CHICAGO – The New Mexico State baseball team took on Western Athletic Conference foe Chicago State in the three-game series finale on Sunday at Cougar Stadium. Behind a complete game shutout from starter
Chance Hroch and a strong day at the plate fled the Aggies to a 12-0 victory over the Cougars in seven innings.
Scoring opened early for NM State (20-7, 4-2 WAC) with multiple runs in the first two innings to force Chicago State (7-18, 2-4 WAC) to make a quick pitching change. In the top of the first,
Logan Bottrell and
Joey Ortiz got on base to lead off the frame before a single to right from
Nick Gonzales plated the first run of the game. A hit by pitch then loaded the bases and
Tristan Peterson laced a double to left center that brought in two more runs for a 3-0 Aggie lead into the second.
Then in the second the Crimson & White expanded on the lead. With runners on first and second, Ortiz sent a double to the gap in left that brought in both men for a 5-0 advantage. Then Peterson added to his RBI total with a single through the left side and two batters later,
Eric Mingus knocked a single through the right side to put NM State ahead 7-0 after two innings.
Hroch continued to cruise on the mound, holding the Cougars scoreless and the Aggies got back on the board in the fourth. A walk and a plunked batter put two men on for Mingus to drive an RBI single to centerfield that gave the team an 8-0 lead.
Each side was held scoreless in the fifth and then NM State struck again in the top of the sixth.
Tristen Carranza led off the inning and continued to etch his name in the Aggie record books. The slugger crushed a solo home run to right field for a 9-0 NM State lead and the homer gave the senior 39 for his career, good for third all-time in program history.
Then in the seventh inning, the Aggies added the final necessary insurance runs. The Crimson & White had two runners in scoring position when Ortiz sent a double down the left field line to bring in both runs. Then after a pitching change, a walk loaded the bases and an infield groundout scored the Aggies final run for a 12-0 lead.
Hroch then finished his stellar outing to complete the shutout for a 12-0 NM State win in seven innings that gave the Aggies a 2-1 series victory over the Cougars. Hroch (6-0) picked up the win on the mound after his 7.0 inning outing, allowing just one hit.
At the plate, the Crimson & White combined for 12 hits and were led by Ortiz who went 3-for-5 with four runs batted in, Peterson who added a 2-for-4 day with four RBI and Mingus who also went 2-for-4 and added a pair of RBI.
The New Mexico State baseball team now returns home to continue conference play hosting Grand Canyon for a three-game series, April 5-7, at Presley Askew Field.
