Nathaniel Garley took the mound for the Lobos on Sunday afternoon in the rubber match of a three-game series against Fresno State, looking to give UNM a 2-1 series victory over the host Bulldogs.
Garley, a 6-3, 230lbs senior from Albuquerque, faced off against a Fresno State team that was stifled on Saturday afternoon by Justin Ambruester to the tune of 17-strikeouts and just two walks in UNM’s 1-0 extra-inning victory.
With two earned runs and five strikeouts over five and two-thirds innings, Garley did not match his teammates’ performance from the previous day, but he did give head coach Ray Birmingham nearly six innings of solid work, giving the Lobos every opportunity to win.
UNM entered the bottom of the eighth inning with a 5-4 lead on home runs by Kyler Castillo, Kyle Landers, and Jack Silverman and a three-hit performance by third baseman Willie Cano.
With six outs to go, Birmingham turned to Terrell Hudson to close out the game and secure the series victory of UNM. Hudson started off the eighth inning with a strikeout of Zach Presno and got outfielder Dylan Johnson to pop out to centerfield.
Ryan Higgins would pinch hit for Zach Morgan and promptly deposited a home run to deep left field to tie the game at five.
The Lobos failed to take the lead back in the top of the ninth, and the Bulldogs rode the momentum from the Higgins home run in the eighth to score the game-winning run on a double by Andrew Kachel.
Kyle Pruhsmeier gave up a pair of hits to the Lobos in the top of the ninth but came through with a pair of strikeouts to earn the win. Hudson gave up five hits and two earned runs in a losing effort.
With the loss, the Lobos fall to 5-8 overall and 3-5 in conference. UNM heads to Manhattan, Kansas, to take on Kansas State in a three-game series before returning home on March 28th to host Nevada.
Photo Credit: UNM Baseball Twitter