No. 23 Oregon State pulls away from Lobos late

SURPRISE, Ariz. – Pulling away in its final at-bat on Sunday afternoon at Surprise Stadium, No. 23 Oregon State University topped the New Mexico baseball team 14-6 on Day 3 of the Sanderson Ford College Classic.

The Beavers (2-1) led just 7-6 after seven innings of play, but blew the game open with a seven-run eighth inning in what proved to be the difference. OSU’s Tanner Smith had a grand slam in the momentum-changing inning, as the Beavers avenged Friday’s 7-2 loss to the Lobos. “We were playing at an extremely high level, and ran into some pitching issues in the late innings,” said UNM head coach Tod Brown. “I am proud of how the guys came out and competed. We just have to clean up in the bullpen, and be ready to go tomorrow.”

The Lobos (2-1) got a third straight strong outing from their starting pitcher, this time riding a five-inning effort from right-hander Isaac Gallegos in his UNM debut. “He was really good, and had excellent command today,” Brown said on the junior from Grants, N.M. “He had really good velocity and life on his breaking ball and changeup. He competed and gave us a good chance to win that game.”

Jeffrey David hit the Lobos’ first home run of the season, and finished the game 2-for-3 with three RBIs to lead UNM offensively. The Lobos stranded six runners on base in the game.

OSU starter Jaren Hunter worked around a one-out single by David in the first, coaxing a double-play ball off the bat of Lenny Junior Ashby to end the inning.

Ashby and Braydon Runion each did their part in a clean bottom of the first inning, making a pair of running catches to help Gallegos set the side down in order. After making his sliding catch in right field, Runion promptly led off the top of the second with a line-drive single on the first pitch from Hunter. Jake Holland smashed a single off the glove of Beaver third baseman Mikey Kane, and Justin Olson delivered an RBI-single to the gap in right center to give UNM a 1-0 advantage.

Gallegos faced his first test in the bottom of the second, when the Beavers placed runners at the corners with one out. After his first strikeout as a Lobo to get the first out of the inning, Gallegos struck out the final two he faced to strand a pair and keep UNM in front.

David had a pair of web gems in the third inning, twice making sliding stops in shallow right field to take a pair of hits away from the Beavers. Reed Spenrath displayed outstanding footwork on both plays, scrambling to get to the bag on the first and using all of his 6-foot-5 frame to snag David’s throw on the second.

Runion laced his second knock of the game into left field to lead off the fourth, and Spenrath blasted a deep drive off the wall in left to double UNM’s lead at 2-0. Dylan Ditzenberger extended his reached base streak to 17 games with a base hit in the top of the fifth, which set up David’s two-run home run to left-center.

The Beavers fought back in the bottom of the fifth with a walk and a hit batter to put two runners on base. Gallegos dialed up a double play on a huge 3-2 pitch to Tanner Smith, but the Beavers got on the board with a two-out, RBI-single off the bat of Kyle Dernedde to make the score 4-1. Gallegos dug deep, and caught Travis Bazzana looking on a 3-2 pitch to get out of the jam with his fourth strikeout of the day. Gallegos finished his debut outing allowing one run on two hits with four strikeouts and three walks in his five innings of work.

OSU jumped on reliever Benjamin Baker-Livingston, with back-to-back doubles by Cedillo and Forrester cutting the deficit to one run at 4-3. Dernedde followed with a sacrifice fly, Micah McDowell punched an RBI-single into right field, and an RBI-double by Bazzana gave the Beavers their first lead of the day at 6-4 after six innings.

UNM responded immediately in the top of the seventh, with Chase Weissenborn and Deylan Pigford drawing back-to-back walks to start the inning. David came through with a sacrifice fly, and Ashby knotted the score at 6-6 with a base hit to center.

Garret Forrester drove a solo home run to straightaway center field in the bottom of the seventh, as the Beavers jumped back in front. The Lobos got the tying run on base in the top of the eighth when pinch hitter Kyle Smith was hit by a pitch, but OSU righty AJ Hutcheson followed with a strikeout to move his team three outs from victory.

OSU blew the game open in the bottom of the eighth, when Bazzana punched an RBI-triple off the foul line in right field to bring McDowell home from first and Forrester delivered an RBI-single. Smith’s grand slam capped the rally and put the game out of reach at 14-6.

UNM reliever Brett Russell finished his first outing of the year allowing three runs on five hits with two strikeouts and two walks in 2 1/3 innings of relief. Adolfo Iturralde was the last of six pitchers used by the Lobos, and recorded his first strikeout of the season to bring OSU’s big rally to an end.

LOBO NOTES: The Lobos are now 5-18 all-time against the Beavers and are 4-15 in neutral-site meetings between the teams…the home run was the seventh of David’s collegiate career and his fifth in a Lobo uniform…true freshman Jordan Martinez, a graduate of Sandia High School in Albuquerque, made his collegiate debut in the eighth inning…sophomore Junior Flores made his New Mexico debut, recording one out on the mound in the eighth inning…Konner Kinkade and Caleb Herd made their Lobo debuts as pinch hitters in the top of the ninth.

COMING UP: UNM closes its four-game weekend with a Monday morning affair against Minnesota. First pitch is set for 9 a.m. in the finale at Surprise Stadium.