Air Force Academy
New Mexico
Lobos blast Air Force, 25-2
5/2/2003 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 2, 2003
New Mexico scored in eight of the nine innings and cruised to a 25-2 win over Air Force in a Mountain West Conference baseball game Friday, May 2, at Falcon Field. The 25 runs were a new MWC record in a league game. The previous mark record was 24 by San Diego State against New Mexico in 2000.
New Mexico improved to 31-19 overall and 14-8 and in second place in the MWC. Air Force fell to 13-30 overall and 1-20 and in sixth place in the conference.
The Lobos jumped on the board early with six runs on four hits and three home runs in the first inning. Joe Salas hit a two-run homer and Sean Murray followed with a solo blast. Jeff Grady added a two-run shot later in the inning. Lobo starter James Vermilyea then struck out the side in the bottom of the first and the Lobos added six more in the second inning. UNM sent 10 batters to the plate in the first and 12 in the second. The six runs in the second came on five singles and two doubles.
UNM scored one in the third, two in the fourth and fifth, three in the sixth and seventh and two in the eighth. Chris Alexander hit his league-leading 23rd home run of the season in the fourth inning, a two-run shot to left field. With two outs in the fifth, two errors on the same play led to two unearned runs. Consecutive RBI-doubles by Cory Lizarraga and Grady in the sixth keyed a three-run inning. Pinch hitter Josh Huwer a two-run homer in the seventh to right field and then a two-run homer to left field in the eighth.
Air Force scored once in the fourth and once in the seventh. Adam Howes led off the fourth with a double and scored on Josh Phifer's single. In the seventh, Nick Liegl led off with a double and scored on Derck Kasel's single.
The runs scored and margin of defeat are the most allowed by the Falcons since Hawaii scored a school-record 34 in 1999 (34-11).
UNM pounded 27 hits on the day, including six home runs and seven doubles. The Lobos also took advantage of five Falcon errors, a season-high. Josh Mader, Murray and Grady all had four hits in the game while Matt Young added three. Huwer and Grady each had four RBI. Vermilyea improved to 7-1 on the year as he went six innings and allowed just one run on five hits with six strikeouts.
Howes led the Falcons with two hits. Falcon starter Paul Vignola started and lasted just two-thirds of an inning. He gave up six runs on four hits with two walks and a strikeout. Ken Hodgson came on with one out in the first inning and threw five and one-third.
The same two teams continue the MWC series Saturday and Sunday at 1 p.m. each day at Falcon Field.
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