Nevada 12, Air Force 6
Sunday, April 28, 2024
USAFA, Colo. - Erdle Field

WP: Eddie Tierney (1-1)
LP: Kyle Moats (2-2)

USAFA, Colo. - Nevada capitalized on four Air Force errors, and its bullpen was lights out Sunday as the Wolf Pack captured a critical 12-6 win at the Academy.

The teams will play the rubber game of the road set Monday at 11 a.m. PT. Including Friday's continuation of March 30's suspended contest, Nevada has a chance to come away from the trip with three Mountain West victories.

With Monday's conference contest, Nevada's originally-scheduled April 29 game at home against San Francisco has been canceled.

Sunday, it was the combination of Eddie Tierney and Dominic Desch out of the bullpen which allowed Nevada (19-21, 12-11 MW) to pull away in the late stages. Tierney spelled starter Casey Burfield with two out in the bottom of the fifth, and the Pack clinging to a 7-6 lead. He struck out Zach Peters to end the frame, and went on to hurl 2.1 innings of scoreless, one-hit relief with four strikeouts to earn his first win.

Nevada quickly added to its lead in the top of the sixth. A single from Nolan Wilson and a double from Jesse Pierce with one out put runners on second and third. With two away, Justin Acal drove them in with a clutch single up the middle, making it a three-run game at 9-6.

After Tierney tossed a scoreless bottom half, Nevada struck again, this time with help from Falcon miscues, in the top of the seventh. Singles from Jackson Waller and Jake Harvey put two on with none out, then Air Force right fielder Landon Boyd misplayed a ball off the bat of Michael Ball, allowing Waller and Harvey to score. Ball would advance to third on the three-base error, and come across on Taylor Holder's sacrifice fly to make it 12-6.

Desch would come on, working a 1-2-3 eighth before allowing just one hit in the ninth to close out the win.

Kyle Moats took the loss for Air Force (19-23, 11-9 MW), falling to 2-2 after allowing an RBI double to Waller and run-scoring grounder to Harvey in the fifth, as Nevada scored twice to break a 5-5 tie.

Nevada starer Casey Burfield went 4.2 innings, striking out eight but allowing six runs on nine hits. Air Force put five on the board over the second and third innings thanks to two-out doubles, the first a two-run hit from Walker Zapp in the second, and the next a bases-clearing double to right in the third from Peters.

The Wolf Pack answered with three in the third, coming on a two-run double from Ball and an RBI double from Pierce. Two more in the fourth, off an RBI single from Josh Catacutan and a bases-loaded hit by pitch to Nolan Wilson, tied the game at 5-5.

Waller continued his big weekend, going 3-for-4 with an RBI and a walk, while five more Wolf Pack batters each had a two-hit day. Ball and Acal each drove in a pair of runs.