Air Force Returns Home to Host Nevada

Air Force Falcons (15-14, 7-8 MW) vs. Nevada Wolf Pack (10-15, 7-8 MW)
April 24-25 | Falcon Field

Falcons Return Home to Host Nevada
The Air Force Academy baseball team returns to Falcon Field for a three-game series against the Nevada Wolf Pack, April 24-25. Action begins with a DH on Saturday starting at 11 a.m. MT, followed by the series finale on Sunday starting at noon MT.

Following Along At Home
All games will have a live stream on the MW Network, as well as live stats on AirForceStats.com. As always, fans can follow along on Twitter, @AF_Baseball.

Last Series In Review
Air Force tallied its fourth weekend series victory of the season by taking two of three from non-conference foe Dallas Baptist, April 16-18. The Falcons dropped the opener, before blanking the Patriots in game two, 3-0, and winning the finale by a 5-3 tally.
The three-game set served as the final scheduled non-conference games of the 2021 season for the Falcons.

Putting the Patriots In Their Place
In the three-game series at DBU, the Falcon pitchers once again held one of the more potent offenses in the country mostly in check. Overall on the weekend, AF held DBU to just five runs on 12 hits. The Patriots had entered the weekend as the 12th team in the nation in scoring and 17th in batting average.
Earlier this season against then #13 Arizona, who entered that 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 in the 5-2 upset win.

Skenes The Super Freshman
Freshman Paul Skenes has simply been one of the best freshmen in both the MW and NCAA this season. While he ranks in the top-10 in the MW in nine offensive categories, the rookie also ranks in the top-200 in the nation in four offensive categories, batting average, hits/game, home runs, and total bases. He is also 17th in the nation in saves with six, which leads the MW and is second among freshmen.
Skenes has been extremely versatile for the Falcons this season, as he has made starts at catcher (12), first base (2), and DH (15). He has also made his 10 pitching appearances in games in which he started in the batting lineup. For his efforts, Skenes has been named to the Baseball America 2021 Freshman of the Year watchlist.

Byrnes Earns Third Mountain West Baseball Pitcher of the Week Honor
Senior pitcher John Byrnes was named the Mountain West Conference Baseball Pitcher of the Week for the period ending April 18, the conference announced, Monday, April 19. It is the third weekly award of Byrnes' season and the fourth for the Falcons in 2021.
Byrnes earned his second win of the season after pitching a career-long 6.1 scoreless innings in a 2-0 win over Dallas Baptist, April 17. The righty only allowed three hits, while striking out five. His efforts helped AF to its first shutout win of the season, and the eventual 2-1 series win over the Patriots.
On the season, the Milton, Ga. owns a Mountain West Conference best 2.80 ERA over 45 innings, including 45 strikeouts and a .236 batting average against. His ERA ranks 138th in the NCAA as well.

AF Top-50 in the RPI
Entering the week, AF has been tabbed at 33rd by the NCAAs Rating Percentage Index (RPI). This season, AF has been ranked as high as 19th in the RPI, thanks to its 21 games on the road compared to just three at home, and 9 wins over teams in the RPI top-100.
The next-highest Mountain West team in the RPI is UNLV at 87th. AF swept UNLV in the lone series between the two teams in 2021.

Saving the Best for Last
AF has had some late inning magic in 2021, with two walk off wins and five wins where the winning run was scored in the ninth inning or later. In fact, AF has out-scored its opponents by a 25-7 margin in the ninth inning or later.

Miscellaneous Trends
AF is 5-0 on the season in one-run games, including two walk-off wins to win by one run. AF is also 2-1 in two-run games. The Falcons are a perfect 10-0 when out-hitting their opponent, and 3-1 when hits are tied. Finally, AF has been a sure thing with a lead in the late innings, as AF is 11-0 when leading after six and 3-0 when the game is tied after six.

On the Horizon
The Falcons will hit the road for the final time in 2021, as they take on UNLV in Las Vegas, May 1-2.

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Players Mentioned

John Byrnes

Paul Skenes

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