On weekday mornings, Nevada Sports Net will recap three big headlines of the day in its Morning Download. Read below for today’s topics.
1. Nevada softball walks off Fresno State twice before dropping finale
Nevada softball won on back-to-back walk-off home runs from Hannah Di Genova, including a grand slam, to open its series against Fresno State before losing the finale, shrinking its chances of capturing consecutive Mountain West regular-season titles. Di Genova, who has set the Wolf Pack’s single-season homer and RBI records, cracked a solo walk-off homer to secure the game one win 9-8. Nevada had a one-run deficit in the bottom of the seventh in game two before Di Genova’s walk-off grand slam delivered a 7-4 win. But the Wolf Pack couldn’t rally in game three, falling 5-4 after stranding the go-ahead runs on base. Nevada’s series win improved the Wolf Pack to 36-15 overall and 16-6 in the MW, putting it two games behind Grand Canyon (45-7, 18-4), which won two of three against UNLV over the weekend. Nevada must sweep UNLV (28-20, 15-7) this week and have Grand Canyon lose two of three against Colorado State (23-24, 11-11) to share the MW regular-season title.
2. Wolf Pack baseball tied for first after series win vs. UNLV
The Nevada baseball team won its series against UNLV, winning game one (13-3, eight innings) and game three (9-1) while falling in game two (8-7), dropping into a tie for first place in the MW. Air Force swept San Jose State to move into a tie with Nevada atop the conference. Both teams are 12-6, one game ahead of second-place San Diego State (10-5), which has won seven straight contests. The Aztecs host the Wolf Pack for a three-game series starting Friday. Also in the mix are Washington State (11-7) and New Mexico (10-7-1). The Wolf Pack has two leagues series remaining, hosting Grand Canyon in addition to this week’s games at SDSU. Nevada hosts Sacramento State in a non-league game Tuesday at Peccole Park.
3. Ex-Lowry High star Savannah Stoker signs with Utah Tech
Former Lowry High star Savannah Stoker, who had an All-American career at the College of Southern Idaho, will continue her basketball career at Utah Tech. A three-time high school state champion at Lowry, Stoker averaged 16.6 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.8 steals and 1.6 assists at CSI last season. She made 53.9 percent of her shots and 32.4 percent of her threes. Stoker helped CSI reach the national quarterfinals after being ranked in the top 10 in the country for most of the season. Stoker also earned scholarship offers from Sac State and Idaho but not Nevada, which also overlooked her coming out of Lowry High.
4. Nevada basketball transfer Ethan Croley commits to Jacksonville State
Nevada basketball transfer Ethan Croley has signed with Jacksonville State after one season with the Wolf Pack. A 6-foot-9, 247-pound forward from San Antonio, Croley played in 16 games for Nevada last season. He recorded 30 points, 21 rebounds, two blocks and a steal in 84 minutes. Croley shot 57.1 percent from the field and made 46.2 percent of his free throws. Jacksonville State plays in Conference USA and went 15-17 overall and 10-10 in league last season. Croley has three years of college eligibility remaining.