RENO, Nev. (UNLVRebels.com) - The UNLV Rebels saw an early lead slip away before a late avalanche doomed them in a 13-3 eight inning run-rule loss to the UNR Wolf Pack on Friday evening at Don Weir Field at Peccole Park. This series is part of the Silver State Series presented by America First Credit Union.
HOW IT WENT DOWN: UNLV (23-18, 6-10 MW) struck first in the second inning, manufacturing a run despite recording just one hit in the frame. After Nin Burns II doubled to left, a hit-by-pitch and a walk loaded the bases. Gavin Taylor's free pass brought home Burns II, aided by a UNR (22-16, 11-5 MW) throwing error, giving the Rebels a 1-0 advantage. The Wolf Pack answered quickly in the bottom half. Back-to-back singles and another UNLV error set the stage for Jake Harvey, who delivered a two-run single to put UNR ahead 2-1.
The Scarlet & Gray briefly regained momentum in the third when Jonny Rodriguez crushed a solo home run to deep left, tying the game at 2-2. UNLV then jumped back in front in the fourth, as Taylor doubled and later scored on Gunnar Myro's RBI single to make it 3-2. UNR responded immediately in the bottom of the fourth, tying the game on a Junhyuk Kwon solo homer before reclaiming the lead on a sacrifice RBI from Harvey.
In the fifth, the Wolf Pack broke the game open with a four-run outburst, highlighted by Sean Yamaguchi's grand slam to deep left field. The swing turned a tight 4-3 contest into an 8-3 UNR lead and shifted all momentum. UNLV's offense stalled from there, managing just one hit over the final four innings while striking out five times in that span. Meanwhile, UNR continued to add on, plating a run in the sixth before delivering the knockout punch in the eighth. The Wolf Pack tallied four more runs in the eighth inning, fueled by RBI hits from formr Rebel Mikey Cruz Jr., Jacob Doyle, and Kwon, stretching the lead to 13-3 and enforcing the run-rule.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
-Drew Barragan has now reached base in all 40 games he has played in this season and has an on-base streak of 41 games dating back to his time at Western Kentucky last season.
-Jonny Rodriguez paced the Rebels offensively with a 2-for-4 evening with his sixth home run of the season.
-Ayden Garcia is now on a six-game hitting streak as the catcher went 1-for-4.
-Nin Burns II, Gunnar Myro and Gavin Taylor also recorded a hit apiece.
-Starting pitcher Parker Dillhoff fell to 3-3 on the season as the senior lefthander went 5.0 innings giving up 10 hits on eight earned runs with two walks and five strikeouts.
UP NEXT: UNLV resumes its in-state rival series with the Wolf Pack of UNR on Saturday, April 25 at 2:05 pm followed by the series finale on Sunday, April 26 at 12:05 pm. The results of these games and the series will decide which side will earn the three points associated with the sport in the standings of the Silver State Series presented by America First Credit Union.
