PULLMAN, Wash. (May 2, 2025) – Luke Meyers worked into the eighth inning to lead Washington State past Air Force 7-5 in the series-opener in front of 1,422 fans at Bailey-Brayton Field Friday evening.
 
The Cougars received three-hit games from Ollie Obenour, Logan Johnstone and Kyler Northrop while the first six hitters each drove in a run with Luke Thiele recorded a pair of hits and two RBI. Obenour doubled and scored twice while Northrop tallied his first career three-hit game, extending his hitting streak to 17 games along the way.
 
Meyers was impressive, working a career-high 7.1 innings, struck out five and allowed three earned runs to earn the win. Reliever Trevor Stowe struck out two of the three hitters he faced to end the eighth and Rylan Haider worked the nineth close out the win.
 
WSU built a 4-1 lead with a three-run first inning and a run in the second inning before adding a run in the seventh and two more in the eighth. The Cougars combined to leave nine runners on base while Air Force collected 13 hits but left eight runners on base.
 
KEY MOMENTS OF THE GAME
WSU struck for three runs in the first after loading the bases as Ryan Skjonsby brought home a run with an RBI-groundout before Thiele pulled a two-out two-strike pitch through the left side to plate two more runs for a 3-0 lead. Air Force collected four hits in the second and plated a run on a sacrifice fly to make it 3-1 before Kyler Northrop singled and came around to score on an Ollie Obenour sacrifice fly after a Gavin Roy hit-and-run single for a 4-1 advantage.
 
Air Force picked up a run in the sixth and threatened in the seventh but Meyer ended the inning with a 6-4-3 double play. In the bottom of the inning, Johnstone led off with a single to centerfield, moved to second on a wild pitch and throwing error by the catcher allowed him to move up to third before Cresswell drove him home with a sacrifice fly to right field.
 
In the eighth, Air Force used a one-out double, walk and single up the middle to score a run. The Falcons put runners on second and third with one out bit Stowe ended the inning with a pair of strikeouts, preserving the 5-3 lead.
 
The Cougars added a pair of runs in the eighth on a Gavin Roy RBI-groundout before Obenour doubled the other way down the right field line and slid in ahead of the tag on Johnstone's RBI-single through the right side.
 
Air Force used a two-out two-run double to bring the tying to the plate in the ninth but Haider ended the game with a flyout to centerfield.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Will Cresswell walked in the 1^st inning to extend his on-base streak to 7 games
Kyler Northrop singled in the 2^nd inning to extend his hitting streak to 17 games
Jonah Shull singled in the 8^th inning to extend his hitting streak to 5 games
 
NEXT UP
The series continues Saturday at 6:05 p.m.