Lobos square off against Arizona Tuesday, home this weekend
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – A midweek matchup at Arizona and an important Mountain West Conference series lie ahead this week for the New Mexico baseball team.
The Lobos (19-16, 7-10 MW) play at Arizona (22-15, 9-12 Pac 12) on Tuesday night with a 7 p.m. MDT first pitch. UNM then returns to conference play at home this weekend, with a three-game series against Fresno State kicking off on Friday night at Santa Ana Star Field.
Lobo Baseball Weekly Schedule
All times Mountain Daylight Time
Tuesday, April 25 – 7 p.m. – at Arizona
Friday, April 28 – 6 p.m. – vs. Fresno State
Saturday, April 29 – 2 p.m. – vs. Fresno State
Sunday, April 30 – Noon – vs. Fresno State
PLAYOFF PICTURE: Thirteen conference games remain on the regular-season schedule, as the Lobos enter the week in the thick of the postseason hunt. The Lobos are in fifth place in the Mountain West standings, with the top-four teams at the end of the regular season advancing to the conference tournament May 25-27 at Fresno State.
LAST WEEK: The Lobos dropped two of three games in their series at Air Force, winning the middle game of the set decisively while falling in the opener and finale. UNM also picked up a 13-0, 7-inning win at New Mexico State to even the Rio Grande Rivalry at 1-1 on the season.
UNM IN THE NCAA STAT RANKINGS: As of Monday, New Mexico ranked No. 3 in the NCAA with a team batting average of .332 on the season. The Lobos also ranked seventh in the country in triples with 18, 13th in scoring with 9.1 runs per game, 14th in slugging percentage at .547, and 16th in total hits with 432. The Lobo pitching staff ranked No. 11 in the nation in walks-per-9 innings at 3.19, and defensively UNM’s 0.91 double plays per game rank it 25th.
FOND MEMORIES LAST TIME AGAINS UA: The Lobos emerged the victor when the teams met last season on March 23, 2022, with all of the scoring in a 12-7 win being done in the first six innings. A grand slam by Justin Olson and a 3-for-5 performance by Jeffrey David keyed the Lobos’ upset of the No. 11 team in the NCAA rankings. The teams split a pair of games last year, with the Wildcats winning 12-5 on March 8, 2022 the last time the teams met in Tucson.
EXTRA MEANING FOR COACH BROWN: Tuesday’s game will carry some extra meaning for Lobo skipper Tod Brown, who returns to his alma mater for the second year in-a-row. The 1994 graduate helped lead the Wildcats to the 1992 Pac-10 Championship, a year before he set a record with 35 appearances with UA falling one game shy of the College World Series in 1993. Overall in his 16-year coaching career, Brown’s teams have faced the Wildcats 13 times collecting two wins.
SPENRATH TOP SLUGGER IN MW: Reed Spenrath unleashed three home runs in Sunday’s doubleheader, bumping his season total up to 12 as he is now two off Jay Thomason’s MW conference lead in the category. Spenrath upped his slugging percentage to .709 which leads the conference, and his OPS to 1.144 which ranks second. He also drove in 10 runs last week, and leads the league with 46 RBIs on the season. Spenrath has raised his batting average 76 points over the last 14 games, as he is up to .323 on the season. He has also been superb defensively at first base, committing just one error in 325 chances at first base for a .997 fielding percentage.
JACKSON LOOKS TO BUILD OFF BEST START YET: Jaren Jackson will get the nod on the mound for the second straight Tuesday, and is coming off his first shutout start as a Lobo. Jackson scattered five hits across five scoreless innings last Tuesday against New Mexico State, while striking out a season-high six and issuing just one walk. The left-hander improved to 2-0 on the season, and holds a 7.26 ERA entering Tuesday’s start against the Wildcats.
LIVELY SUPERB, AGAIN: Tristin Lively proved that his 8 1/3 three-hit shutout innings against Air Force on March 11 wasn’t a fluke, as he kept the Falcons silent once again. This time the senior right-hander allowed seven hits across seven shutout innings, while striking out three and walking two. Lively matched Riley Egloff for the Mountain West lead in wins with his fifth of the year, and he lowered his ERA to 2.62 which leads the conference among qualifiers.
MR. HOLLAND’S OPS: Jake Holland became the third player in the Mountain West to reach double figures in home runs, blasting a pair of long balls in the series finale against the Falcons. Holland had four RBIs in the game, and it was the second time this season he went yard twice as he also achieved the feat on March 3 against St. Bonaventure. Holland raised his slugging percentage to .689 to rank second in the conference, and his OPS reached 1.078 which ranks him fourth in the conference.
ASHBY EXTENDS HITTING STREAK: Lenny Junior Ashby had hits in all three of UNM’s games last week, extending his current hitting streak to 12 games which is the third-longest by a Lobo this season. Ashby also has a season-high 15-game reached base streak intact entering this week. The junior went 5-for-13 with a pair of RBIs in the series against the Falcons, and had a career-high six catches in the second game of the series. Ashby owns a slash line of .359/.436/.521 on the season. Ashby is also among the toughest players in the NCAA to strike out, owning a ratio of 10.1 which ranks him 54th among all Division I players.
