Lobos Win Wild Affair 13-12
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — In a game that saw New Mexico and Air Force combine for 25 runs, 30 hits and eight walks, it was a hit batter that had entered the game as a pinch runner that decided the outcome. Richard Ware, in his only plate appearance, was hit with a 3-1 pitch and the bases loaded with two outs in the ninth inning, and Malachi Emond pitched a 1-2-3 bottom half as UNM took a wild game 13-12 over Air Force.
Trailing 12-11 entering the top of the ninth, Phillip Sikes opened the inning with his third hit of the game, and Brayden Merritt sacrificed him to second. Justin Watari then laced a single to center, with Sikes beating the throw home and Watari moving up to second on the play. After a groundout moved Watari to third, Connor Mang walked on a 3-2 pitch, and then Air Force opted to intentionally walk the red-hot Jeff Deimling to load the bases for Ware.
However, Ware worked the count to 3-1 before Jake Gilbert’s pitch rode in and hit Ware in the elbow for a slightly painful, but crucial RBI, giving UNM a 13-12 lead. That was all UNM got, and the club took a one-run lead into the bottom of the ninth, and UNM turned to Malachi Emond to close it out after closer Christian Tripp went three innings yesterday. Emond struck out the first two batters he faced, both looking, before coaxing a ground out to end the game and give him his first save as a Lobo.
The game was a see-saw affair that saw UNM take a 2-0 lead in the opening inning as Deimling singled home a run, one of his four hits, and Daniel Zakosek singled up the middle to plate a run. Zakosek started for Danny Collier at DH after Collier was hit by a pitch yesterday.
Stay a while … here are the highlights from our wild 13-12 win over Air Force #GoLobos pic.twitter.com/7W86Lo0HgX
— UNM Baseball (@UNMLoboBaseball) May 12, 2018
Air Force answered back with six unearned runs in the bottom of the first off of Cody Dye, the big blow a two-run triple by Ashton Easley. Justin Watari got UNM back to within 6-3 in the top of the second, scoring Sikes on a single, but Nic Ready unloaded for his 17th home run of the season to make it 8-3.
A Derek Marshall groundout made it 8-4 in the third, and UNM then took the lead with five runs in the sixth. Sikes singled and after a Merritt fly out, Watari doubled to put runners on second and third. That ended Matt Hargreaves’ day, but UNM greeted Luke Chitcutt rudely, with Schilling doubling off the fence to make it 8-6. After a Connor Mang walk, Air Force changed pitchers again, but at this point, it doesn’t matter who is facing Jeff Deimling.
The junior raked a game-tying double to even the game at 8-8, and he eventually would score on a wild pitch to make it 9-8. However, the see-saw teetered to the Falcons in the bottom of the sixth as Easley doubled to tie the game, and then Drew Wiss homered to knock Dye out of the game and give Air Force an 11-9 lead. Drew Gillespie entered and was solid, throwing 2.2 innings of relief, allowing just one run.
Down 11-9, Hayden Schilling picked a fine time for his first homer of the season, a blast to left center that tied the game at 11-11 in the seventh. Air Force took a 12-11 lead in the eighth when Rob Dau singled through the hole on the right side to score Ryan Robb with two outs. That set up UNM’s winning ninth inning, which made a winner of Gillespie, who improved to 3-1 on the year.
Deimling led the way going 4-for-5, and he is now 10 for his last 16 with 7 RBI, five runs scored and three doubles. Deimling has raised his average 51 points to .303 for the season with the recent hot streak.
Game three of the series is Sunday at 1 p.m., and UNM will toss Nathaniel Garley, who earned a save against Air Force in the first series between the two teams. The game will be on the Mountain West Network, and Robert Portnoy will have the radio call on ESPN Radio 101.7 The Team.
NOTES: The big days for Watari (4 hits), Deimling (4 hits) and Schilling (2 hits) moved all above .300 for the year, giving UNM five .300 hitters … UNM has raised its average from .260 to .266 over the last two games … UNM’s 32 hits in the last two games is a season-high … Emond lowered his ERA to 2.80, and he raised his team-leading K/9 rate to 12.48 … UNM has allowed 29 runs in the last four games, but just 17 have been earned.