Box Score (PDF/HTML)

USAF Academy, Colo. – The Omaha baseball team picked up another win on Wednesday, defeating Air Force, 11-10, at Falcon Field. The Mavericks improved to 5-9 (0-0 Summit League) on the year, while the Falcons drop to 7-13 (1-2 Mountain West).

Dylan Casey (2-0) earned the win in relief, allowing one run on two hits over 0.1 innings. Dillon Freeman (0-1) took the loss, giving up one run on two hits over 1.2 innings with one strikeout. The save went to Josh Bullock (3), who gave up a run on two hits with one strikeout over 2.0 innings of work.

Sophomore Alex Mortensen paced Omaha at the plate, going 4-for-5 with three runs scored, three RBI and the Mavericks' first home run of the season with a solo shot in the fifth inning.

Senior Tyler Splichal finished 2-for-5 with a pair of runs scored, while redshirt freshman Connor Messinger was 2-for-5 with two runs driven in. Senior Ryan Keele also scored twice and had two RBI, and freshman Alex Schultz drove in two runs and scored once himself.

Air Force's Seth Kline was a perfect 4-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI, and Tyler Saleck went 3-for-4 with a run and two more driven in. Garrett Custons, Alex Bast, Matt Thorne and Zach Reks each tallied two hits for the day.
Omaha got on the board first with a run in the top of the first, as Splichal, Mortensen and Miller all singled to load the bases for Keele, whose sacrifice fly scored Splichal and made it 1-0.

The Mavericks added three more runs on three hits in the third. Splichal and Mortensen both singled, and Keele drew a walk to load the bases for Messinger, who sent a single to center to cross two runs. Keele then scored on a wild pitch, extending it to 4-0.

Air Force put its first run up in the bottom of the fourth when Bast came in on Thorne's RBI single through the right side that brought it to 4-1.

Mortensen's roundtripper sparked a four-run, four-hit fifth inning for UNO. The Mavs saw sophomore Brett Miller walk and Keele single to right center, and with both runners in scoring position, a double from Schultz down the left field line plated two more runs. He then scored on freshman Collin Leif's RBI single up the middle, extending Omaha's lead to 8-1.

The Falcons shook things up in a wild seventh inning, plating eight runs on seven hits and one Maverick error to go ahead, 9-8. Omaha responded with three runs to regain the lead in the eighth, totaling four hits and capitalizing on a Falcon error. Leif reached on a fielding error and junior Brett Bass singled to first, and both runners scored on Mortensen's two-run double to left that made it 10-9. A Palensky single to left advanced Mortensen to third, and Keele's sacrifice fly gave Omaha an insurance run as Mortensen tallied another run to make it 11-9.

Air Force managed one more run in the bottom of the frame when Custons doubled down the left field line, advanced on a passed ball and scored on Bast's RBI groundout. The Falcons stranded two runners, however, as the Mavericks got out of the inning with a groundout and went on to take the 11-10 victory, their fourth win in six games over the last week.

Omaha returns to action on Thursday, March 21, traveling to Northern Colorado. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. (CT) at Jackson Field in Greeley, Colo., and a link to live stats will be available on OMavs.com.