RENO, Nev.  – The USF baseball team fell victim to a walk-off single by Nevada's Justin Hazard in the ninth inning of Tuesday evening's 6-5 loss at Peccole Park.
 
Joey Steele (0-2) was saddled with the loss, while Matt Sinatro matched his season high with three hits to go along with two runs scored and an RBI. Nico Giarratano and Ross Puskarich each tallied two hits and two RBI apiece.
 
Nevada (28-20) loaded the bases against USF reliever Joey Steele in the ninth. Cole Krzmarzick led off the inning with a double, followed by a miscommunication between Steele and catcher Ryan Matranga on Bruce Greager's bunt attempt down the third base line. USF opted to load the bases by intentionally walking Jordan Pearce. 
 
Joey Carney came out of the bullpen to face Hazard with the bases loaded and no outs, when Hazard connected on Carney's 1-0 offering for a line drive to left that fell in for the game-winner.   
 
USF (19-31) had rallied to take a 5-2 lead with a three-run seventh inning behind an RBI single by Giarratano and a two-run double by Puskarich.
 
Just when USF thought they had some breathing room, Nevada rallied for a three-run inning of their own. A USF balk and two hit-by-pitches helped setup Trenton Brooks' two-run single that brought the Wolf Pack within one. Three batters later, lefty Frank Waliczek came on in relief for the Dons and with his first pitch allowed a bloop single to left by Pearce that tied the game.
 
Nevada threatened in the bottom of the eighth by loading the bases against Waliczek before Steele came on and shutdown the Wolf Pack with a pair of timely strikeouts and a little help from Sinatro in center field, who made a nice running catch on a sinking liner for the final out.

USF starter Chase Gardner also surrendered a bloop single down the left field line, this one by Brooks that allowed Nevada to take a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first.
 
Brooks struck again with an RBI double in the bottom of the third, but Gardner was able to work out of a bases-loaded jam by getting consecutive strikeouts to prevent any further damage.
 
Gardner ended his outing having allowed two runs (one earned) on six hits over three innings with a pair of strikeouts.
 
Giarratano lined a double off of Brooks' glove in right-center field that scored a run in the third.
 
A throwing error by Wolf Pack pitcher Anthony Martine on Matranga's sacrifice bunt helped give the Dons runners at first and third in the fifth. Sinatro laid down a bunt in front of the mound that nobody could get to, scoring Valley from third and tying the game at 2-2.
 
USF had the bases loaded after Giarratano drew a one-out walk, but a strikeout by Allen Smoot and a flyout by Puskarich ended the inning without any more runs coming across.
 
Right-hander Grant Goodman enjoyed a solid day out of the bullpen, retiring all six batters he faced while striking out three in his two innings of work.
 
Brooks led Nevada with three hits and four RBI on the day, while Greager and Pearce each picked up two hits.  
 
Mark Nowaczewski (4-1) earned the win with one scoreless inning in relief.
 
 
NOTES: 1B Ross Puskarich has hit safely in his last 11 games, tied for the second-longest streak on the team this year… 3B Allen Smoot had his 17-game on-base streak snapped – that goes down as the second-longest such streak on the team... the Dons used eight pitchers on the day, one shy of their season high. 
 
UP NEXT: The Dons return home to host BYU in their final West Coast Conference series of the regular season. Thursday's series opener will be a 3 p.m. first pitch from Benedetti Diamond as senior righty Anthony Shew (4-6, 4.16) matches up with BYU right-hander Mike Rucker (10-0, 2.58). All of this weekend's action can be followed via live stats on USFDons.com and a live video stream on the TheW.tv.