San Diego State University’s baseball team put the finishing touches on a weekend sweep of Air Force Saturday with a 12-9 victory in the finale of a crucial three-game Mountain West series at Tony Gwynn Stadium.
The Aztecs (18-15, 7-2 MW) combined for eight runs in the fifth and sixth innings to overcome a 7-2 deficit and maintain their grip of first place in the conference standings, one full game ahead of idle Nevada (17-10, 6-3 MW), while the Falcons (11-18, 5-4 MW) slipped to fourth in the MW race.
Eight batters in the SDSU starting lineup recorded at least one hit and one RBI, as the Aztecs maintained a 14-11 edge in hits for the afternoon.
Zach Justice and Dawson Santana tied for team-high honors with three hits each, while Adam Magpoc and Max Farrell topped the squad with three RBI apiece.
The Aztecs found themselves on the wrong side of a 7-2 score before kick-starting their rally in the fifth on Magpoc’s two-run single, which plated Justice and Jake Jackson. Previously, Justice led off with a single to left, while Jackson followed with a one-out double to the gap in left center.
After sending 10 men to the plate in the sixth, SDSU erupted for six runs on just four hits, capitalizing on two walks and a hit batter to take the lead for good.
Zane Kelly ignited the blitz with his third homer of the season, a two-run shot to right center that brought home Santana, whose earlier hot smash careened off the pitcher’s glove and into center field.
Davis Rhyne replaced Richard Rutledge on the mound at this juncture, and Jabin Trosky fought through an eight-pitch at-bat against the new Air Force reliever with a double to left before Tyce Peterson drew a two-out walk, while Jackson was struck by a pitch to load the bases.
Joey Collier was summoned from the bullpen at this juncture but kept adding fuel to the proverbial fire with a four-pitch walk to Magpoc, forcing in Trosky with another run.
Moments later, Farrell cranked a 2-1 pitch off the wall in right for a bases-clearing triple, giving the Aztecs a sudden 10-7 advantage.
Photos by Derrick Tuskan/SDSI Athletics
The Falcons trimmed the deficit to 10-9 in the top of the seventh on consecutive RBI doubles by Wyatt Hanoian and Luke Elmore, who advanced to third on his hit after a fielding error in the left field corner.
However, Bryce McKnight, SDSU’s third reliever of the game, struck out Tripp Garrish and induced a pop foul by pinch hitter Garrett Hutchins before T.J. Ostler grounded out to short, preventing the tying run from crossing the plate.
The Aztecs picked up some much-needed insurance with two outs in the bottom of the frame on Justice’s RBI double and Peterson’s run-scoring single, restoring the host school’s three-run cushion at 12-9.
Despite allowing two runs in the seventh, McKnight (3-0) earned his third victory of the year, posting three strikeouts in two innings, while Issac Araiza fanned a season-high four hitters en route to his first save of the 2026 campaign.
The Aztecs won the opening two games by scores of 9-2 and 11-2.
No-hitter
Five San Diego State pitchers combined on a no-hitter Tuesday in the Aztecs’ 1-0 victory over UC Riverside in a non-conference game at Tony Gwynn Stadium.
Freshman Jake Frohn started the first four innings for SDSU, while Carson Johnson tossed the next two frames, followed in succession by Araiza, McKnight and Aidan Russell, who pitched one inning apiece to secure the 10th no-hitter in program history and the Aztecs’ first since Jacob Riordan accomplished the feat against New Mexico on March 29, 2024.
The SDSU hurlers combined for 11 strikeouts, including four by Frohn to tie a career high, while Johnson collected three to help the Aztecs (19-15) extend their winning streak to a season-long four games.
“That was really fun, really special,” Aztec head coach Kevin Vance said. “They were all executing at a high level. You know, a freshman started it. Just shows how we’re continuing to get better as the season progresses. I’m super proud of the guys for being relentless.”
MW honors
Aztecs’ Tyce Peterson (Player of the Week) and Farrell (Freshman of the Week) earned two MW weekly awards.
Both players were key contributors in the Aztecs’ 3-1 week (March 30 to April 4), highlighted by SDSU’s first three-game sweep of Air Force since 2021 and its first in San Diego since 2015.
With his award, Peterson (0.400 with three home runs and five RBI) garnered his first career MW weekly accolade, while Farrell (0.333 with seven RBI against Air Force) collected his second top freshman certificate from the conference, giving the Aztecs seven weekly honorees this season.
