the Aztecs (No. 3 seed).
With the win, the Scarlet & Gray moves into the winner's bracket and will face the winner of Thursday night's contest (6:30 pm) between No. 1 Fresno State, which is ranked No. 23 in the country by Baseball America, and No. 4 and host UNR Friday evening (6:30 pm). SDSU (32-24); meanwhile, drops into the loser's bracket of the double-elimination tourney and will play the loser of Thursday's tilt between FS and UNR.
Hare threw the first 8.0 innings and picked up the win for the Rebels. The right-hander was only touched for one run – a solo home run in the sixth inning – and limited the Aztec offense to only seven hits. He was able to work out of a few jams, inducing a program single-game-tying five double plays – three of which were of the inning-ending variety.
UNLV got the scoreboard early when
Austin Pfeifer followed a leadoff double by
Max Smith with an RBI single to left-center field. After two outs had been recorded,
Grant Robbins and
Bryson Stott managed to reach base off catcher's interference and a walk. With the bases loaded,
Dillon Johnson stepped up and smashed the first pitch he saw from SDSU starter Justin Goossen-Brown (6-5) over the left-field wall for a grand slam.
The Rebels added two more tallies in the fifth with assistance from a leadoff homer from
Jack-Thomas Wold and another RBI single from Pfeifer, plating
Edarian Williams from second after he had legged out a grounder through the left-side of the infield.
SDSU was able to push across its first run of the game in the sixth off a solo homer from Mike Jarvis; however, UNLV answered right back in the seventh with a two-out, two-run single from
Jacob Godman after SDSU reliever Daniel Ritcheson allowed the Rebels to load the bases off a single by Johnson and walks to Wold and Pfeifer.
The Aztecs scored twice in the bottom of the ninth off Rebel reliever
Donavon McCrystal, who allowed a solo homer to Chad Bible and an RBI single to Jacob Cruce.
REBEL OF THE GAME: Johnson made his way on base three times in the affair, going 2-for-4 with one walk. The third baseman capped off a five-run second with a grand slam and later scored another run in the seventh. Defensively, he was perfect in the fielding with two assists and one putout, as one of each came off a sixth-inning double play.
STAT OF THE GAME: The contest featured an MW Championship record eight double plays, with UNLV's defense turning five of those. Pfeifer had a hand in four of them, making the second out at first base. The final twin-killing recorded by the Rebels came off a line drive hit to Williams at second base that saw him dive and tag second bag with his glove prior to the runner making it back to the base safely.
QUOTABLE: "A lot of things went our way today," said head coach
Stan Stolte. "I think they hit into three double plays an three of them were line outs, so we're just glad things went out way. We played well. (Ryan) Hare pitched great, like he has all year. DJ (
Dillon Johnson) had the big hit in the second inning."
REBEL NOTES:
- With help from two walks Thursday, Stott moved into second place in the program's single-season record book with 53 walks. The record is 60 and held by Mike Oglesbee (1986).
- With Thursday's win, UNLV improved to 13-6 overall in its first game at the MW Championship, with a 4-3 mark in the tourney opener against SDSU.
- With Thursday's win, UNLV improved to 11-10 all-time against SDSU in MW Championship play and, subsequently, snapped a five-game losing streak to the Aztecs in conference tournament play.
- With Thursday's win, UNLV improved to 63-96 all-time against SDSU dating back to 1978, with the Rebels owning a 3-1 mark, thus far, in 2019.
- UNLV is 14-16 versus conference competition and 14-11 against nonconference foes.
- UNLV is 19-12 in home games, 8-15 in road games and 1-0 in neutral games this season.
- UNLV is 15-16 in day games, and sits 13-11 in night games.
- UNLV is 9-12 in games separated by five or more runs.
- UNLV is 11-0 when it scores nine or more runs.
- UNLV is 13-5 when it limits an opponent to three or fewer runs.
- UNLV is 20-3 when it outhits an opponent.
- UNLV is 22-2 when leading after the sixth, 20-2 after the seventh and 21-3 after the eighth.
