April 13, 2001
Las Cruces, N.M. - Western Kentucky scored four times in the fifth inning and got a strong outing from starter Ryan Bicondoa (Jr., Lovelock, Nev.) to get a 7-3 win against New Mexico State in the first of a three game series Friday night.
The Aggies (25-15, 3-9 SBC) took an early lead with a run in the bottom of the first. 3B Anthony Purkiss drew a walk from Hilltopper starter to lead off the inning. LF Kurt Wilkinson followed with a single to right, putting runners on the corners, and RF Ryan Kenning singled to right, plating Purkiss and giving NMSU an early 1-0 lead.
The Toppers (23-15, 7-6 SBC) got finally got on the board in the fifth as DH Jeff Pacholke (Jr., Prairrie DuSac, Wisc.) drew a walk from Aggie starter Mike Hale to open the frame. 3B Tanner Townsend (Jr., London, Ky.) was then hit by a pitch to put runners at first and second with no outs. After Hale retired the next two hitters, LF Matt Fox (Sr., Louisville, Ky.) got the first Western hit of the game as he singled to right. Pacholke scored on the play, and a collision between Pacholke and catcher Erik Winegarden at the plate sent the ball to the backstop, allowing Townsend to score and Fox to advance to third, giving WKU its first lead of the game. 2B Brian Houdek (Sr., Dyer, Ind.) followed with a single to left, plating Fox to give Western a 3-1 lead. Hale then threw away a pick-off attempt at first, allowing Houdek to advance to third. 1B D.J. Johnson (So., Hudson, Ky.) then reached on an error by Jay Moya at second, allowing Houdek to score and give Western a 4-1 advantage.
New Mexico State responded with a run in the bottom of the fifth as it got one-out singles from Purkiss and Wilkinson to put runners on the corners. Kenning then singled to right, driving in Purkiss, but CF David Lower (So., Alexandria, Ind.) threw out Wilkinson at third, and Bicondoa struck out SS Jason Larsen to avoid further damage and keep it a 4-2 WKU lead. The Toppers added another run seventh as Johnson hit his third home run of the season over the wall in right field, increasing the Western lead to 5-2.
Western extended the lead in the ninth. RF Tim Cleland (Sr., Klamath Falls, Ore.) led off the inning with a walk and moved to second on a Fox single. Houdek was then hit by NMSU reliever Kevin Clements to load the bases and Johnson followed with a single through a drawn-in infield to score both Cleland and Fox. After an intentional walk to catcher Ryan Cattell (Jr., Minnetonka, Minn.) loaded the bases, Clements struck out the next three batters to get out of the jam.
Andy Baldwin (Fr., Campbellsville, Ky.) relieved Bicondoa in the ninth and recorded two outs, but walked the bases loaded. Mike Belch (Sr., Las Vegas, Nev.) came in and walked Larsen to force in a run, but struck out Moya to record his second save of the year and give WKU a 7-3 win.
Bicondoa (7-3) got the win going 8.0 innings, allowing two runs on nine hits while striking out five. Johnson, Fox and Cattell each had two hits to lead the Hilltopper offense, with Johnson driving in a game-high three runs.
The Hilltoppers and Aggies will play the second game of the series tomorrow at 7 p.m. (CDT).
-- WKU --
