San Diego State’s men’s baseball team dropped Friday’s series opener against Hawai’i, 16-5, at Les Murakami Stadium.
The Aztecs (6-14, 2-7 Mountain West) got swept the previous weekend in Pueblo, Colo. against Air Force. It was the first time this occurred since hiring new head coach Shaun Cole.
Heading into the game, after two scoreless innings, the Scarlet and Black were able to get the first run, scoring three runs in the third inning.
Redshirt junior Shaun Montoya hit an RBI single to right field to make the score 1-0. The scoring continued followed by two RBI singles by outfielder Irvin Weems and third baseman Colby Turner.
In the fifth inning, the Aztecs were able to add to their lead with Tino Bethancourt’s RBI double to bring in Turner from first base.
In the next half inning, Hawai’i (13-7, 2-1 Big West) woke up from a quiet first half and exploded with eight runs.
From the fifth inning onward, SDSU’s pitching had a difficult time trying to limit the Rainbow Warriors.
Jacob Riordan, starting pitcher for the Aztecs, was pulled from the game in the fourth inning. Riordan only pitched 3 innings allowing only one hit, no runs and three strikeouts.
Reliever Jadon Bercovich came in to replace Riordan in the fourth inning. After shutting down three of the first four batters he faced, Bercovich got himself into a jam with the bases loaded with no outs. Freshman Garvey Rumary would take over on the mound for Bercovich.
Rumary would hit the first two batters he faced, which allowed Hawai’i to get their first two runs on the board.
Four runs later, Rumary would be replaced by right-handed pitcher Aidan Russell. The Rainbow Warriors would increase their score to eight runs after an error and another hit-by-pitch with the bases loaded.
The Aztecs went to the bullpen again to bring Austin Kirkwood to get the final out in the fifth.
An inning later, Hawai’i brought in another five runs to make it a 13-4 lead.
SDSU managed to score another run in the eighth inning after a Shaun Montoya RBI single to bring in freshman outfielder Drew Rutter.
Hawai’i would end up scoring the game’s final three runs in the next half inning making it a 16-5 lead.
After Aztecs’ starting pitcher Riordan exited the game, SDSU’s bullpen allowed a total of 16 runs; 14 of them were considered earned. They also gave up nine hits and nine walks, only struck out two batters and hit five of Hawaii’s batters by a pitch between five different relieving pitchers.
Aztec’s Shaun Montoya went 2 of 5 with two hits, two RBIs and a run. Three-time Mountain West Freshman of the Week, Colby Turner, finished today’s outing with two hits, an RBI and one run.
For the Rainbow Warriors, shortstop Jordan Donahue went 3 of 5 with three hits, two RBIs, three runs and drawing a walk. Designated hitter Austin Machado had one hit and a run with four RBIs.
SDSU will look to break their four-game losing streak in tomorrow’s game against Hawai’i. Right-handed pitcher Omar Serrano will get the starting nod for the second game of the three-game series.
Baseball falls to Hawaii in 16-0 blowout
San Diego State University (6-15, 2-7 Mountain West) baseball extended their losing streak to five, with a tough loss to the Rainbow Warriors (14-7, 2-1) on Saturday night.
Hawaii took the lead in the second inning and didn’t give the Aztecs any room to breathe going forward. They cracked it open in the fourth inning with a seven-run inning to extend the score to 9-0.
SDSU couldn’t get anything going at the plate; striking out 12 times as a team and leaving 11 runners on base. Only six hits were recorded on the day from the Aztecs, two from infielder Colby Turner.
The Rainbow Warriors continued to pour it on, with five more runs in the sixth inning and two more in the seventh to beat SDSU, 16-0.
Hawaii had the SDSU bullpen’s number, putting up runs on four out of the five pitchers they saw and 20 hits in total.
Pitcher Brayden Marx was the lone pitcher who did not give up any runs, finishing his day with three strikeouts in one inning.
The Scarlet and Black look to snap their losing streak as they wrap the series up at Hawaii on Sunday at 4 p.m. followed by a home series against New Mexico next weekend.
After scoring five runs in five innings, Aztecs could not stop the Rainbow Warriors’ late rally
On Sunday, San Diego State’s baseball team dropped the third and final game of the series against the University of Hawai’i in extra innings, 6-5.
The Aztecs went scoreless in the final five innings after leading 5-1.
They now have been swept in back-to-back road series and currently are riding a six-game loss heading into their short break.
The Scarlet and Black were able to strike first in the opening inning. Redshirt junior Tino Bethancourt doubled to left center, which brought in third baseman Colby Turner and outfielder Shaun Montoya.
After Hawai’i scored their first run in the second inning, the Aztecs were able to extend the lead to 4-1. Bethancourt, once again, hit a two-run double down the left-field line, bringing in center fielder Irvin Weems and Montoya.
Following Montoya’s triple, Weems hit a sacrifice fly to center field to bring in Montoya, increasing the lead to 5-1.
Two scoreless innings later, the Rainbow Warriors were able to kick it in gear and score three runs in the eighth inning only making it a one-run lead for the Aztecs.
In the bottom of the ninth, Hawai’i was able to bring in the tying run after an RBI single by center fielder Matthew Miura.
The Rainbow Warriors were able to score the game-winning in the bottom of the tenth inning. Shortstop Jordan Donahue hits an RBI single with the bases loaded bringing in his cousin Kyson Donahue.
The Aztecs’ starting pitcher, Xavier Cardenas III, pitched seven innings allowing three runs on two hits, and seven walks and didn’t record a strikeout. The loss will count toward right-handed pitcher Issac Araiza as he allowed the final two runs and five hits.
In the batters’ box, Montoya finished today’s outing going 3-5 with three hits, two of them being a double and a triple, and three runs. Bethancourt went 2-4 with two doubles and scored in four of SDSU’s five runs.
For the Rainbow Warriors, they were led by Donahue’s, both of them finished with two hits. Jordan Donahue had an RBI while Kyson had a run. Catcher Dallas Duarte went 1-4 with a hit and two RBIs.
The Aztecs play again on Thursday, March 28, as they head back to Tony Gwynn Stadium to face the New Mexico Lobos in a three-game Mountain West series.
