SAN DIEGO – Caden Miller belted a three-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth on Thursday to give San Diego State a thrilling 5-3 victory over New Mexico in the first game of a weekend series at Tony Gwynn Stadium.
With the win, the Aztecs (22-27, 16-11 MW) clinch a spot in the 2023 Mountain West Baseball Championship, set for May 25-28 in Fresno, California, joining Air Force, San José State and host Fresno State in the four-team field. Meanwhile, the Lobos (26-23, 13-15 MW) were eliminated from postseason consideration.
In addition, SDSU remains in contention for the outright MW regular-season championship. The Aztecs need to win their final two games against UNM and hope Air Force and SJSU both lose one of their two remaining contests vs. UNLV and Nevada, respectively.
San Diego State can also secure an outright conference regular-season title if it splits the two final games vs. the Lobos, while the Falcons and Spartans both lose twice to the Rebels and Wolf Pack, respectively.
Air Force (26-27, 17-11 MW) hung on for a narrow 10-9 win at UNLV on Thursday, while San José State (25-24, 16-11 MW) was a 7-1 victor over Nevada at home.
Back on The Mesa, Miller's blast gave the Aztecs their seventh straight victory over the Lobos, including four this season, and 12th in the last 13 meetings between the two squads since the 2021 campaign.
The SDSU second baseman finished with a 3-for-5 effort at the plate to lead all players, while Shaun Montoya and Poncho Ruiz racked up two hits and one RBI apiece for the Scarlet and Black.
Trailing 3-2 heading into the bottom of the ninth, pinch hitter Charlie Rhee led off with a single and advanced on Irvin Weems' sacrifice bunt before Montoya was hit by a pitch. Moments later, Lobo reliever Arthur Steinkamp fanned TJ Fondtain and was one strike away from retiring Miller, who got ahead in the count 3-1 before fouling off two straight pitches. Unfazed, the Aztec senior connected on the next delivery, crushing the ball well beyond the fence in left, as the SDSU bench erupted in jubilation.
Miller's bomb also made a winner of Eldridge Armstrong III, the Aztecs' third reliever of the night who took over for Brian Leonhardt with two outs in the eighth, raising his record to 5-1 after issuing one walk in 1 1/3 scoreless innings. Conversely, Steinkamp (0-1) absorbed the loss after allowing four runs on six hits, including the decisive homer, while posting four strikeouts.
Nursing a precarious 2-1 lead, UNM extended its advantage in the eighth when Devon Dixon drew a two-out walk from Leonhardt and circled the bases on Sean Stephens' double to left center. Stephens took third on an errant relay throw but was left stranded after Armstrong entered struck out Chase Weissenborn to prevent further damage.
SDSU narrowed the gap in the bottom of the inning to 3-2 when Miller reached on a base hit to right and advanced on Xavier Gonzalez's groundout before crossing the plate on Ruiz's RBI single to right center, which set the stage for a dramatic conclusion.
Despite allowing one run on two hits and a pair of walks, Leonhardt enjoyed a largely effective appearance, posting four strikeouts while matching his season long with five innings pitched.
The Aztec left-hander took over for starter Xavier Cardenas III with two outs in the third and got the Scarlet and Black out of a bases-loaded jam by fanning Dixon in an eight-pitch duel.
Earlier in the inning, the Lobos struck for two runs on two hits and three walks off Cardenas, as Lenny Junior Ashby and Braydon Runion hit back-to-back doubles, while Konnor Kinkade followed with a bases-loaded walk.
Cardenas fought himself off the ropes in the first after yielding an Ashby single and a walk to Runion, inducing an inning-ending grounder to Jake Holland following a strikeout to Reed Spenrath. The SDSU freshman totaled five strikeouts in 2 2/3 innings of work, including two more in the second.
Cardenas' counterpart Riley Egloff allowed just one unearned run on four hits and two walks in 4 2/3 innings to go with six strikeouts.
Cole Carrigg reached on a three-base error by Ashby in left field before racing home on Montoya's squeeze bunt that went for a single, giving the hosts an early 1-0 advantage.
Ashby and Stephens totaled two hits apiece for the Lobos in the loss; however, both teams stranded 10 runners for the evening.
San Diego State continues its series with New Mexico on Friday, starting at 6 p.m. PT. The Aztecs-Lobos clash will air live on the Mountain West Network.
Miller's Blast Clinches MW Tourney Berth for Aztecs
