Saturday, March 13
Tucson, Ariz.
12 p.m. MT
Air Force Academy
5-5
12
vs
3
Wichita State
7-5
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Wichita State
1
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
3
9
0
Air Force
0
2
0
0
6
3
0
1
X
12
13
0
Photo by: John Denne
Falcons Sweep Doubleheader over Wichita State & #13 Arizona in Tucson
3/13/2021 10:59:00 PM | Baseball
The Falcons held the top offense in the country to season-low hits and runs
TUCSON, Ariz. – The Air Force Academy baseball team swept a doubleheader over Wichita State, 13-3, and #13 Arizona, 5-2, Saturday evening, March 13, at Hi Corbett Field. The Falcons have won five-straight games, while also defeating two top-15 teams in the same season for the first time since 2010.
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Air Force pitchers have allowed four or fewer runs in each of the five-straight wins. Against the Wildcats, who entered the weekend as the number one scoring offense and number two in total hits in the country, the Falcons held them to just the two runs and four hits overall, both season-lows for UA.
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For the Falcons as a program, it was the first win over the Shockers in 12 games between the two schools all-time, while against the Wildcats it was just the second win in 15 all-time meetings.
The five-game winning streak is also the longest for the Falcons since winning eighth-straight in 2017.
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Game One: Air Force 12, Wichita State 3
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Air Force's offense remained red hot in the opener, as they tallied 13 hits to record double-digit hits in its fifth-straight game. It is the first time the Falcon bats have done that since having six-straight back in 2018.
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Junior Braydon Altorfer led the way with three knocks, including an RBI double and two-run home run, along with two runs scored. Freshman Paul Skenes added two hits to the ledger, including a three-run home run, the first of his Falcon career.
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Junior CJ Dornak earned the win, the first of his career, after throwing four innings in relief, and allowing just two runs on five hits. Freshman Doyle Gehring earned the first save of his AF career after he completed the final three innings, all scoreless, with a career-best four strikeouts.
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The Shockers struck first with an RBI double in the top of the first to grab an early 1-0 lead. At the start of the bottom of the second, the game entered a two and a half hour delay thanks to a rain shower, followed by extensive field maintenance. Following the delay, AF plated a pair in the bottom of the second on a sac fly from senior Cole Blatchford and RBI single from junior Alexander Pup to make it a 2-1 lead for AF into the third.
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Following a scoreless third, Wichita State leapt back ahead in the top of the fourth with a pair of runs. The Falcons answered back in the bottom of the fifth with a six-run explosion.
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AF got things started by loading up the bases with one out on two walks and a HBP. Freshman Jay Thomason then delivered with a two-run pinch hit single to give AF the lead back. One batter later, runners stood on second a third with two outs. Junior Gabriel Garcia, the runner on third, took advantage of a slow delivery from the Wichita pitcher, as he swiped home to up the lead to two.
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The Falcons weren't done though, as after a third walk of the game from junior Cayden Zimmerman put two runners back on, Skenes blasted a three-run homer to deep left center to cap the six-run inning and make it 8-3 into the sixth.
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Air Force continued the offensive assault in the bottom of the sixth, as a double steal yielded another run, before Altorfer parked a two-run shot to left to make it an 11-3 game with three innings to play. Gehring took over in the top of the seventh and tossed two scoreless innings with three Ks to maintain the large lead.
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The Falcon offense wasn't quite done, as Altorfer rocketed an RBI double down the line in right in the bottom of the eighth to make it 12-3 into the ninth. Gehring returned for the ninth, and tossed a 1-2-3 frame with his fourth strikeout to lock down the three-inning save and the nine-run victory.
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Game Two: Air Force 5, #13 Arizona 2
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Game two was all about the AF pitching staff, who had the daunting task of facing one of the top offenses in the country. Junior Stevan Fairburn Jr. notched his second win of the season after going the first 5.1 innings, only allowing two runs on three hits, while striking out six. At one point, Fairburn had a no-hitter through five innings, and retired 15-straight Wildcat batters.
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In relief, junior Rob Martin was lights out in 2.2 innings of work, not allowing a hit while striking out three. Skenes, who started at DH, came in for the ninth, and struck out two for his second save of the season.
