ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — UC Davis put four runs put in the second and fourth innings, and then put it away late after UNM made a run at it as the UC Davis Aggies took the opening game of season’s finale three-game set 13-8 over New Mexico. The series continues Saturday with the Lobos honoring their three departing seniors Daniel Herrera, James Harrington and Danny Collier.
Down 10-5 in the bottom of the seventh, UNM had UC Davis on the ropes. Hayden Schilling and Connor Mang both singled to open the inning, and that ended the day for Matt Blais (4-7). Tim Wieser entered and Jeff Deimling’s grounder was booted, giving UNM loaded bags and no one out. However, the Lobos couldn’t capitalize. Daniel Zakosek struck out, and then pinch hitter Chris Dunn did the same. Daniel Herrera then lined out to center to end the threat.
Justin Slaten (2-9) pitched a solid first inning but ran into problems in the second inning. A walk, a double, a walk and then a throwing error on a pickoff made it 1-0 UC Davis with two more in scoring position. Brad Pluschkell then singled in a run to make it 2-0. After a strikeout for the first out of the inning Tanner Murray singled to make it 3-0, and after another single, Slaten’s day was over. Drew Gillespie entered and got UNM out of the inning but not before an unearned run scored on an error to make it 4-0.
Davis made it 5-0 on another unearned run after an errant pickoff throw factored into a run, but UNM got on the board in the bottom of the third on three singles, the last by Mang. However, UC Davis answered with four more in the top of the fourth, the big blow a two-run triple by Cameron Briggs.
Here are tonight’s highlights from the 13-8 loss to UC Davis #GoLobos pic.twitter.com/mW9jS6JKCb
— UNM Baseball (@UNMLoboBaseball) May 19, 2018
With UNM down 10-1 in the fifth, the Lobos got back in the game with four runs. The Lobos got back-to-back one-out doubles by Brayden Merritt and Justin Watari to make it 10-2, and then Schilling laced a single to center to make it 10-3. Schilling made it third on a wild pitch and a passed ball, and scored on a groundout to make it 10-4.
The inning continued with Jeff Deimling singling and then moving to second with the left fielder bobbled the ball. That turned into a run when Daniel Zakosek doubled off the third base bag to make it 10-5.
After two solid innings by Brian Coffey, but after UNM couldn’t score with the bases loaded in the seventh he allowed back-to-back singles to start the eighth. Malachi Emond entered and on a sacrifice bunt he threw to third for the out but was late, loading the bases. That decision proved costly when after two strikeouts that would have ended the inning, Pluschkell lined a bases-clearing double into the corner to make it 13-5.
UNM responded with three in the bottom of the eighth as Schilling doubled in a pair of runs and then scored on a Mang single. The rally ended abruptly when Brett Erwin entered in relief for the Aggies and got Jeff Deimling to ground into a double play on his first pitch.
NOTES: UNM had 15 hits, the fourth straight game with double-digit hits, the longest streak of the season … Cody Dye will be on the hill for UNM on Saturday … Emond made his 25th appearance of the year.
UNM and UC Davis resume the series at 2 p.m. on Saturday, with the senior day ceremony prior to the game, with family members throwing out the ceremonial first pitches. The game will be available on the Mountain West Network as well as ESPN Radio 101.7 The Team.