USAFA, Colo. — UNLV baseball opened Mountain West play on the wrong side of a frustrating weekend.
The Rebels fell to 13-8 overall and 0-3 in conference play after being swept in a three-game series at Air Force. UNLV scored 32 runs on 37 hits across the weekend, but the Falcons answered with offense of their own, winning 16-5 on Friday before taking both games of Saturday’s doubleheader, including an 18-16 walk-off thriller and a 15-11 victory in the finale.
Air Force finished the series with 49 runs, repeatedly answering UNLV rallies with big innings of its own.
Playing at Air Force often turns games into offensive battles. The Falcons’ home park sits more than 6,600 feet above sea level, and the altitude regularly produces high-scoring games as fly balls carry and pitchers struggle to finish innings. This weekend followed that script, with both lineups finding consistent offense and long innings becoming the difference.
For the Rebels, the issue was not the offense. The challenge was stopping innings before they turned into avalanches.
That pattern appeared immediately in Friday’s opener.
UNLV built a 5-2 lead through the top of the third inning and looked firmly in control early. Jonny Rodriguez drove in two runs with a pair of doubles, while Nin Burns II added an RBI single as the Rebels grabbed early momentum.
Then the inning that changed the game arrived.
Air Force scored four runs in the bottom of the third, but the bigger issue was how the inning stayed alive. A fielding error by Cooper Sheff extended the frame, and another defensive miscue by Gunnar Myro allowed the Falcons to keep pushing runs across. What could have been a manageable inning quickly flipped the momentum.
The real damage came in the sixth.
Air Force opened the inning with two walks and a bunt single before stacking hit after hit once the bases filled. Landon Boyd delivered the biggest swing of the frame with a three-run homer, and by the time the inning ended the Falcons had scored eight runs, turning a tight game into a runaway.
It was the first example of the weekend’s central theme. One inning got loose, and UNLV could not stop the damage.
Saturday’s first game followed a similar script, only with even bigger swings.
UNLV built a 4-1 lead behind early RBIs from Jack Salmon, Marcos Rosales, and Burns. But once again Air Force answered with a big inning. The Falcons broke through with five runs in the fourth after a single and a walk opened the door, highlighted by Luke Elmore’s RBI double and Boyd’s grand slam that suddenly pushed Air Force in front.
An inning later, the Falcons struck again.
A solo homer started the fifth before a walk, a hit batter, and another RBI hit opened the door for Brooks Burdine’s three-run homer. Just like that, a 4-1 Rebel lead had become an 11-5 deficit.
Yet UNLV’s offense refused to fade.
The Rebels chipped away through the middle innings, then delivered the biggest rally of the weekend in the ninth. Trailing 12-8, UNLV erupted for eight runs. Burns drove in two with a single, Rodriguez and Sheff followed with RBI hits, and Salmon delivered the tying knock before Ayden Garcia’s sacrifice fly pushed the Rebels ahead. Gunnar Myro added an RBI triple, and Reggie Bussey capped the rally with a bunt single that made it 16-12.
It should have been enough.
But the same issue surfaced again in the bottom of the ninth.
Air Force opened the inning with two walks and immediately put pressure back on UNLV. Walker Zapp delivered a two-run single to cut the lead to two, and another RBI hit trimmed the margin to one.
Then Luke Elmore ended it.
He launched a walk-off three-run homer to right field, giving Air Force an 18-16 win and handing the Rebels one of their toughest losses of the season.
The finale followed a similar pattern in a steadier way.
UNLV again produced offensively, scoring 11 runs on 13 hits. Ayden Garcia led the effort with three hits, including a home run, while Burns, Bussey, and Salmon all contributed key RBIs.
But once again the Falcons created separation with big innings.
Air Force scored five runs in the fourth and four more in the sixth, and both rallies followed the same pattern seen all weekend. A couple baserunners turned into extra-base hits, and small openings quickly grew into major damage.
By the end of the day, Air Force had scored 15 runs on 15 hits and completed the three-game sweep.
The numbers from the weekend told the story.
UNLV scored 32 runs on 37 hits in the series. Air Force scored 49 runs. The difference came after the first crack in each inning. The Rebels did not just give up runs. They allowed innings to snowball.
Even in defeat, the Rebels lineup showed it can produce against conference pitching. Burns delivered several key hits across the weekend, while Bussey and Myro consistently created traffic at the top of the order. Sheff and Salmon also contributed timely hits as UNLV repeatedly pressured the Falcons pitching staff.
The offense was there.
The next step for UNLV will be limiting the big innings. If the Rebels can prevent rallies from spiraling, they have already shown they possess enough firepower to compete in Mountain West play.
Game Stats
Game 1 – Air Force 16-UNLV 5 (7 innings)
Rebels Offense
Reggie Bussey: 0-for-4
Marcos Rosales: 0-for-4
Drew Barragan: 1-for-4, R, 2B
Ayden Garcia: 0-for-3, BB
Nin Burns II: 1-for-3, 2 R, RBI, BB
Jonny Rodriguez: 2-for-3, R, 2 RBI, 2B
Cooper Sheff: 0-for-2, R, BB
Jack Salmon: 1-for-1, 2 BB
Gunnar Myro: 1-for-3, RBI
Rebels Pitching
Carson Lane (L): 5.0 IP, 7 H, 8 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 3 K
Cody Albright: 0.1 IP, 4 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 3 BB
Gavyn Bowen: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB
Game 2 – Air Force 18-UNLV 16
Rebels Offense
Reggie Bussey: 3-for-5, 3 R, 2 RBI, HR, SAC, SB
Marcos Rosales: 2-for-6, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2B
Drew Barragan: 1-for-4, R, 2 HBP, SB
Nin Burns II: 3-for-4, 3 R, 3 RBI, 2 BB
Jonny Rodriguez: 1-for-6, R, 2 RBI
Cooper Sheff: 2-for-5, 2 R, 2 RBI, HR
Jack Salmon: 3-for-5, R, 2 RBI, 2B
Connor Tallakson: 0-for-2
Gavin Taylor: 0-for-1
Ayden Garcia: 0-for-1, RBI, SF
Gunnar Myro: 3-for-5, 3 R, RBI, 2B, 3B
Rebels Pitching
Parker Dillhoff (L, 1-1): 4.1 IP, 9 H, 9 R, 9 ER, 2 BB, 6 K
Reese Lueck: 3.2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
Jacob Gomberg: 0.2 IP, 2 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, HBP
Colton Sundloff: 0.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER
Game 3 – Air Force 15-UNLV 11
Rebels Offense
Reggie Bussey: 1-for-5, R, RBI
Marcos Rosales: 1-for-5, R, RBI
Drew Barragan: 1-for-3, 2 R, RBI, 3 BB
Ayden Garcia: 3-for-5, R, 3 RBI, HR
Nin Burns II: 1-for-4, 2 R, RBI, 2 BB
Jonny Rodriguez: 1-for-5, R, RBI
Cooper Sheff: 1-for-4, 2 R, RBI, 2 BB
Jack Salmon: 1-for-5, 2 RBI
Gunnar Myro: 1-for-3, R, 2 BB
Rebels Pitching
Carson Lane (L): 4.0 IP, 8 H, 7 R, 6 ER, 2 BB, 3 K
LJ Manning: 1.2 IP, 4 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 1 K
Jacob Gomberg: 1.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER
Colton Sundloff: 1.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER