By Marshall Mecham
LAS CRUCES, N.M. — The New Mexico State baseball team (7-8) had its hands full this past weekend at Presley Askew Field at Johnson Stadium against No. 25 University of Texas at San Antonio (13-2), but still managed to pull off the upset victory in the final game of the series Sunday, March 8.
After falling 10-2 and 13-0 in the first two contests, the Aggies edged out a 5-4 win in the last meeting to avoid the sweep.
After holding their own in the first inning in the series opener March 6, the Aggies quickly let the game slip away. UTSA built an early cushion with two unearned runs in the second inning and a four-run fourth inning. They later scored four runs throughout the final three innings to extend the lead to 10.
It was not until the ninth inning and a brief pause due to a power outage when the Aggies found momentum. Jonatan Clough came in for the first time of the night and hit an RBI triple after two early strikes to allow Noah Massey to score and get NMSU on the board. Chris Daniels followed this up with a run-scoring groundout, but the scoring ended there.
The Aggies finished with just five hits, with three of them coming in the final frame. Pitcher Bradyn Barnes took the loss after allowing just one earned run over three innings and matching a career best four strikeouts
The bleeding did not end there, as NMSU had an even tougher time against the Roadrunners in the second matchup March 7. After being down just 2-0 entering the fifth inning, the Aggies allowed UTSA to score seven runs and take a 9-0 advantage. The Roadrunners followed this up with a two-run sixth inning and a two-run homer from Drew Detlefsen in the seventh inning to stretch the lead to 13.
NMSU had even fewer hits than it did the day before, finishing with just three. Pitcher JT Price took the loss.
With one last chance to pick up a victory against a ranked opponent, the Aggies did all they could to defy the odds and it paid off.
After going down 1-0 heading into the third inning, Aidan Taclas hit an RBI groundout, resulting in a Dane Woodcook run to tie the game. It was in the fourth inning where NMSU took its first lead of the series because of a two-run homer from Easton Rulli to push the lead to two. In the very next inning, Taclas hit a home run of his own but UTSA tied the game again in the sixth inning.
The Aggies later found a spark in the eighth inning, which was the deciding factor. Boston Vest hit a single and then moved to third base off a Cole Rogers bunt. Woodcook then bunted single down the left-field line, which led to a Vest run and 5-4 advantage. NMSU stopped the Roadrunners from scoring in the top of the ninth inning to secure the one-point victory.
Pitcher Connor Wylde took the win and is now 3-0 on the year after a shutdown performance out of the bullpen. He said he believes head coach Jake Angier knows what is best for him.
“As always, we’re out there just trying to execute one pitch at a time,” Wylde said. “He [Angier] brought me in for a reason knowing that it was a good matchup, so I’m going to trust whatever pitch he calls and get after it.”
Woodcook said Wylde is a player he is comfortable with pitching.
“There’s no doubt about it that when the runners are on, you can trust this guy,” Woodcook said. “I have firm belief in him when he’s on the mound, so it was really cool to see.”
The Aggies will be back in action against in-state NAIA foe University of the Southwest at 4 p.m. Tuesday, March 10, at home. NMSU will look to sweep the season series against USW to get back to .500. The Aggies beat the Mustangs 19-7 Feb. 24, at home. This contest will end the Aggies’ 12-game home stand.
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