Recap: @NCBearsBaseball Battles, Falls to New Mexico State in Extras

Saturday, April 21

Greeley, Colo.

3 p.m.

University of Northern Colorado

21-18, 0

New Mexico State University

25-14, 0

New Mexico State

Northern Colorado

Photo by: Rob Trubia

4/21/2018 10:04:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

UNC baseball battled back to tie the game three times, but fell in extra innings to New Mexico State

By: By Ryan Pfeifer, UNCBears.com

GREELEY, Colo. – Northern Colorado battled back each time it trailed New Mexico State Saturday afternoon but was unable to come up with the win in extra innings. UNC tied the game three different times, including scoring four in the eighth to force extras, but never held a lead in the 12-9 loss.

How It Happened
The Aggies drew a pair of walks against UNC starter Aaron Hamilton in the first inning to put pressure on the Bears. Tristian Carranza platted the first run of the game with an RBI single with two outs and Nick Gonzales added to it with a two-RBI double making it 3-0 NMSU before UNC even stepped in the batter's box.

Yesterday's big bat of Cole Maltese continued where he left off, scoring the first run of the game for Northern Colorado on a single that plated Matt Burkart in the bottom of the first. The Bears evened the game at three with an Evan Johnson two-RBI single before the inning concluded.

New Mexico reclaimed the lead in the top of the third by scoring two runs on three hits including a double and triple to start it off. Once again, the lead did not last long as Alex Kiel hit his first home run of the year to tie the game at five in the bottom half of the inning. Kiel brought home Maltese with his big fly.

Both teams stayed tied at five until the sixth inning when a fielding error from the Bears led to three runs for New Mexico State. Up 8-5, NMSU added an insurance run in the top of the eighth that would prove big in the bottom half of the inning. Northern Colorado loaded the bases with one out on a Kiel single, Tyler Yamaguchi double and Austin Miller walk. Kiel came home to score on a wild pitch with Dean Lawson at the plate. Even without the wild pitch, Kiel would have scored as Lawson hit the team's second home run of the game to tie it at nine.

The game entered extra innings as both offenses were quiet in the ninth and 10th inning, but New Mexico State's woke up in the 11th. Back-to-back walks jump-started the Aggies' offense that saw three runs score on a pair of doubles to go up 12-9. Jack Pauley walked with one out in the bottom half of the inning, but a next at-bat double play ended the game.

Game Changer
Without the bat of Alex Kiel on Saturday, Northern Colorado would have struggled to set the table and score runs on Saturday afternoon. The Bears' catchers went 4-for-5 at the plate, scoring twice and bringing home a pair of runs as well. His two RBI came on a home run in the third inning.

Stat to Know
New Mexico States defense struggled in the field with a pair of errors leading to five unearned runs by Northern Colorado.

Game Notes
- Dean Lawson and Tyler Yamaguchi each had a pair of hits on Saturday. Both of Lawson's hits were for extra bases with a home run and double. He also drove home a team-high three runs.
- Karver Pate pitched 2.2 innings in relief, striking out five batters during that time.
- A day after NMSU struggled with walking batters, it was UNC on Saturday who walked 11 Aggies.

What's Ahead?
Northern Colorado and New Mexico State will square off in the rubber match of the three-game series on Sunday morning. First pitch for the game at Jackson Field is set for 11 am MT.

To stay up to date on all things UNC baseball, visit UNCBears.com and follow the team on Twitter at @NCBearsbaseball.