New Mexico Lobo Softball – Game Notes
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The University of New Mexico softball team is on the road for the second straight weekend, heading to the familiar Mary Nutter Classic Friday-Sunday. The Lobos will look for a better outcome than the previous years as they take on Arkansas, Loyola Marymount, Bethune Cookman, Pacific and No. 25 Texas A&M.
All games for the Mary Nutter Classic will be live streamed, provided by FloSoftball. Click here to watch. Fans will have to have a paid subscription in order to watch.
Series history vs. New Mexico
Arkansas (Feb. 19, 11:30 a.m. MT): First meeting
Loyola Marymount (Feb. 19, 6:30 p.m. MT): LMU leads 1-0 (last meeting – LMU won 5-3, Feb. 15, 2003)
Bethune Cookman (Feb. 20, 6 p.m. MT): UNM leads 2-0 (last meeting – UNM won 3-0, March 16, 1999)
Pacific (Feb. 20, 8 p.m. MT): PAC leads 5-3 (last meeting – PAC win 15-4, March 20, 2011)
No. 25 Texas A&M (Feb. 21, 12:30 p.m. MT): TAM leads 15-5 (last meeting – UNM won 15-3 (6), Feb. 23, 2012)
ABOUT NEW MEXICO:
The Lobos are currently 2-3 on the season. After the first weekend, they are hitting .286 as a team. They pounded out 34 hits last weekend, including six doubles and four home runs for 16 RBIs and 17 run scored. Senior Karissa Haleman is leading the squad with a .444 hitting percentage. Junior Michala Erickson and sophomore Chelsea Johnson are the only other two on the team hitting .400 or better.
On the pitching side of things, the Lobos had a team earned run average of 7.00. Last weekend, they allowed 33 runs, 29 earned, off 54 hits while striking out 15 and walking 12 in 29.0 innings of work. Freshman Colette Robert pitched the most amount of innings with 13.2. She picked up her first career victory in the circle, a 2-1 win over San Diego last Friday.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS:
This year at the Mary Nutter, they will be playing teams that they haven’t seen in a while. In fact, the seniors on the squad have never faced these opponents. The weekend starts off with Arkansas, which this will be the first meeting between the two teams. Loyola Marymount is set for game two. The Lobos haven’t played them since the 2003 season.
Bethune Cookman and the Lobos met last on March 16, 1999 for a doubleheader. The last matchup with Pacific was more recent. Pacific won 15-4 on March 20, 2011. No. 25 Texas A&M will be the second ranked opponent for the Lobos this season. The last time the two teams met was in 2012. The Lobos came out with a 15-3 win in six innings.
LOBOS START SEASON OFF 2-3 AT KAJIKAWA
The Lobos started off the 2016 with a 2-3 record at the Kajikawa Classic. The tournament started off with a 2-1 victory over San Diego. UNM got a big win over Stanford, 8-4, in the first game on the second day. But the Lobos fell in their next three, falling 2-0 to Cal Poly, 11-1 in five innings to Oregon State and 15-6 in five innings to No. 18 Kentucky.
FRESHMAN ROBERT CLAIMS FIRST CAREER VICTORY
In just her first career start for the Lobos, freshman Colette Robert picked up her first career victory. Robert started the first game of the season against San Diego. She allowed one run off six hits while striking out five and walking none.
HALEMAN LEADS THE WEEKEND
Senior Karissa Haleman led the Lobos over the weekend, hitting .444 with two home runs and five RBIs. She hit her first home run of the season against Oregon State, seventh career homer. She had a game against No. 18 Kentucky, going 3-for-3 at the plate with four RBIs off a double and her second home run of the day, her eighth career. She finished with three runs scored and a total of four hits.
BOMBS AWAY
It’s no surprise that the Lobos can create offense, but the Lobos have already smashed out three home runs. Along with Haleman’s two from last Sunday, senior Mariah Rimmer blasted out her first bomb of the season, a three-run bomb to help the Lobos in the win over Stanford. Junior Michala Erickson also put one over the fence. Her’s came in the first game against San Diego, a solo shot that was the game-winner in the 2-0 win.