SAN DIEGO – San Diego State baseball defeated Air Force 5-4 on Saturday at Tony Gwynn Stadium to move into sole possession of second place in the Mountain West standings. The win for the Aztecs improves their record to 24-17 (10-7 MW), while Air Force falls to 17-22 (7-12 MW).
After starter Harrison Pyatt was replaced due to injury after a pair of batters, Jacob Flores performed impressively in his short-notice appearance, logging a career-high four innings while allowing just two hits with two walks and a career-high five strikeouts.
Trailing 2-0 heading to the bottom of the third, the Aztecs claimed the lead with a 2-RBI double by Casey Schmitt down the left field line, scoring both Angelo Armenta and Mike Jarvis. An inning later, Jarvis posted an RBI double of his own before Jaden Fein made it three consecutive innings with an Aztec run after launching his team-leading fourth home run of the season in the bottom of the fifth to make it a 5-2 lead.
Fein's home run proved to be an important insurance run, as the Falcons clipped the lead to 5-4 with a solo home run in the ninth.
Schmitt recorded his fifth save of the year, allowing just one hit and one run while striking out a pair. Christian Winston also shined out of the bullpen, surrendering just one hit in 1.2 shutout innings of work.
From the eighth and ninth spots of the lineup, respectively, Ryan Orr (2-for-3, 2 R, 3B) and Mike Jarvis (2-for-4, R, RBI, 2B) led the Aztecs with two hits each. Orr's two runs scored led all players in the game.
SDSU pitching held Air Force hitless in their eight at-bats with runners in scoring position.
NOTES
- San Diego State improves to 25-10 in their last 35 games against Air Force and 9-3 in their last 12 home games against the Falcons.
- Matt Rudick extended his in-conference on-base streak to 29 games, which carries over 12 games from the 2018 season.
- Jacob Flores extended his streak of consecutive innings without allowing an earned run to 10.2 after four shutout innings on Saturday.
- SDSU is 8-2 this season and has won three in a row when playing on Saturdays this season.
UP NEXT
San Diego State makes the six-mile trip to San Diego (25-15, 9-9 WCC) on Tuesday with first pitch scheduled for 6:00 p.m.
Baseball Beats Air Force 5-4 to Capture Series
