JACKRABBITS DROP SEASON OPENER AT NMSU

Friday, February 16

Las Cruces, N.M.

4 p.m. MT/5 p.m. CT

South Dakota State University

0-1

New Mexico State

1-0

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
South Dakota State	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	2	0	6	8	1
NM State	0	0	0	0	7	1	0	0	X	8	9	0

Photo by: Zachary Lucy

2/16/2024 8:24:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

LAS CRUCES, N.M. — New Mexico State overcame an early deficit to South Dakota State by scoring seven times in the bottom of the fifth inning en route to an 8-6 season-opening victory in college baseball action Friday afternoon at Presley Askew Field.

The Aggies sent 12 men to the plate in the fateful fifth inning against three different SDSU pitchers. Trailing 4-0, Romeo Ballesteros opened the inning with a single and Keith Jones II put NMSU on the board with a two-run home run. Five consecutive walks issued by Jackrabbit starter Arlen Peters and reliever Sam Schlecht allowed the Aggies to tie the game at 4-all, and Steve Solorzano came across with the go-ahead run on a wild pitch. Ballesteros capped the rally with his second hit of the inning, a two-run single.

Solorzano pushed the New Mexico State lead to 8-4 with a solo home run with one out in the home half of the sixth.

Good things happened in twos for the Jackrabbits in the early innings. Newcomer Cael Frost homered in his first SDSU at-bat, connecting on a two-run shot in the top of the first inning that plated Reece Anderson, who led off the game with a single.

Dawson Parry added a two-run home run in the third inning to make the score 4-0, and the Jackrabbit defense turned a pair of 6-4-3 double plays in support of Peters in the first three frames to end a couple of early threats.

Anderson cut the deficit in half in the top of the eighth with the Jackrabbits' third two-run homer of the game.

Peters struck out three and walked four while allowing three runs on four hits in four-plus innings. Schlecht was tagged with the loss in relief before giving way to Reece Arbogast, who tossed the final 3 1/3 innings and gave up only one run on four hits.

NMSU starter Trey Meza worked the first six innings and earned the victory after striking out seven and walking two. Fernando Barreda pitched the next two innings and Hayden Lewis worked around a one-out single by Adam Benes in the ninth to pick up the save.

The Aggies held a 9-8 advantage in hits and were led by Ballesteros and Solorzano with two apiece. Anderson, Parry and Jess Bellows each tallied two hits for the Jackrabbits.

UP NEXT
The second game of the four-game series is slated for 2 p.m. Mountain Time (3 p.m. Central) on Saturday.

NOTES

Friday's game marked the first-ever meeting between South Dakota State and New Mexico State in baseball
The game also was the head coaching debut for NMSU's Jake Angier, who played for the Jackrabbits from 2006-07
SDSU dropped to 2-6 in season openers under head coach Rob Bishop and 5-15 in the Division I era (since 2005)
Bellows extended his hitting streak from last season to 10 games and reached base for the 20^th consecutive game dating back to April 2023
Parry's home run was the 21^st of his career
Jackrabbit pitchers combined to issue 10 free passes — nine walks and one hit batter – while striking out six