STANFORD, Calif. – No. 12 Stanford split two one-run games against UNLV on Saturday in a doubleheader at Sunken Diamond.
"We're still stuck underwater a little bit with the bats but we pitched and played great defense for 18 innings today," said the Clarke and Elizabeth Nelson Director of Baseball David Esquer. "We had a late hiccup in the second game but credit Robinson for coming back and getting the big hit to end it."
The Cardinal (5-1-0) dropped the first game, 2-1, but rebounded in Game 2 with a walk-off, 3-2 win against the Rebels (4-3-0). Christian Robinson had the game-winning hit, a two-out double off the wall in right field to score Alec Wilson. Stanford did not register an error on the day and played behind quality starts from Jacob Palisch in Game 2 and Brendan Beck in Game 1.
Beck (0-1) hurled 6.0 strong innings in a losing effort, surrendering two earned runs with five strikeouts on a career-high 99 pitches. The Rebels scored twice in the first inning, which proved to be enough. Edarian Williams hit a two-out double to score Jack-Thomas Wold and Max Smith singled home Williams.
In the bottom of the fourth, Tim Tawa, who finished 2-for-4, scored on an error after singling and stealing second to cut the lead in half, but that would be all the offense the Cardinal could muster in Game 1.
Beck settled in, throwing five scoreless innings after the damage was done. Duke Kinamon, making his first appearance since 2017, made a spectacular diving play running toward the left-field line in the third, and Brandon Dieter flashed the leather in the fifth inning to maintain the one-run deficit.
Austin Weiermiller relieved Beck, throwing 3.0 shutout innings to keep Stanford in the game. Weiermiller finished with a career-high five strikeouts and benefited from a ridiculous diving catch in right center by Alec Wilson to end the top of the ninth. Stanford went down in order in the final frame with Jackson Cofer earning the save (3) and starting pitcher Cameron Jabara, who scattered three walks and five hits over 7.0 innings, picking up the win.
The Cardinal responded to even the series in Game 2 behind Palisch, taking the lead in the second inning. Brandon Wulff walked to lead off the inning, eventually scoring on Andrew Daschbach's deep sacrifice fly to left field.
Palisch escaped jams throughout the evening, stranding runners in each of the five frames he finished before making way for Cody Jensen with one out in the sixth. Palisch finished allowing one earned run on seven hits in 5.1 innings pitched, tossing a career-high 81 pitches. Jensen balked with the bases loaded in the sixth, allowing the tying run to score.
Jensen got two outs in the seventh before Zach Grech got the final out. Matthiessen, who finished 2-for-4 and accounted for half of Stanford's hits in Game 2, led off the home half of the seventh with Stanford's first home run of the season, a long shot off the batters' eye in straightaway center.
Grech came back for the eighth, getting two outs before making way for Jack Little, who induced a weak grounder to Dieter at second to close the inning. In the top of the ninth, Robinson misjudged a line drive off the bat of Bryson Stott, resulting in a triple. Stott scored on a ground ball to deep short to tie the game and deny Little his third save of the season.
In the bottom of the ninth, Robinson roped a two-out double off the right-field wall to send the fans home and even the series. Erik Miller takes the ball for Stanford in the rubber match on Sunday at 1 p.m. Live streaming and live statistics will be available at GoStanford.com.
Cardinal Notes
- Matthiessen, Handley and Wulff have reached base safely in all six games this season.
- Kinamon's start in Game 1 was his first appearance in 630 days.
- Weiermiller's five strikeouts were a career high, surpassing his previous career high of three.
- The blown save was the second of Little's career.