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The offense cooled down somewhat in the nightcap, but still had plenty of production to back up the efforts of the pitching staff. Blatchford led the Falcons with a four-RBI day, tying his career-high, while Skenes had two hits, including a double, and two runs scored as the DH.
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The Falcons took advantage of a two-out opportunity in the top of the first, as two walks and an infield single loaded up the bags after the first two outs were recorded. With the bases juiced, Blatchford singled through the left side to drive in a pair and give AF the early 2-0 advantage.
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On the bump, Fairburn rolled through the first three innings, facing the minimum with three strikeouts. In the top of the fourth, Skenes led off with a double, and was eventually driven in on an RBI ground out from Blatchford to up the lead to 3-0.
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Fairburn meanwhile kept rolling, going 1-2-3 in the fourth and fifth, retiring his 14th straight Wildcat batter in the process, to send it to the sixth. He struck out a batter for his 15th straight retired batter before Arizona broke up both the no hitter and the shutout with a double and triple to make it 3-1. A single made it 3-2, chasing Fairburn from the game in the bottom of the sixth. Martin came on from the pen, and got a strike out and a caught stealing to maintain the one run lead into the seventh.
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Martin kept rolling in the bottom of the seventh, going three-up, three-down with a pair of strikeouts to send it to the eighth with the 3-2 tally. In the bottom of the eighth, Martin stranded a pair of walks to maintain the one run advantage into the final frame.
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In the top of the ninth, the Falcons added on some insurance, as Blatchford drove in his fourth run of the night on a sac fly, and sophomore Trayden Tamiya followed later with an RBI single, to make it 5-2 into the final half inning. Skenes then came on from the pen to try for the save. The rookie allowed a leadoff single, but notched two strikeouts on his way to the second save of his season, and the upset three-run victory.
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AF will wrap up the weekend tomorrow, March 14, with a single game against Arizona at Hi Corbett Field. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. MT.
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Air Force pitchers have allowed four or fewer runs in each of the five-straight wins. Against the Wildcats, who entered the weekend as the number one scoring offense and number two in total hits in the country, the Falcons held them to just the two runs and four hits overall, both season-lows for UA.
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For the Falcons as a program, it was the first win over the Shockers in 12 games between the two schools all-time, while against the Wildcats it was just the second win in 15 all-time meetings.
The five-game winning streak is also the longest for the Falcons since winning eighth-straight in 2017.
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Game One: Air Force 12, Wichita State 3
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Air Force's offense remained red hot in the opener, as they tallied 13 hits to record double-digit hits in its fifth-straight game. It is the first time the Falcon bats have done that since having six-straight back in 2018.
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Junior Braydon Altorfer led the way with three knocks, including an RBI double and two-run home run, along with two runs scored. Freshman Paul Skenes added two hits to the ledger, including a three-run home run, the first of his Falcon career.
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Junior CJ Dornak earned the win, the first of his career, after throwing four innings in relief, and allowing just two runs on five hits. Freshman Doyle Gehring earned the first save of his AF career after he completed the final three innings, all scoreless, with a career-best four strikeouts.
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The Shockers struck first with an RBI double in the top of the first to grab an early 1-0 lead. At the start of the bottom of the second, the game entered a two and a half hour delay thanks to a rain shower, followed by extensive field maintenance. Following the delay, AF plated a pair in the bottom of the second on a sac fly from senior Cole Blatchford and RBI single from junior Alexander Pup to make it a 2-1 lead for AF into the third.
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Following a scoreless third, Wichita State leapt back ahead in the top of the fourth with a pair of runs. The Falcons answered back in the bottom of the fifth with a six-run explosion.
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AF got things started by loading up the bases with one out on two walks and a HBP. Freshman Jay Thomason then delivered with a two-run pinch hit single to give AF the lead back. One batter later, runners stood on second a third with two outs. Junior Gabriel Garcia, the runner on third, took advantage of a slow delivery from the Wichita pitcher, as he swiped home to up the lead to two.
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The Falcons weren't done though, as after a third walk of the game from junior Cayden Zimmerman put two runners back on, Skenes blasted a three-run homer to deep left center to cap the six-run inning and make it 8-3 into the sixth.
