San Jose, Calif. For the first time this season the University of Nevada(31-23, 18-13 WAC) baseball team was swept in a doubleheader falling 11-2 to San Jose State(30-23, 16-14 WAC) at Municipal Stadium in San Jose, Calif. Saturday afternoon. The Spartans won the first game of the day 2-0. The loss dropped the Wolf Pack to 31-23 on the season and to 18-13 in WAC action. The Spartans improved to 30-23 and 16-14 in conference action.
Nevada entered the weekend chasing Fresno State for the WAC’s regular season title but after losing three in a row to SJSU and despite the Bulldogs dropping two three at Sacramento State the title chase is over. FS is two games up in the conference standings with one remaining. The Pack will need to win tomorrow in order to secure the second seed in next weekend’s WAC tournament. A loss would drop Nevada to the third seed as Hawai`i(18-14) would earn the second seed based on winning three of four games from the Pack earlier this season.
Trailing 2-1 Nevada tied the game two at 2-2 with a single run in the top of the sixth inning. First baseman Shaun Kort singled with one down and came around to score on designated hitter Terry Walsh’s RBI double to tie the score.
The Spartans responded by scoring the final nine runs of the game to win 11-2 to complete the doubleheader sweep. SJSU scored four times in the sixth and seventh innings with the final run coming in the bottom of the eighth.
Freshman lefty Brock Stassi(3-2) was tagged with the loss giving up three runs on seven hits in five innings on the mound. Spartan reliever Christopher McNeil(3-0) won is third game of the season pitching 2.2 innings of shutout relief allowing just three hits.
Kort(2-for-5,2R) led Nevada with two hits and scored both Pack runs in the game. Walsh and right fielder Mike Hale drove in a run apiece.
SJSU was led by left fielder John Shaffer’s(3-for-5,2R) three hits in game two. Catcher Bryson Rahier(2-for-4,4RBI) drove in a game-high four in the second game.
The final game of the series is scheduled to get underway at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday afternoon.
