March 12, 2007
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THE GAME: The Lobos look to even out their record at 11-11 overall tomorrow, hosting New Mexico State for the first time this season. UNM took the first two games of the season series, winning 11-7 on Feb. 13 and 16-5 on Feb. 20. The game will be streamed live for free at www.GoLobos.com via Lobos All-Access. CSTV’s GameTracker is also available, providing play-by-play, up-to-date stats and more.
LOOKING AT THE LOBOS: New Mexico, 10-11 overall, has won four straight games thanks to a sweep of the three-game series vs. Rhode Island last weekend. The Lobos are 5-2 at home overall.
The Lobos, who struggled offensively to start the season, raised their batting average 31 points, reaching the .300 mark. Junior Jordan Pacheco and senior Daniel Stovall have produced at the plate to lead the team. Pacheco, hitting .402, has a team-high 33 hits and 24 runs with 18 RBI and 17 walks. Stovall, hitting .356, has a team-high 23 RBI with 31 hits and 23 runs. Freshman Adam Courcha holds the team’s best batting average at .455 (10-for-22), but has only played in 10 games.
New Mexico pitching has gotten better with every performance, loweing its ERA to 5.48 after a stellar weekend against Rhode Island, posting a 3.33 ERA. Junior starter Bobby LaFromboise has filled the vacancy left by Danny Ray Herrera nicely, going 3-0 with a 2.84 ERA. In 38.0 innings, LaFromboise has struck out a team-high 38 batters. Out of the bullpen, junior Adam Skelton and sophomore Brandon Hewett have led the Lobos. Skelton, with a 3.21 ERA, has struck out 10 in 14.0 innings while Hewett, with a 3.60 ERA, has struck out seven in 10.0 innings.
SCOUTING THE AGGIES: New Mexico State, 9-11 overall, has won two of its last three heading into Tuesday’s contest. The Aggies haven’t ventured far from Presley Askew Field in Las Cruces very often, posting just a 2-3 record on the road.
Joseph Scaperotta is leading the hot-hitting Aggies, posting a .388 batting average with team-highs in runs (24), hits (33) and RBI (27). Leo Aguirre holds the team’s best hitting percentage at .400 (26-for-65). Six other everyday players also boast batting averages over .300.
New Mexico State, which surrenders almost one run per game (174 runs allowed in 177.2 innings), holds a 6.53 ERA. Starter Brian Gausman has a team-high 41 strikeouts in 36.1 innings pitched and an ERA of 3.47. Reliever Frankie Duran has the lowest ERA on the team at 2.70, striking out 10 in 16.2 innings.
HISTORY LESSONS: The Lobos have won four straight against I-25 rival New Mexico State, dating back to last year. This season, the two clubs have met twice, both in Las Cruces at Presley Askew Field. UNM won the first game. Feb. 13, 11-7, and the second on, Feb. 20, 16-5. Overall, the Lobos hold a 144-72 record against the Aggies, including a 68-24 mark in Albuquerque.
In two games this season, NMSU has out-hit UNM .351 to .316 but the Lobos’ pitching has been the difference, allowing just 5.50 earned runs compared to the Aggies’ 10.50. Senior Daniel Stovall has enjoyed playing New Mexico State this year, going 5-for-10 with three doubles, four RBI and three runs. Freshman Shane Dyer made the first two starts in Las Cruces, going 1-0 with a 2.89 ERA and six strikeouts in 9.1 innings.
NEARING THE MILESTONES: Head coach Rich Alday is nearing two major coaching milestones. With a 497-494-3 record at New Mexico, he needs just three wins for 500. As a collegiate head coach, he is 993-714-3, leaving him just seven victories shy of 1,000.
HOLLICK NAMED MWC PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Junior Ian Hollick has been named Mountain West Conference Player the Week, garnering the honor for the first time in his career. A Corona, Calif., native, Hollick posted team-highs in batting average (.667), runs scored (eight), RBI (six) and walks (six) as New Mexico swept a three-game series from Rhode Island last week in Albuquerque. In the opening game of the series, he went 2-for-2 while scoring three runs and knocking in two runs in UNM’s 17-5 win. Hollick also drew three walks in the contest. In game two, he went 2-for-4 with one RBI and one run scored. In the fourth inning his RBI single scored a run, then he also crossed the plate to put the Lobos up 4-2 on the way to an 8-2 victory. In the final game he had a 2-for-3, four-run, three-RBI performance. He walked three more times, two of which were with the bases loaded, and collected another RBI single as New Mexico won, 21-4.
REWRITING THE RECORDS: Senior Daniel Stovall is so close to rewriting multiple program records at New Mexico. Currently with 69 career doubles, Stovall needs one more to break Dusty Young’s 69 set from 2000-03.
With 453 total bases in his career, Stovall is fifth all-time. Second place in the book is easily within his grasp, needing six to pass Joe Salas’s (2001-04) 458. The record is held by Lon Yamaguchi (1996-99), with 496.
Stovall is also just shy of the top-5 in home runs. Currently with 34 in his career, he needs just two to tie Chris Carlson (2005-06). Salas and Yamaguchi are tied for fourth with 38. Stovall will have to have his best year yet if he wants to take over second or first, needing 16 to tie Chris Alexander’s (2000-03) 50 and 19 to match Aaron Sisk’s (1998-00) 53.
RUN LIKE THE WIND: In the three-game series last weekend vs. Rhode Island, New Mexico scored a total of 46 runs, averaging 15.3 runs per day. Although this total is high, it does not come close to the Lobos record. Last year UNM crossed the plate 73 times in a three-game series with Air Force, April 13-14. The top 5 runs in a three-game series are:1. 73 vs. Air Force (April 13-14, 2006)
2. 59 vs. Air Force (April 16-18, 2004)
3. 57 vs. Fresno State (April 1-3, 1999)
4. 55 vs. Texas A&M Corpus Christi (March 28-30, 2003)
5. 52 vs. Hawaii (March 14-16, 1997)
52 vs. Utah (March 12-14, 1993)
52 vs. New Mexico State (March 2-3, 1985)
HOT HITTERS: The Lobos were red-hot at the plate against Rhode Island, hitting .465 (53-for-114) as a team. Every Lobo to record an official at bat hit at least .333 for the weekend. Freshman Derek Pilkington was one of the hottest, hitting a team-high .800 (4-for-5). Senior Daniel Stovall cranked out a team-leading seven hits in 15 at bats (.467).