Lobo Baseball Hosts Holy Cross In Home-Opening Series

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — After a tough start to the season, the Lobos are ready to turn things around at Santa Ana Star Field in their four-game home-opening series against the Holy Cross Crusaders on Friday-Sunday, Feb. 25-27.

The Lobos will host the Crusaders for a 3 p.m. (MT) game on Friday. The doubleheader on Saturday starting at 11 a.m. is free admission. Sunday will feature a noon game. Tickets will be available to purchase for the other days at the Southwest corner of The Pit. For those who purchased tickets online and have them on their phone, fans can go directly to the gate to enter.

This series will be the first time the Crusaders and Lobos play each other in history. The Crusaders play in the Patriot League with teams like Navy, Army West Point, Lafayette, Lehigh and Bucknell. With only 10 wins last season, Holy Cross finished in last place in their conference in 2021.

A BROWN NEW ERA

• With the retirement of 14-year Lobo coach and 34-year NM coach Ray Birmingham at the conclusion of the spring 2021 season, the program went on the hunt to find its next coach
• In July of 2021, Tod Brown was hired to fill that role.
• A native of Arizona, Brown returns home to the southwest after spending the past 14 years as North Dakota State’s head coach, earning a 341-350 record during that time

LANDERS ON BOBBY BRAGAN WATCH LIST

• Senior first baseman/designated hitter Kyle Landers was named to the Bobby Bragan Collegiate Slugger Award Watch List prior to the start of the season.
• He held a .293 batting average with 11 doubles, a triple and a homerun for a .467 slugging percentage last season (2021).
• He was the conference batting champ with a .417 batting average and .567 slugging percentage in the shortened 2020 season.

SOMETHING TO PROVE

• Coming off a 16-25 record, the Lobos finished sixth in the conference last season, preceding only San Jose State
• The squad was voted to finish sixth in the preseason conference poll
• With an almost completely new coaching staff and roster, the Lobos are hoping to turn things around

NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK

• New Mexico’s 2022 squad includes 18 newcomers – three DI transfers, 12 JUCO transfers, and three true freshman.
• Of the three DI transfers, two hail from Power 5 schools (Kansas State and Texas Tech), along with Missouri Valley Conference winner Dallas Baptist.
• 11 transfers from highly regarded junior colleges also join the team, hailing from Yavapai College, Odessa College, St. John’s River State CC, Seminole State JC, Wabash Valley CC, Howard College and Lamar CC
• The squad also welcomes three true freshman, all three from the state of Texas

LIVELY UP THE PLACE

• Tristin Lively was named to the nine-player Preseason All-Mountain West team on February 10. The all-conference team is voted on by coaches around the league.
• Lively has the second-best ERA of returning starting pitchers for the Lobos (4.59 ERA in the spring of 2021.
• In 33.1 innings of work last season, he struck out 36 batters and held opponents to a .186 batting average.

I’M THE CAPTAIN NOW

• Prior to the start of the season, the 2022 squad voted on the team captains.
• The captains were selected solely by the student-athletes.
• Newcomers Kamron Willman and Cody Holtz, along with returner Adam Schneider were named the 2022 team captains

SCOUTING THE CRUSADERS

• Holy Cross is 0-4 to open the season after being swept by Troy.
• The Crusaders’ Jack DiLauro was named the Patriot League’s Pitcher of the Week after a six-inning start with nine strikeouts against Troy.
• Starting all four games for Holy Cross, Sam Kirkpatrick holds a .400 batting average with six hits, three runs and one RBI.

ON DECK

The squad travels to San Jose, Calif., to open up the Mountain West Schedule against the San Jose State Spartans on March 4-6.