Aces mount seven-run comeback, fall in extras, 12-10

RENO, Nev. – Trailing by as many as seven runs heading into the bottom of the seventh, the Reno Aces completed the comeback with a Seth Beer two-run home run to force extras before falling, 12-10, to the Las Vegas Aviators on Friday.

The Aces erased their largest deficit of the season with their seven-run comeback, surpassing the six-run marks on May 14 and June 14 against the same team from Summerlin. With the loss, Reno moves to 10-4 in games it erases a deficit of three or more tallies.

Beer had a perfect day at the dish, going 2-for-2 with a game-tying, two-run shot, a pair of walks and a hit by a pitch. The Aces’ first baseman recorded his 10th multi-run game of the season, crossing the plate four times against the Aviators and tying his career-high set on July 4, 2019, with Double-A Corpus Christi.

Ildemaro Vargas extended his hitting streak to six with a single in the seventh. Over his six-game stretch, the Aces’ all-time hits leader has put forth a 10-for-27 showing with seven runs scored.

The Biggest Little City’s team also set a season-high in attendance, welcoming 6,309 fans to Greater Nevada Field.

Following a blank opening frame, the Aviators scored four in the second. Cody Thomas gave the visiting team a 1-0 lead on a solo home run before Las Vegas tacked on three more on a pair of RBI base knocks and a groundout.

The Aces responded in the bottom half of the second with a one-spot on the board. After a leadoff walk to Seth Beer, Andrew Young laced a double down the left-field line to put runners on second and third with no outs. Jamie Ritchie knocked an RBI groundout to short, bringing Beer around to score, 4-1.

Las Vegas added a tally in the third inning on a Francisco Pena single before scoring a pair of runs in the fourth to take a 7-1 edge.

Reno cut its deficit to four, 7-3, after Andrew Young smacked his ninth home run with the Aces in the bottom of the fourth, taking Daulton Jefferies deep for a two-run shot following Beer’s second walk of the evening.

Aviators added one run on a solo homer in each of the fifth, sixth and seventh innings to take a 10-3 lead.

Aces’ Jamie Ritchie registered his 500th career hit in the bottom of the seventh, ripping a double to left-center to start the inning. Two batters later, Ben DeLuzio roped a two-bagger off the center-field wall to bring Ritchie in from second and slash the lead to six, 10-4.

Reno held Las Vegas off the board in the top of the eighth before putting three runs on the board in the home half. Following a leadoff single by Ildemaro Vargas and a Camden Duzenack double down the left-field line, Beer dropped a base knock past the outstretched second baseman to knock in Vargas and cut the Aviators edge to five, 10-5. Two batters later, Ritchie ripped a double to deep center, pushing Beer to third and scoring Duzenack for the Aces’ sixth run. Juniel Querecuto drove in the third tally of the inning on a groundout to second, boosting his team to within three, 10-7.

Blake Lalli’s club completed its comeback in the ninth and forced the game into extras with a three-run frame. After a one-out double by Jake McCarthy, Vargas found a hole through the right side to bring the Aces’ centerfielder in to score and cut the edge to two, 10-8. On the very next pitch, Seth Beer knotted the game at 10 with a two-run shot to right-center, erasing the seven-run deficit.

Las Vegas went on to score two in the 10th before closing out the game, 12-10.

Reno returns to action on Saturday against the Aviators, with the first pitch slated for 7:05 p.m. PT. Saturday’s contest can be heard on renoaces.com or locally on KPLY 630 AM with Zack Bayrouty on the call.