After trailing 4-0 after one inning, the Sugar Land Space Cowboys (36-21, 68-63) rallied for an 11-6 victory over the Las Vegas Aviators (31-26, 75-55) in their series finale on Sunday night at Las Vegas Ballpark.
The Aviators opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning. Denzel Clarke hit a leadoff home run and after two singles put additional runners on base, Brayan Buelvas followed with a three-run home run, the second homer of the inning, pushing the Aviators’ lead to 4-0.
The Space Cowboys got on the board in the top of the second. Zach Dezenzo launched a solo home run to right-center field with one out in the inning, cutting into the Las Vegas lead. Zach Cole then singled and stole second before advancing to third on a throwing error. Lucas Spence followed by smashing his third home run of the season, bringing home Cole and trimming the Space Cowboys’ deficit to 4-3.
After surrendering two home runs in the first inning, Mayer retired 14 of the next 17 batters he faced, going on to toss five innings while allowing six hits and four runs, walking one and striking out 10.
The Space Cowboys evened the game in the top of the eighth. Joey Loperfido laced a ground-rule double to center field to put a runner in scoring position for Sugar Land. Jake Meyers smashed a 107.6 mph bouncer deep to short that Drew Swift one-hopped on a throw past first, allowing Meyers to reach and Loperfido to score, evening the game at four runs apiece.
The Space Cowboys busted the game open in the top of the ninth. Cole led off the inning by working a walk and moved to second on a wild pitch before tagging up to third on a line out from Collin Price. Lucas Spence then worked a walk to put two runners on before stealing second to place both runners in scoring position. Trenton Brooks followed with an RBI single to center field, scoring Cole to give Sugar Land it’s first lead of the night. Brooks then stole second before Pascanel Ferreras followed with a two-RBI single to center field, plating both runners to extend the Sugar Land lead. Cavan Biggio worked a walk before Meyers doubled down the left field line, bringing home two runs. Dezenzo then singled before Cole doubled to right field, plating two more runs and completing a seven-run inning that pushed the Space Cowboys’ lead to 11-5.
The Aviators attempted to rally in the bottom of the ninth. Jack Winkler and Drew Swift worked back-to-back one-out walks to put two runners on before Colby Halter singled to center field, bringing home the first run of the inning. RHP Logan VanWey entered in relief of RHP Brandon McPherson worked around a run scoring hit to strike out Cole Conn and close out the Space Cowboys’ victory.
NOTABLE:
- RHP Bryce Mayer recorded a season-high 10 strikeouts across any level on Sunday night, tossing 5.0 innings while allowing six hits and four runs with one walk. The 10 strikeouts marked Mayer’s highest total since April 26, 2025, when he struck out 11 batters for Fayetteville against Hill City.
- For a second consecutive night, the Space Cowboys’ pitching staff struck out 16 batters, tying their season high in punchouts in a single game.
- Zach Dezenzo went 3-for-5 with a home run, an RBI and two runs scored on Sunday evening, extending his RBI streak to three consecutive games. Over his last three games, Dezenzo is 4-for-14 with two home runs, three RBI, one walk and three runs scored.
- Pascanel Ferreras went 2-for-5 in Sunday’s series finale, extending his hitting streak to five games. Over his last five games, Ferreras is 9-for-19 with a double, a home run, six RBI, four walks and three runs scored.
- Cavan Biggio went 1-for-4 with a walk and a run scored on Sunday night, extending his on-base streak to 11 games and his hitting streak to six games. Over his last 11 games, Biggio is 8-for-35 with two doubles, two home runs, five RBI, 12 walks and 10 runs scored.
- Lucas Spence went 1-for-2 with a home run, two RBI and two runs scored on Sunday night. His home run marked his second of the series and third of the season. Against Las Vegas this week, Spence went 5-for-16 with a double, two home runs, four RBI, three walks and four runs scored.
After an off day on Monday the Space Cowboys will return home to Constellation Field for a six-game set against the Reno Aces beginning on Tuesday night. Neither team has announced a starting pitcher for Tuesday, with first pitch set for 7:05 pm CT. The game can be seen on the Bally Sports Live app and MiLB.TV and can be heard online anywhere at SLSpaceCowboys.com/Listen.
ABOUT THE SUGAR LAND SPACE COWBOYS:
The Sugar Land Space Cowboys are the Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros and compete in the Pacific Coast League. They began play as the Astros’ Triple-A affiliate in 2021 and began playing under the Space Cowboys brand in 2022, winning their first Triple-A title in 2024 by clinching both the Pacific Coast League Championship and Triple-A National Championship. The Space Cowboys play at Constellation Field, located at the corner of Hwy-6 and US-90 Alternate in Sugar Land, Texas. Follow the team on Twitter (@SLSpaceCowboys), Instagram (@slspacecowboys), Facebook (SLSpaceCowboys) and their official website (slspacecowboys.com). Season ticket plans for the 2027 season are available now and can be purchased at slspacecowboys.com/tickets.