Amaya’s two-run homer lifts Reno past Sugar Land, 3-2

One swing changed everything for Reno, and Jacob Amaya supplied it. His two-run homer in the fourth inning lifted the Aces past the Sugar Land Space Cowboys, 3-2, at Greater Nevada Field on Thursday, turning a tight, low-scoring game into a lead Reno never gave back.

Sugar Land struck first when James Nelson opened the night with a solo homer, but Reno answered in the second. Amaya led off that inning with a double, then scored on a balk to pull the Aces even. The decisive blow came two innings later, after Tommy Troy singled to start the fourth. Amaya followed by driving his team-leading fourth home run of the season, a two-run shot that brought Troy home and gave Reno the margin it needed.

Amaya finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBI, and his night fit the kind of efficient offense Reno has leaned on in close games. The Aces did not need a barrage. They needed one clean swing, and Amaya delivered it at the exact moment Sugar Land had to respect every pitch.

The rest of the win belonged to Reno’s pitching staff. Thomas Hatch worked 5.1 innings and allowed two runs on four hits, striking out five and walking one. After Hatch handed off a one-run lead, the bullpen covered the final 3.2 innings and allowed only one hit. Yilber Díaz finished it off for his first Triple-A save and the second save of his professional career.

Nelson kept Sugar Land within striking distance with his second solo homer of the night in the sixth, trimming Reno’s lead to 3-2, but that was as close as the Space Cowboys got. The Aces held firm the rest of the way, a useful sign for a club that entered the series after a 7-4 extra-innings loss on Tuesday and needed a response in a game that had the feel of a playoff-style grind.

The result carried added weight because Sugar Land has been a tough matchup in recent seasons. The Space Cowboys won the 2024 season series 8-4 and the 2025 series 9-3, and Reno’s pitching line against them last year was its worst against any opponent. On this night, though, Amaya’s homer, Hatch’s steady start, and a bullpen that shut the door combined to flip the script and deliver a one-run win that felt bigger than the score.