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Air Force continued the offensive assault in the bottom of the sixth, as a double steal yielded another run, before Altorfer parked a two-run shot to left to make it an 11-3 game with three innings to play. Gehring took over in the top of the seventh and tossed two scoreless innings with three Ks to maintain the large lead.
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The Falcon offense wasn't quite done, as Altorfer rocketed an RBI double down the line in right in the bottom of the eighth to make it 12-3 into the ninth. Gehring returned for the ninth, and tossed a 1-2-3 frame with his fourth strikeout to lock down the three-inning save and the nine-run victory.
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Game Two: Air Force 5, #13 Arizona 2
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Game two was all about the AF pitching staff, who had the daunting task of facing one of the top offenses in the country. Junior Stevan Fairburn Jr. notched his second win of the season after going the first 5.1 innings, only allowing two runs on three hits, while striking out six. At one point, Fairburn had a no-hitter through five innings, and retired 15-straight Wildcat batters.
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In relief, junior Rob Martin was lights out in 2.2 innings of work, not allowing a hit while striking out three. Skenes, who started at DH, came in for the ninth, and struck out two for his second save of the season.
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The offense cooled down somewhat in the nightcap, but still had plenty of production to back up the efforts of the pitching staff. Blatchford led the Falcons with a four-RBI day, tying his career-high, while Skenes had two hits, including a double, and two runs scored as the DH.
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The Falcons took advantage of a two-out opportunity in the top of the first, as two walks and an infield single loaded up the bags after the first two outs were recorded. With the bases juiced, Blatchford singled through the left side to drive in a pair and give AF the early 2-0 advantage.
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On the bump, Fairburn rolled through the first three innings, facing the minimum with three strikeouts. In the top of the fourth, Skenes led off with a double, and was eventually driven in on an RBI ground out from Blatchford to up the lead to 3-0.
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Fairburn meanwhile kept rolling, going 1-2-3 in the fourth and fifth, retiring his 14th straight Wildcat batter in the process, to send it to the sixth. He struck out a batter for his 15th straight retired batter before Arizona broke up both the no hitter and the shutout with a double and triple to make it 3-1. A single made it 3-2, chasing Fairburn from the game in the bottom of the sixth. Martin came on from the pen, and got a strike out and a caught stealing to maintain the one run lead into the seventh.
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Martin kept rolling in the bottom of the seventh, going three-up, three-down with a pair of strikeouts to send it to the eighth with the 3-2 tally. In the bottom of the eighth, Martin stranded a pair of walks to maintain the one run advantage into the final frame.
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In the top of the ninth, the Falcons added on some insurance, as Blatchford drove in his fourth run of the night on a sac fly, and sophomore Trayden Tamiya followed later with an RBI single, to make it 5-2 into the final half inning. Skenes then came on from the pen to try for the save. The rookie allowed a leadoff single, but notched two strikeouts on his way to the second save of his season, and the upset three-run victory.
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AF will wrap up the weekend tomorrow, March 14, with a single game against Arizona at Hi Corbett Field. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. MT.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Dornak, CJ (1-0)
L: Hansell (1-1)
S: Gehring, Doyle (1)
Batting:
2B: Sigrist 1 ; Wallace 1 ; Bartlett 1
RBI: Wallace 1 ; Bartlett 1 ; Gibson 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Sigrist 1 ; Kocis 1 ; Bartlett 1
Batting:
2B: Altorfer, Braydon 1
HR: Altorfer, Braydon 1 ; Skenes, Paul 1
RBI: Thomason, Jay 2 ; Altorfer, Braydon 3 ; Skenes, Paul 3 ; Blatchford, Cole 1 ; Pup, Alexander 1
SF: Blatchford, Cole 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Gillman, Tommy 1 ; Garcia, Gabriel 2 ; Thomason, Jay 1 ; Kulasingam, Sam 1 ; Altorfer, Braydon 2 ; Zimmerman, Cayden 2 ; Skenes, Paul 1 ; Covin, Blake 2
SB: Garcia, Gabriel 2 ; Covin, Blake 1
HBP: Garcia, Gabriel 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
5
R
2
H
3
RBI
3
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
3
AB
3
R
0
H
2
RBI
1
1b/2b
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
C
/ BaseballIF/OF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
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IF
/ BaseballC/RHP
/ Baseball
IF
/ Baseball
IF
/ Baseball
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