LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The University of New Mexico baseball team (32-17, 17-6 MW) bounced back to earn a victory on the road Saturday against the UNLV Rebels (21-25, 11-12 MW).
The Lobos, who maintained their lead in the Mountain West Conference regular season championship race, earned a road victory tonight with key young players stepping up. The Lobos looked to their stellar freshman class, putting seven first-year players on the field in an important late season game. The freshman made huge impact in the middle of the lineup, especially in the sixth inning, when Jared Mang and Erick Migueles connected on back-to-back hits that secured a run. The freshmen were not the only underclassmen to shine, as the Lobos were led offensively by standout sophomore Carl Stajduhar, who finished 3-for-5 with four RBI on a grand slam.
The Lobo offense had a slow start, with just one hit over the first four innings. However, Tyler Stevens held the Rebels back with clutch stops. In the first inning, Stevens saw the bases loaded, but stranded them all by drawing a flyout.
The Rebels looked to pounce again in the third inning, putting runners on the corners with no outs. Shortstop Dalton Bowers made two big plays, first on a line drive right to him. With one out on the board, Bowers stole a hit and got the ball to first before the runner returned to secure a double play.
UNLV took a 1-0 lead in the fourth off a home run to left field, but Carl Stajduhar responded for the Lobos with a grand slam, scoring Jared Holley, Dalton Bowers and Andre Pratt. The four RBI for Stajduhar gave the Lobos a 4-1 lead over the Rebels.
Stevens came back out and shut down the Rebels, which gave the Lobos more time to get runs on the board. UNM took a 5-1 lead in the sixth after freshman Jared Mang led off the inning with a single through the left side. Mang then scored on freshman Erick Migueles’ double to right center.
The bats were quiet on both sides until the ninth inning. The Lobos put one more on the board, giving them a little more cushion going into the bottom of the ninth. Holley reached on a fielder’s choice and advanced to second on Stajduhar’s single to right center. Holley then scored on Jack Zoellner’s single through the right side.
UNLV tried to make a comeback, getting one run across the board off reliever Alex Estrella. The Lobos then went to Christian Tripp who recorded the final two outs, including a strikeout, earning his third save on the season.
Overall, Andre Vigil went 2-for-2 while Migueles went 1-for-2 with an RBI double.
Stevens earned his seventh win of the season on the mound. He allowed one run off seven hits while walking four and striking out six in eight innings of work.
The Lobos will conclude its weekend series against the Rebels on Sunday at 12:05 p.m. PST/1:05 p.m. MST. Fans can follow along on LoboStats.com.
NOTES: The Lobos’ 17 team saves this year is now the most in Lobo baseball history…In tune with the theme late this season, the player the Lobos leaned on to secure the team’s 17th save, Chris Tripp, is a freshman…The Lobos still hold a 1.5 game lead in the Mountain West Conference…The Lobos now hold a 3-2 advantage on the Rebels this season.