San Diego State baseball dropped its first series of the season in a homestand this past weekend against Nevada.
The Aztecs (17-8, 12-5 Mountain West Conference) came out with a 15-7 victory in game one of Saturday’s doubleheader, but fell short of the Wolf Pack (10-13, 7-8 MWC) 10-6 in the second game.
Sunday’s rubber game yielded a 5-3 loss, marking the Scarlet and Black’s first consecutive loss of this year’s campaign.
Things started out hot for the Wolf Pack in the first game of the series.
A homer by redshirt junior shortstop Tyler Bosetti put Nevada up 1-0 early on.
The Aztecs tied it up in the bottom of the first with a double from redshirt senior shortstop Mike Jarvis, eventually allowing him to cross home after a sac fly from catcher redshirt sophomore Wyatt Hendrie.
Nevada answered back in the top of the third after an RBI single by redshirt sophomore outfielder Dario Gomez brought home Bosetti.
Gomez later scored on an RBI double by redshirt senior first baseman Dillan Shrum, giving Nevada a 3-1 lead.
SDSU put another run up in the bottom half of the inning, but the Wolf Pack responded by adding three more in the fourth.
That’s when the Aztecs’ bats came alive.
Redshirt freshman infielder Caden Miller walked and later advanced to third on a double from Jarvis. Senior infielder Matt Rudick also walked, resulting in a bases loaded situation for the Aztecs.
Enter: Slam Diego State University.
Hendrie knocked a grand slam to left field, driving in four runs and tying the game at six. Nevada scored only once more in the top of the seventh, but was unable to keep up with an Aztec offense that seemed unable to stop making contact.
Hendrie led the team with a career-high six RBIs while Jarvis, Rudick and redshirt sophomore outfielder Jaden Fein each had three hits. Jarvis racked up four runs, good for a tie with his career-best.
Things looked a bit different in the second contest of the day.
The Aztecs put themselves on the board early, with an RBI single by Fein scoring Rudick in the bottom of the first.
The bottom of the second followed a similar narrative.
An RBI single by Jarvis scored freshman infielder Fisher Pyatt, followed by a sac fly by Rudick to bring home Miller. A single courtesy of Hendrie allowed Jarvis to cross home, good for three runs on the inning.
The top of the fourth put Nevada on the board with the addition of two runs, which SDSU matched in the bottom half of the inning. This would be the last time the Aztecs would score in game two.
Nevada rallied in the top of the seventh, driving in five runs and putting them on top 7-6 before widening the gap in the top of the eighth with the collection of three more. SDSU was unable to close the scoring gap, falling to the Wolf Pack 10-6 to split the doubleheader.
To wrap up the series on Sunday, redshirt freshman right-handed pitcher Ricky Tibbett took to the mound.
The Scarlet and Black were forced to play catch up after an early pair of runs from the Wolf Pack in the first inning.
The Aztecs secured two runs after freshman utility player Cole Carrigg brought in redshirt senior first baseman Jacob Cruce followed by Fein, who reached home after redshirt senior outfielder Ryan Orr’s at-bat.
Nevada stretched its lead to 5-2 in the sixth inning with two runs off of Carrigg.
Redshirt junior right-handed pitcher Tre Brown took to the mound in hopes to slow the scoring of the Wolf Pack. He followed with a strong performance, producing five strikeouts in two innings.
While SDSU managed to get runners on base in the following innings, it was not able to advance home and contribute to upping the Aztecs’ score.
Tibbett took his first loss of the season after throwing five strikeouts in five innings while the Aztecs dropped their first series of the season.
Up next…
SDSU will hit the road as it travels to Fresno State for a three-game set against the Bulldogs.
The series will begin with a doubleheader on Saturday, April 17 at 1:30 p.m.
