By James Hernandez

The Coyotes were originally slated to head to Rangely, Colorado this past weekend to battle CNCC in a four game weekend series, however Mother Nature had other plans. Heavy snow and rain rerouted the series to Grand Junction, Colorado and reduced the series from four games to two, as both teams were happy just to get some game reps in ahead of the meat of both teams conference schedules.

Matt Gilbertson (4-1) brought a microscopic E.R.A. just over 2.00 into the start and once again left another opposing offense scratching its head. "Gilby" appeared to have the ball on a string, firing six shutout frames while surrendering just three hits and fanning three Spartans.

A passed ball and a RBI single off the bat of Matt Wong got the Coyotes out to an early 2-0 advantage in the top of the first inning. Steven Rivas doubled home Dax Fellows in the top of the third inning to extend CSN's lead to 3-0. A bunt off the bat of AJ Amelburu in the top of the sixth inning led to a 2-run throwing error that extended the Coyotes lead to 5-0. Buddy Pindel tossed three no-hit frames of baseball behind Matt Gilbertson, fanning four Spartans en route to his first save of the season.

Southern Nevada extended its winning streak to 20 games after dispatching Colorado Northwestern 5-0 to improve to 5-0 in the SWAC and 22-4 overall in 2019.

Future University of Houston southpaw Nick Rupp got the ball in game two of the road trip, riding a three start winning streak that has seen Rupp pitch as well as any point in his Southern Nevada career.

Nick exceeded his previous efforts in 2019 by no-hitting the Spartans over seven dominant frames, that saw the sophomore punch-out nine batters and not allow a single hit or free pass.

The Coyotes offense was dialed in from the beginning, plating eight runs in its first five innings with the bats.

Table setters Dax Fellows and Jack Pineda combined for 5 H's, 4 RBI, 2 BB and 1 run in nine at-bats. Not to be outdone, Roger Riley and Joey Walls found a pair of RBI's each while combining for five hits and two runs scored. Johnny Cuevas scored three times himself, securing a pair of hits and one RBI himself.

Former CNCC Spartan Trever Berg celebrated a 21^st birthday to remember, firing a scoreless frame to secure a combined no-hitter for himself and Nick Rupp. CSN extended its winning streak to 21 games, improving to 6-0 in conference play and 23-4 overall.

Fans your Coyotes will be back in the "Den" March 22^nd and 23^rd to battle the USU-E Eagles in a crucial SWAC showdown. For ticketing options, game times and live updates all weekend log onto www.csncoyotes.com or follow us on Facebook CSNCoyotes and Twitter @CSN_Baseball.