LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley baseball team rallied for four unanswered runs in the eighth and ninth innings but fell 7-4 to New Mexico State University on Saturday at Presley Askew Field.
Trailing 7-0, UTRGV (18-17, 2-6 WAC) got their first run of the ball game in the top of the eighth against the New Mexico State bullpen. After walks to seniors
Jose Garcia and
Joseph Collazo, pinch hitter
Isaac Gonzalez hit a single to load the bases where freshman
Tyler Torres walked to drive in Garcia from third.
In the ninth, sophomore
Anthony Gomez, who finished with a career-high four hits in the game, got it started with a single and then moved to second after a walk to senior
Austin Siener. Garcia followed with an RBI double that scored Gomez and then Collazo hit an RBI single scoring Siener. One out later, senior
Victor Garcia Jr. hit sacrifice fly that scored Garcia from third to put a cap on the scoring before Ruger Rodriguez closed it out for his sixth save of the season.
The ball game remained scoreless until the bottom of the third when New Mexico State (19-13, 5-0 WAC) got an RBI single from Austin Botello that scored Joey Ortiz.
New Mexico State would knock UTRGV starter
Connor Grant (4-4) out of the ball game in the bottom of the fourth as they loaded the bases to set up a sacrifice fly off the bat of Marcus Still. Ortiz then followed with a two-run single and then got an RBI double by Botello to push their lead to 5-0.
Grant took the loss after allowing five runs on five hits in three and two-third innings.
New Mexico State got two more runs in the bottom of the fifth with solo home runs from Tristan Carranza and Brent Sakurai that made it 7-0.
That made a winner out of Marcel Renteria (5-2) who pitched seven scoreless innings while scattering five hits.
Josh Witherspoon had a nice outing out of the bullpen for UTRGV as he allowed just two runs in four and a third innings while scattering four hits and striking out three.
UTRGV and New Mexico State will wrap up the three-game series on Sunday at 1 p.m.
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