ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The University of New Mexico baseball team knew it wouldn’t be easy against the top team in the Mountain West, but maybe not this difficult. The Lobos suffered one of their worst losses of the season Friday, falling to the Wolf Pack 8-1.
Nevada (36-11, 19-6) hit three home runs, a pair of two-run shots in the second and a three-run blast in the eighth, while the Lobos (26-20, 13-9) tied a season low with just four hits.
“They’re a senior team that is hungry,” UNM head coach Ray Birmingham said of Nevada. “They have some big boys that can really hit. They’ve got a good club. They’re where we were three years ago, and they really want (a championship).”
UNM’s hits were singles by Chris DeVito in the first, Danny Collier in the third and Carl Stajduhar in the eighth, and a leadoff double in the ninth by Luis Gonzalez, who eventually came around to score UNM’s only run. Really, there were only two other highlights for UNM. One was a spectacular diving grab on the warning track in deep center by Gonzalez in the third inning.
The other was the pitching debut for senior Ryan Padilla, who was a Freshman All-American in left field in 2012. He came on with two outs in the ninth and retired Preseason All-American Austin Byler on one pitch: a comebacker to the mound that Padilla fielded easily.
“I was kind of pumped to face Byler,” said Padilla, who hadn’t pitched in a game since high school. “I’ve been working on (pitching) a little bit as my little side project. It was definitely a cool experience, although not the situation I’d have liked down like that.”
The Lobos still have a chance to get back into the regular-season race, but they must take the next two games of the series. They’ll get another crack at the Wolf Pack Saturday at 2 p.m. Freshman Tyler Stevens will get the start for UNM. ESPN Radio 101.7 The TEAM will carry the game, and uPUBLICtv will produce the game and broadcast it in Albuquerque on Comcast channel 26.
Notes: Stajduhar’s single extended his hitting streak to 14 games … Jared Holley made his first start since April 12 vs. Air Force … Sam Haggerty made his second straight start after missing 30 of the previous 31 … UNM drew eight walks but left 12 men on base … the Lobos have not been shut out this season.