Air Force Academy
BYU
Cougars take game one with 9-2 victory
4/10/2003 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 10, 2003
BYU pitcher Jeff Mousser went eight innings and struck out eight Falcons as the Cougars beat Air Force, 9-2, in a Mountain West Conference baseball game Thursday night, April 10, at Miller Park in Provo, Utah. A season-high 1,601 fans watched game one of the three-game series.
Air Force fell to 11-21 overall and 0-12 in the MWC. BYU improved to 15-16 overall and 7-6 in the conference.
Mousser retired the first eight Falcons he faced until freshman catcher Jackson Ranes singled in the third inning. The game was scoreless until the bottom of the third when Ryan Chambers' two-run double gave the Cougars a 2-0 lead.
Air Force's attempt at its first run was thwarted in the top of the fourth when third-baseman Zach McAngus, who reached base on a double, was thrown out at home on a slow ground ball up the third-base line by Mike Rose.
BYU took a 5-0 lead in the fourth inning with three runs on five hits and a Falcon error. With two outs, a fielding error by Falcon shortstop Nelson Prouty allowed two more runs to score.
The Falcons got on the board in the top of fifth when Ranes' double scored Adam Howes and second-baseman Ryan Fitzgerald to cut the Cougar lead to 5-2. BYU added two more in the sixth inning on three singles, a sacrifice fly and a fielding error by Falcon centerfielder Nick Liegl. Ranger Wiens hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning to a 9-2 Cougar advantage.
Mousser picked up his fourth win of the season as he went eight innings and gave up two runs on eight his with eight strikeouts and just one walk. Falcon starter Jesper Stubbendorff took the loss. He went four innings and gave up five runs, three earned, on 10 hits with one strikeout.
The top three hitters in the Cougar order, Doug Jackson, Chambers and Wiens paced the BYU offense. Jackson was 2-for-5 with three runs scored. Chambers was 4-for-5 with three RBI and Wiens was 4-for-5 with four RBI.
Ranes, making his first career start at catcher, and Fitzgerald, making just his third start of the season, led the Falcons. Each went 2-for-3 in the game.
Game two of the series is scheduled for Friday, April 11, at 7 p.m.
--30--
