PROVO -- Troy Cairns deep single to right field in the eighth inning Thursday broke a five-all deadlock and gave New Mexico the lead in its 7-5 victory over BYU.
That tie was the third in the game as Chris Cooper of New Mexico and Jeff Stone of BYU each threw over 110 pitches before relievers took over. Cairns' single drove in Donny Sevieri, who avoided the tag off the throw from Matt Carson.
Conference champion New Mexico scored a second run in the eighth when Stone fielded Jared Kitamura's hit and threw home. But umpire Kevin Newby ruled Dusty Young safe on the tag and Stone was replaced in the game.
Earlier BYU tied the score at one-all when Matt Carson hit a solo homer in the second. Nick Day's high solo homer in the sixth tied the score at three-all. The Cougars again tied the score at five-all in the seventh when Ty Haguewood doubled in Michael Davies, then scored off a wild pitch from releiver Joe Abell.
The Lobos stopped Cougar hopes in the third when Casey Cloward was caught stealing, when they turned a double play to end the fourth inning, in the sixth when Carson was caught stealing, and in the ninth with two aboard when Abell got Aaron Whitley to fly out to end the game.
UNM took the initial lead when leadoff batter Aaron Stanley scored off Jake Little's sac-fly in the first inning after Stone loaded the bases. Stanley scored again in the fifth when Scott Candelaria's single was fielded by Nick Day who overthrew the cutoff. Candelaria's seventh-inning double to right center scored Kitamora to break the three-all deadlock.
BYU, now 26-26 overall and 14-14, hosts UNM, now 33-18 and 21-7, again on Friday at 2 p.m. and on Saturday at noon when it will officially break ground in pre-game ceremonies for a new baseball/softball complex.
UNM 100 020 220--7 9 0
BYU 010 011 200--5 12 1
Cooper, Abell (7) and Little. Stone, Crump (8) and Cloward. WP-Abell, 2 1. LP-Stone, 9-5. 2B-UNM, Sisk, Candelaria; BYU, Davies, Haguewood 2. HR-BYU Carson (7), Day (5). A-215