LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - UNLV built a commanding early lead and then held on through a tense ninth inning to defeat UC Riverside 11-10 in a wild, back-and-forth contest on Tuesday afternoon at Earl E. Wilson Stadium.
The Rebels (13-5) used a series of big innings early to build what appeared to be a comfortable cushion, but UC Riverside (4-13) rallied late to make things interesting before UNLV finally secured the one-run victory. UC Riverside struck first in the opening inning, capitalizing on two UNLV errors. Lucas Bonham delivered an RBI double to right field that plated Miles Scott, and Bonham later scored on a wild pitch to give the Highlanders a 2-0 advantage. UNLV answered immediately in the bottom half of the inning when Drew Barragan blasted a triple to deep center field, scoring Marcos Rosales and cutting the deficit to 2-1.
The Rebels took control in the second inning as Gunnar Myro tied the game with an RBI single before Reggie Bussey drove a double into the right-center gap that scored two runs, giving UNLV a 4-2 lead. UNLV broke the game open in the third. With the bases loaded, Myro delivered the biggest swing of the inning, drilling a double to center field that cleared the bases for three runs. Bussey followed with an RBI single as the Rebels pushed four runs across to extend their lead to 8-2. The Scarlet & Gray continued to add insurance in the sixth. A wild pitch brought home Barragan before Jayden Hertel drove in Nin Burns II with a groundout. Another wild pitch allowed Jonny Rodriguez to score, stretching the UNLV lead to 11-2.
UC Riverside refused to go quietly. In the seventh inning, Robert Pitts sparked the comeback with a three-run home run to deep left field that trimmed the deficit to 11-6. The Highlanders chipped away again in the eighth as Tyler Gordon singled up the middle to score a run, and Evan Hall drew a bases-loaded walk to make it 11-8 heading into the final frame.
UCR mounted one final push in the ninth. Jaxon Byrd doubled down the right-field line before Bonham reached with a single. An error allowed two runs to score, cutting the Rebels' lead to just one. With the tying run on base, UNLV reliever Jacob Gomberg settled down and recorded the final out on a swinging strikeout to secure the 11-10 win.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
-Gunnar Myro led the Rebels offensively with a 3-for-4 effort on a double and four RBI.
-Reggie Bussey added two hits and three RBI.
-Bussey has a hit in seven of the eight games he has played in this season.
-Drew Barragan also had a strong day at the plate with a single, double and triple.
-Reese Lueck was credited with his third win of the season after going 3.0 innings of work where he gave up one hit on two unearned runs with no walks and two strikeouts.
-Jonny Rodriguez notched his third multi-hit game of the season.
UP NEXT: UNLV hits the road for its second straight weekend as the Hustlin' Rebels will open Mountain West play against the Air Force Falcons. The three-game series begins Friday afternoon and continues through Sunday. The first affair is slated for 2 pm PT, game two will be at 12 pm PT while game three is scheduled to start at 11 am PT.