DITZENBERGER LEADS MW IN HITTING: A 4-for-13 performance by Dylan Ditzenberger kept his lofty season batting average at .448, as he leads the Mountain West and ranks fourth in the country in hitting. The senior is also second in the NCAA in hits per game with 1.86 and 14th in runs per game with 1.39, with his 39 total runs scored leading the team. Ditzenberger is reaching base at a clip of .500 and is slugging .595, as he added his ninth double of the season last week.
RUNION KEEPS PRODUCING RBIS: Braydon Runion had RBIs in all three games last week, driving in eight total in the Lobos’ four games. Runion went 5-for-14 and scored seven times, while upping his double total to 11 on the season and hitting his fifth home run. Runion is slashing .366/.413/.577 while starting all 35 games during his senior season.
SMITH JUST MISSES CYCLE: Kyle Smith had a season-high three hits in Game 2 against Air Force, coming up a double shy of the cycle. His triple was his third of the year as was his home run, as he drove in a pair, walked, and stole a base. Smith has reached base in all 15 games in which he has come to the plate this season, and is slashing .283/.457/.604.
OLSON’S REACHED BASE STREAK REACHES NINE: Justin Olson got aboard in all three games last week, extending his string of games reaching to nine which is tied for third on the team. Olson was 2-for-7 with three runs scored and a double, and he owns a slash line of .372/.509/.767 entering this week’s games.
DAVID COLLECTS EIGHTH DOUBLE: Jeffrey David’s series against the Falcons included his eighth double of the season, and he had hits in all three games to maintain his .317 batting average. David ranks 24th in the NCAA with four triples this spring, and has driven in 35 runs.
DIXON’S ERRORLESS STRING CONTINUES: Devon Dixon played error-free defense in seven chances up the middle last week, extending his latest errorless streak to nine games and 36 chances during that span. Dixon owns a .971 fielding percentage, with just four errors in 139 total chances this spring.
WEISSENBORN RANKS AMONG LEAGUE’S TOP SHORTSTOPS: Chase Weissenborn ranks fifth in the Mountain West with 105 assists this spring, and owns a .959 fielding percentage in 35 games started at shortstop. The hometown junior is also tied for ninth in the conference with 20 double plays, and is coming off a career-high five putouts in the finale against Air Force. Like his double play partner, Weissenborn is in the midst of an errorless streak with no miscues in his last 25 chances over six games.
MARTINEZ LOGS FIRST SCORELESS OUTING: Freshman Jordan Martinez picked up the first shutout performance of his young career, keeping the Falcons off the scoreboard in 1 1/3 innings in the series finale. The right-hander allowed just a walk and a hit batter in the fourth appearance of his Lobo career.
EGLOFF, GALLEGOS GRIND THROUGH TRYING OUTINGS: Starters Riley Egloff and Isaac Gallegos each battled tough during trying outings against Air Force, which features one of the most difficult ballparks to pitch in. Egloff worked through 5 1/3 innings in his outing, surrendering five runs on 11 hits. Gallegos meanwhile lasted six innings against the Falcons, with only three of the six runs he allowed being earned. Gallegos ranks fourth in the conference with an opposing batting average of .233.
HERD PICKS UP PINCH HIT: Seeing action for the eighth time in his true freshman season, Caleb Herd answered the call with a pinch-hit single on Friday at Air Force. It was Herd’s third hit of the year, and he crossed the plate for the third run scored of his young career as well.
Arizona Wildcats
2023 Record: 22-15, 9-12 Pac 12
Head Coach: Chip Hale (2nd season)
All-Time Series: Arizona Leads 164-36
In Tucson: Arizona leads 109-16
First Meeting: 1940
Last Meeting: 3/23/2022
The Wildcats are coming off a three-game sweep of Utah to get back into the Pac 12 playoff race, and they enter Tuesday’s game on a five-game winning streak during which they’ve out-scored the opposition 78-24. After Tuesday’s game against the Lobos, Arizona will shift its focus to a three-game Pac 12 series at Oregon State this weekend.
Kiko Romero and Mac Bingham are Arizona’s top hitters, with averages of .372 and .370, respectively. Chase Davis is hitting .364 with a team-high 14 home runs, while Romero has hit 12 long balls and leads the team with 55 RBIs and six stolen bases. Arizona is hitting .323 as a team with 56 home runs, and is averaging 8.73 runs per game.
The Lobos are expected to see right-hander Cam Walty on Tuesday, who is 2-0 with a 4.12 ERA across six appearances and 19 2/3 innings pitched. Bradon Zastrow and Aiden May are the top starters for Arizona, with May leading the team at 46 strikeouts in 48 innings to go along with a 6.00 ERA. Zastrow holds an ERA of 4.66 with 41 strikeouts in 48 1/3 innings. Trevor Long has four of Arizona’s five saves, while appearing in 20 games out of the bullpen and holding a 4.91 ERA. As a team, Arizona has a 5.45 ERA and the opposition is batting .293 against it.