Lobos Begin MW Schedule at Utah State
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.— It’s conference time and the Lobos open the MW schedule on the road at Utah State for a three-game series starting Friday. All games will be streamed on the Mountain West Network with live stats available.
SCHEDULE
FRIDAY
4 p.m.
SATURDAY
12 p.m.
SUNDAY
12 p.m.
UNM’s last win in Logan was May 14, 2021 with the Lobos winning the series 2-1, however, the Aggies have won the last four games in the series. USU shares three non-conference opponents with the Lobos in Cal State Bakersfield (W, 10-2 (5) and 3-2 (9)), GCU (L, 5-0) and Santa Clara (L, 5-1, 9-3 and 9-6).
The Lobos enter conference play 12-15 while Utah State is 8-12.
BY THE NUMBERS
UNM is 8-1 when scoring first and 10-1 when scoring in the 1st inning
Lobos are 9-0 when leading after the 4th, 6-0 when leading after the 5th and 8-0 when leading after the 6th.
In UNM’s 12 wins, 3 have been of the run-rule variety, the Lobos have scored 10 or more runs in 3 and scored 8 or more runs in 6.
UNM leads the MW in hits (214), triples (6), total bases (298) and turned double plays (13), is second in batters struck out (137) and third in runs scored (125), RBI (113) and hit-by-pitches (21)
UNM is 18th in the NCAA in double plays per game (0.48).
Rachael Hathoot leads the MW in triples with three and has a seven-game hitting streak and 12 game streak of reaching base.
Five players have a streak of five games or longer of reaching base (Rachael Hathoot- 12, Olivia Birkinshaw-7, Keyannah Chavez-6, Lauren Garcia- 6, Peyton Robinson-5). Hathoot (7) and Robinson (5) have the longest hitting streaks on the team.
Amber Linton is 12th in the NCAA in strikeouts with 98, sixth in innings pitched (91.1).
30 FOR 30
The Lobos are a perfect 30-30 in stolen bases this season with 11 players having at least one stolen base.
Peyton Robinson leads with 13 stolen bases, followed by five from Rachael Hathoot, three from Keyannah Chavez and two for Olivia Birkinshaw. Seven players (Chloe Yeatts, Loran Walker, Emma Bramson, Ashley Archuleta, Janae Cameron, Evany Gonzalez and Grace Rana) have one.
UNM had four stolen bases in each of the games against Cal State Bakersfield and 19 games with a stolen base, including the last five games. UNM has had multiple stolen bases in six games.
KEEP THEM GUESSING
UNM has used 25 different lineups this season, using only the same batting order in the first two games and in both games on March 11 against Buffalo and Texas Tech.
The Lobos have had five different players hit second, five different players hit third, four different players in the cleanup spot, six different players hit fifth, eight different players hit sixth, nine different players hit seventh, eight different players hit eighth and five different players hit ninth.
Peyton Robinson has hit leadoff in 26 games, with Keyannah Chavez second in 15 games, Rachael Hathoot third in 16 games (including the last 12 and 15 of the last 16) and Lauren Garcia has hit in the cleanup spot in nine of the last 10 games.
When it comes to the lineup per position, the Lobos have had just three players start all 27 games at the same position: Rachael Hathoot (shortstop), Keyannah Chavez (left) and Peyton Robinson (center).
Five different players have started at catcher, five different players have started at first, three different players have started at third and four different players have been the DP.
The Lobos are also versatile in their positions as Emma Bramson has started 16 games at third and five at second and Loran Walker has started six games at third, three at catcher and one game at first. Olivia Birkinshaw has played two games in right field, three as the designated player and played the last five games at third and Chloe Yeatts has started at catcher in 16 games, as the designated player in five and at first in one game.
THE COMEBACK x2
The Lobos have twice rallied late in a game to earn the win: the 7-6 win over Charlotte and the 7-6 win over Manhattan.
The Lobos trailed four times against Charlotte and responded each time to either tie or take the lead. The Niners again took the lead in the top of the sixth on three-straight singles, all with two outs, although the lead was short lived as Olivia Birkinshaw led off the bottom half with a home run to center. Lauren Garcia followed that up by reaching on an error by the Charlotte right fielder, taking second on the play, and Chloe Yeatts put the Lobos back in front at 5-4 with a single to the outfield.
Charlotte reclaimed the lead in the top of the seventh on a two-run home run and down to their final two outs, Keyannah Chavez got the rally started with a single through the left side and Rachael Hathoot drove her in on a double to left field to tie the game at six. Birkinshaw ended the game on the next at-bat with a double of her own scoring Hathoot for the walk-off.
Trailing 6-4 in the sixth inning against Manhattan, New Mexico had its first four hitters reach with Hathoot scoring Jenna Trim on a ball that dropped in shallow right field to make it a one-run game before the inning came to an end with bases loaded.
Down to the final two outs and facing a full count, Maddie Boldt tied the game on a home run to center for her fourth of the season. Amber Linton entered in the bottom of the seventh and allowed just an infield single before getting outs two and three on swinging strikeouts to send the game to extra innings. In the ninth, Ashley Archuleta led off with a single to the outfield and following a fielder’s choice and a flyout to right, Trim kept the inning going with a four-pitch walk. With the lineup turned over, and after fouling off six pitches, Peyton Robinson hit a double to right center to score Yeatts from second to give UNM its first lead since 4-3 in the second inning. Linton left no chance of a rally, retiring the side to secure the Lobo win.
LIFE ON THE ROAD
The Lobos last played at home on March 1 and counting the three Utah State games will have played their last 13 games on the road.