MESA, Ariz. – The Fresno State baseball team has advanced to the Mountain West Championship title game for the second straight season after a five-hour thriller against Nevada on Friday night.
The Diamond ‘Dogs defeated the Wolf Pack 12-7 in 14 innings to earn their 30th win of the year.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Bulldogs opened the scoring in the second inning when Cayden Munster hit an RBI single that scored Bobby Blandford. In the third, Justin Stransky singled to left center and advanced to third on a single by Blandford. Cam Schneider hit a sacrifice fly that sent Stransky home and gave the Bulldogs a 2-0 advantage.
Fresno State added two more runs in the fourth, courtesy of a leadoff triple from Bobby Blandford and a sacrifice fly from Murf Gray.
The Wolf Pack got on the board in the fourth inning after a solo home run.
The Diamond ‘Dogs extended their lead in the sixth as Gray and Stransky each earned an RBI and gave Fresno State a 6-1 cushion.
Nevada clawed back in the seventh with a three-run rally. The Bulldogs tacked on another run in the ninth, thanks to Blandford’s electrifying double, which allowed Stransky to score, giving Fresno State a 7-4 lead heading into the bottom of the frame.
In the ninth, the Wolf Pack staged a dramatic comeback, scoring three runs to send the game into extra innings. What followed was a tense, four-inning stalemate as both teams’ bullpens delivered clutch performances to keep the game deadlocked at 7-7.
In the 14th inning, Fresno State’s offense erupted. The Bulldogs sent nine batters to the plate, with Murf Gray delivering the game-changing blow—a bases-clearing double that drove in three runs. Additional RBI hits from Blandford and Stransky added insurance runs, giving the Bulldogs a commanding 12-7 lead. Tyler Patrick closed out the game with a perfect bottom half of the inning, sealing the hard-fought win.
NOTES
- Murf Gray led the way with five RBIs, including two doubles and a bases-clearing hit in the 14th inning.
- Bobby Blandford recorded five hits, two RBIs, and a stolen base, serving as a sparkplug for the Bulldogs’ offense.
- Tyler Patrick pitched three scoreless innings in relief, allowing just three hits and striking out two to earn the win.
- Fresno State pounded out 18 hits in the game, with six different players recording multi-hit performances.
- The Bulldogs were 8-for-20 with runners in scoring position.
- This is the Bulldogs’ longest MW Championship game ever played at just under five hours and through 14 innings.
- Bobby Blandford tied the Bulldogs’ MW Championship high with five hits in a tournament game.
- Murf Gray tied his high of two doubles in an MW Championship game that he set exactly 363 days ago.
- Murf Gray claimed a program high for RBIs in a MW Championship game with five.
UP NEXT
The Bulldogs will return to Sloan Park at 12:05 p.m. PT, where they will face the winner of the San Jose State vs. Nevada elimination game for the MW title.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
