Peter Dindinger — NMMI Sports Press
It was a rare doubleheader for the New Mexico Military Institute Bronco baseball team on a Monday afternoon.
The Broncos wrapped up their four-game series with the Otero Junior College Rattlers by taking three out of four after notching the sweep in the series finale.
In Game 3, behind a solid outing by starting pitcher Jorge Garcia, the offense scattered seven hits in a 10-0 win in six innings.
After being held scoreless for six straight innings, NMMI had to overcome a two run deficit in Game 4.
Ryan Flake delivered the walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the ninth to lift the Broncos to a 3-2 win.
To start Game 3, Garcia struck out the side in the first inning.
After a pair of walks with one out in the bottom half of the first, NMMI got on the board after Edrien Martinez drove in Rhett Stokes on a ground out.
An error by the pitcher later allowed Jesh Leckey to score to put the Broncos up 2-0.
Julian Lopez hit a clutch two RBI double in the bottom of the second to extend NMMI's lead to 4-0.
The Broncos tacked on two more runs in the fourth when Adrian Rubio hit an RBI single and Stokes crossed the plate on a wild pitch.
Holding onto a six-run lead, NMMI had a chance to end the game early via the 10-run rule in the bottom of the sixth.
Leckey delivered a two RBI single to begin the rally. Rubio later scored on a wild pitch while Leckey scored the final run of the game on another wild pitch.
Garcia went 5.2 innings allowing four hits while he fanned eight batters and did not give up a single walk.
Lopez hit a pair of doubles to go 2 for 3 with two RBI while Leckey went 1 for 3 with a pair of RBI.
Stokes finished 2 for 3 with two singles while Flake went 1 for 3 with a double.
The Broncos out hit the Rattlers 11-6 in Game 4.
Easton McKenzie got Otero on the board in the fourth with an RBI single.
Otero pushed across one run in the top of the sixth after an RBI single by Levi Snowden.
With a leadoff walk by Rubio and a single by Justin Romero, the Broncos were cooking up a rally in the bottom of the seventh.
Rubio scored from second after a botched pickoff attempt by the pitcher to cut the deficit to one. Noah Nunez later scored on a wild pitch to tie the game.
The Broncos were quickly down two outs to the start the bottom of the ninth. Lecky and Guillermo Borquez then hit back to back singles to setup the walk-off hit by Flake.
NMMI had five players with two hits. Rubio finished 2 for 3 with two singles and a walk while Borquez went 2 for 4 with two singles.
B.Y. Choi, Flake and Leckey went a combined 6 for 13 with six singles and an RBI.
Jose Cabanillas Jr. tossed a three-hitter in five innings of work with seven strikeouts. The bullpen comprised of Saul Rocha, Henrique Date and Lopez gave up three hits while tallying three strikeouts and just one walk.
>> UP NEXT: NMMI hosts Western Nebraska for a four-game series beginning Saturday at 12 p.m.
Game 3
NMMI 10, Otero Junior College 0 (6)
OTERO…….000000x — 0 4 1
NMMI……..220204x — 10 7 0
Joshua Pearl, Walker Fetters (4), Braden Martinez (6). Jorge Garcia, Jason Maldonado (6). W — Garcia. L — Pearl. 2B — NMMI: Ryan Flake, Julian Lopez (2). 3B — Otero Junior College: Christian Castaneda. HR — None.
Game 4
NMMI 3, Otero Junior College 2 (9)
OTERO…….000101000 — 2 6 1
NMMI……..000000201 — 3 13 0
Taymon Burrola, Giovana Munoz (5), Trey Hollis (8). Jose Cabanillas Jr., Saul Rocha (6), Henrique Date (7), Julian Lopez (9). W — Lopez. L — Hollis. 2B — Otero Junior College: Phil Carter. 3B — None. HR — None.
Records — Otero (1-3); NMMI (4-3).