Lobos drop Tuesday night game to No. 25 Oklahoma, 8-1
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Two days after completing a weekend series on the road at Nevada, the University of New Mexico baseball team was back on the diamond on Tuesday night opening up a five-game homestand starting with a two-game mid-week series against No. 25 Oklahoma. The Sooners would claim the first game by a score of 8-1.
True freshman right-hander Tristin Lively received the starting nod against the nationally-ranked Sooners (17-4). In just his second collegiate start, Lively pitched fairly well as he worked in-and-out of jams throughout his start.
The first of those jams that Lively wiggled out of came in the top of the first. The first two Sooners reached on a single and walk. Lively then got the next two batters out on a flyout and a strikeout, but OU designated hitter Cade Cavalli doubled home a run. A walk then followed to load the bases, but Lively kept the damage to that single run as he got a swinging strikeout to end the inning.
A pair of walks in the second added some stress to Lively on the mound, but he worked out of the inning unscathed. In the third, the Sooners got a leadoff single, but a first-pitch flyout and then a first-pitch double play got Lively and the Lobos (11-8) out of the inning with it still 1-0 OU.
In the fourth, OU continued to make Lively work from the stretch as the first two men reached on a singe and a walk. Lively then got his third strikeout of the game for the first out before the Sooner leadoff man Jordan Vujovich singled home a run to make it 2-0 Oklahoma. The Lobos were nearly out of the inning on a potential double play, but it ended up being a fielder’s choice and RBI to push the lead to 3-0.
Lively then retired the last batter of his outing on a looking strikeout for the second out. Nico Garza emerged from the bullpen in relief of Lively and he would strikeout the lone man he saw in the fourth to end the inning.
In the bottom of that inning, the Lobos put together their best run-scoring threat as they loaded the bases with one out. Only one run would come of that threat, however, as the breaks didn’t go the Lobos’ way. Connor Mang started that rally in the fourth with an infield single to shortstop. Tanner Baker then followed that with a single right at the pitcher, Ben Abrams. Jeff Deimling was then worked around to load the bases for true freshman Ediberto Reyes. Reyes would work a full count and then walked to force home a run and make it a 3-1 game with a chance for more.
The next at-bat was where the breaks didn’t go the way for UNM as Oklahoma native Zack Doak lined a ball the other way that seemed ticketed for right field and at least two runs, but the OU first baseman snared the ball out of the air for the lineout of Doak. The Lobos were then retired in the inning on a strikeout.
Garza returned to the mound in the fifth and worked around some traffic on the base paths to pitch a scoreless inning and keep it 3-1.
In the sixth inning, OU broke the game open with a four-run frame to take a 7-1 lead. They would add more one tally in the eighth to bring the game to its final score of 8-1.
The Lobos and Sooners will conclude their brief two-game mid-week series with a matinee contest beginning at noon. Both team’s starting pitcher is TBD.
NOTES
The Lobo pitching staff of Tristin Lively, Nico Garza, Blake Walden, Drew Marrufo, and Kenneth Waller combined to strikeout 12 Sooners in the game. The 12 Ks by the Tuesday night staff are tied for the most in a game for the Lobos. It has been done twice prior this season with both instances coming in each game of the doubleheader against Niagara (2-23-19)