Air Force Academy
New Mexico
Air Force Falls Sunday To New Mexico
3/5/2017 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
USAF ACADEMY, Colo. - Air Force baseball (4-6, 0-3) was downed 16-7 by New Mexico (7-3, 3-0) Sunday afternoon in Mountain West action at Falcon Field. The Falcons were unable to hold a 7-4 lead, as the Lobos rallied with 12 runs in the last two innings.
New Mexico scored eight runs in the eight inning to jump ahead 12-7. The Lobos tacked on our insurance runs in the ninth.
Air Force had 12 hits in the game. Junior shortstop Tyler Zabojnik continued to swing a hot bat, going 3-for-4 with two runs and an RBI. Senior centerfielder Adam Groesbeck went 3-for-5 with two doubles, two runs and two RBIs. Freshman designated hitter Ashton Easley had two hits.
New Mexico had 21 hits in the game. First baseman Jack Zoellner went 5-for-5 with two runs and four RBIs and center fielder Luis Gonzalez went 4-for-5 with four runs to lead the Lobos. Carl Stajduhar and Zoellner hit back-to-back home runs to start UNM's rally in the eighth.
Reliever Drew Gillespie (1-1) picked up the win. Starting pitcher Johnathon Tripp went six innings, allowing seven runs.
Air Force reliever Tyler Mortenson (1-1) took the loss. Starting pitcher Matt Hargreaves pitched 5.1 innings, striking out five. Nathan Stanford, Jake Gilbert, Jacob DeVries and Shawn Kelley also pitched in relief.
New Mexico plated runs in the second-through-fifth innings, while the Falcons scored runs in the third and fourth to make it a 4-2 UNM lead. Air Force scored four runs in the bottom of the fifth to go up 6-4. The Falcons made is 7-4 with a run in the sixth.
New Mexico then had the big eighth and ninth innings to pull away.
Air Force returns to action Tuesday, March 7, hosting Creighton for the first game of a two-game series.
