The rubber match between the UNM Lobos and San Jose State Spartans ended in a 5-5 tie on Sunday, as a pre-determined travel deadline prohibited the two teams from completing the game in extra innings.
It was an anticlimactic end to a disappointing road trip for the Lobos after the Lobos dropped the opening game of the three-game series 2-1 on Friday night, and rain canceled the second game of the series on Saturday.
The Lobos fell behind 2-0 after the first two innings after the Spartans posted a run in each of the first two frames. A four-run fourth inning, capped by a RBI single by Dan Herrea, moved the Lobos to a 4-2 advantage after four innings of play.
The Lobos would tack on an insurance run in the top of the ninth inning on a RBI double by Louis Gonzalez. But the single run in the top of the frame proved to be not enough insurance, as the Spartans rallied for two runs in the bottom of the ninth to send the game to extra innings.
With the drop-dead time forcing an abrupt end to the game, the Lobos were unable to mount a rally in extra innings to salvage the win, leaving a bitter taste mouths of a team with an 11-2-1 record in Mountain West Conference play.
“It’s been a long road trip with a fatigued team, but it hurts bad not to get this one,” UNM coach Ray Birmingham said via GoLobos.com after the game. “It doesn’t get any easier with the hardest schedule in the country as we have Texas Tech on the road Tuesday then host a very good Missouri State team.”
Starter Jonathan Tripp pitched six strong innings of eight-hit ball to earn the no-decision. The 6-4. 210 pound redshirt senior from Spring, Texas, allowed two earned runs, with five strikeouts and zero walks.
Second baseman Hayden Shilling and center fielder Luis Gonzalez led the Lobos offensively with two hits and one RBI apiece.
The road-weary Lobos returned home on Sunday to get ready for a day of classes on Monday before heading back on the road for a game on Tuesday against Texas Tech.
Be sure to catch all the exciting action with Robert Portnoy on the call on ESPN Radio 101.7 The TEAM.
