LAS VEGAS (UNVLrebels.com) – After picking up a victory less than 24 hours prior, the UNLV baseball team (3-4) faced off in game three of its weekend series against no. 25-ranked Cincinnati Bearcats (4-2) on Sunday afternoon. The bats ran hot for both teams, but the Bearcats emerged as the winner as they took down UNLV on a score of 10-9.
The Scarlet & Gray were the first to strike,
Dean Toigo hitting a two-run home run straight through center field after
JP Hefft led off the inning on a single.
Cole Koniarsky would step up to the plate for the next at bat, the senior pushing the second-straight UNLV home run with a blast through right field. With the three-run lead,
Brendan O'Sullivan continued the home-run streak with the third-consecutive long ball. Those three at bats gave UNLV a 5-0 lead in the first inning.
The Bearcats didn't take long to cut into the Rebel lead, scoring three runs in the top of the second inning. Toigo was able to get back to the plate in the middle of the bottom of the second inning, the senior achieving his second home run of the day after smashing a ball past the right-field wall. The solo shot would push the UNLV lead back up to three, but Cincinnati would tear it down back to one in the bottom of the third on a 6-5 score.
O'Sullivan would set up to the plate in the bottom of the fourth inning to claim his third RBI of the day, the first baseman pushing a single to left field to advance the running Toigo past home plate. The score would move to 7-5 until the Bearcats would drive in two runs in the top of the fifth inning to tie the game.
The game stayed quiet for the next couple half-inning, all up until the Bearcats earned two outs on the Rebels in the bottom of the sixth. Koniarsky took the plate as the next Rebel batter, slapping his second home run of the day over left field to help the Scarlet & Gray regain the lead 8-7.
Paul Myro IV would get his shot at the long ball later in the bottom of the eighth inning, jamming a ball past right field to kick off the inning and extend the Rebel lead 9-7.
UNLV's lead wouldn't last long, Cincinnati scoring three runs in the top of the ninth inning for a 10-9 lead. The Rebels would fall in the bottom of the ninth with no runs added to their score.
"Very similar to last night, only we were on the wrong end this time" noted head coach
Stan Stolte. "You have to give them credit, they hammered some balls in crunch time. It's hard to get that 27th out in college baseball but if you get the chance, you have to find a way."
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- The Rebels' six home runs in the contest not only tied a season-high, but also matches a mark that they earned one time during the 2024 season (May 12 vs. Fresno State).
-
Will Marquart's third appearance of relief so far this season on Sunday tallied his second time shutting out his opponent, pitching two innings and striking out two batters today.
- Toigo's three RBIs on Sunday pushed him as the team-leader in the statistical category with 10 on the young season,
Brendan O'Sullivan hitting eight after his two against the Bearcats.
UP NEXT
UNLV will look to tie the series against the no. 25-ranked Cincinnati Bearcats before the weekend series concludes, facing off against them one final time on Monday, Feb. 24. The unconventional Monday-night series finale is set to kick off at 6:05 p.m. PT. To get updates on all things Hustlin' Rebels, links to the season's games can be found on the team's
schedule page. You can also get live updates on how the Scarlet & Gray are faring on the team's
X (formerly known as Twitter),
Facebook and
Instagram accounts.
