Preview: Senior Day Sunday caps home finale
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The final home series of the 2023 season for the New Mexico baseball team kicks off on Friday afternoon, with Senior Day on Sunday capping a four-game set with Mountain West foe Nevada.
The Lobos (24-19, 11-12 MW) are in the heat of the Mountain West tournament race, entering the week in fifth place and two games behind fourth-place Fresno State. The Lobos have seven games remaining on their schedule, with a three-game series at San Diego State on May 18-20 closing out the regular season.
Lobo Baseball Weekend Schedule
All times listed are Mountain Daylight Time
Friday, May 12 – 2 p.m. – vs. Nevada (Game 1)
Friday, May 12 – Immediately following Game 1 – Makeup game for March 26 (Nevada plays as the home team)
May 13 – 6 p.m. – vs. Nevada (Game 2)
May 14 – Noon – vs. Nevada (Game 3)
The weekend schedule was modified to include a makeup game between the teams, as their series finale in Reno on March 26 was postponed due to weather. The makeup game will be played as the second game of a doubleheader on Friday, with New Mexico playing as the visiting team on the scoreboard.
New Mexico won the first two games of the year between the teams, beating the Wolf Pack 9-5 on March 24 and doubling down with a 12-1 triumph the following afternoon.
WEEKEND PROMOTIONS: Friday will be the Lobos’ annual Spring Cleaning game presented by IBEW, with giveaways throughout the doubleheader. Admission for Saturday’s 6 p.m. game is free for all fans, and it will double as Lobos Love Pink presented by UNM Comprehensive Cancer Center. On Sunday, children ages 12 and under will receive free admission and will be able to run the bases after the game.
SENIOR SALUTE: Prior to Sunday’s noon first pitch, a pregame Senior Day ceremony will take place on the field at 11:35 a.m. The Lobos will honor a total of 14 seniors on Mother’s Day, after which mothers of players in attendance will throw out a collective first pitch to their sons.
LAST TIME OUT: The Lobos are looking to bounce back after dropping their series at UNLV 2-1 last weekend in Las Vegas. UNM claimed the opener 13-5 to match its season high with five straight wins, before the Rebels claimed victories of 7-5 and 8-3.
LOBOS IN THE NCAA STAT RANKINGS: New Mexico leads the NCAA in hitting for the second straight week, boasting a .338 team batting average entering the weekend. The Lobos also checked in at No. 3 in slugging percentage at .577, sixth in triples with 21, seventh in scoring with 9.3 runs per game, eighth in hits with 547 and doubles per game with 2.47, and No. 16 in home runs per game with 1.84. On the pitching side, UNM ranks sixth in the nation in walks-per-9 innings with 3.06 and 14th in double plays per game with 0.95.
NEW MEXICO CRACKS TOP-10 LISTS: With 79 home runs this season, the Lobos moved to No. 5 in school single-season history in the category. The school record of 93 home runs was established during the 2003 campaign. UNM’s .577 slugging percentage is second-highest in school history, with the record of .604 being set in 1986. Defensively, the Lobos’ .973 fielding percentage is tied for the third-best in school single-season history, alongside the 2008 team.
SPENRATH THE MW HR LEADER: Reed Spenrath crushed three more home runs last week, surpassing Air Force’s Jay Thomason for the Mountain West lead in long balls with 18 this spring. Spenrath also leads the league in slugging at .789 and in RBIs with 59, while holding a .348 batting average and scoring 51 runs. Spenrath’s 1.40 RBIs per game rank him 14th in college baseball, and he also ranks 16th in home runs per game with 0.43 and slugging percentage, and 25th in total home runs. Spenrath enters the weekend 12 hits shy of 200 in his collegiate career.
WEISSENBORN CONNECTS ON FIRST CAREER HR: Chase Weissenborn hit the first home run of his collegiate career last week, clearing the fence in left-center in the series-opener against the Rebels in his 371st collegiate at-bat. It was the 99th hit of his collegiate career, and the junior reached the century mark later in the game with his first of two doubles. It was his first-career multi-double game, as Weissenborn upped his season total to nine. Overall he went 6-for-11 in the series, upping his batting average to .295 on the season.
EGLOFF, LIVELY TO MAKE FINAL HOME STARTS: Seniors Riley Egloff and Tristin Lively will make the final starts of their careers at Santa Ana Star Field on Friday night, as the Lobos will piggyback the rotation stalwarts in the doubleheader. Egloff is coming off matching his career high with nine strikeouts last week, as he logged seven solid innings to pick up his sixth victory of the season. That tied him with Lively for the Mountain West lead in victories, and moved him one win away from 20 across his five collegiate seasons. Egloff also crossed the 200-strikeout threshold, as he enters the weekend with 210 punch outs in his college career. Lively meanwhile ranks 66th in the NCAA in walks-per-9 innings with 2.05, and he leads the team with 55 punchouts this year against just 15 free passes. Lively has won 12 games in his career at UNM, and has reached single-season highs in innings (66.0), strikeouts, and starts (11) in his senior season.
HOLLAND NAMED TO BUSTER POSEY AWARD WATCH LIST: Junior catcher Jake Holland was named to the 2023 Buster Posey Collegiate Catcher of the Year watch list this week, slotting his name next to the top backstops in the NCAA. Holland owns a slash line of .357/.391/.690 in his first season with New Mexico, with his slugging percentage ranking second in the conference and his OPS of 1.081 ranking third. Holland is also third in the league with 12 home runs, and he has driven in 39 in his 34 games played.
RUNION’S 200TH HIT A DOUBLE: Braydon Runion notched his 200th-collegiate hit in the series opener at UNLV, and it was his team-leading 18th double of the season. Runion also has eight home runs and three triples, which contribute to his lofty slash line of .366/.403/.628. Entering the weekend, Runion leads the team and ranks third in the conference with 67 hits, and his 49 RBIs rank him fourth in the league. Runion has 47 career doubles and 37 career home runs, while holding a .327 batting average across his 183 collegiate games played. Runion also reached 150-career RBIs last week, and is a career .610 slugger.
STEINKAMP’S STREAK REACHES EIGHT IP: Left-hander Arthur Steinkamp had two more shutout appearances last week, keeping the Rebels quiet in 2 2/3 innings of work. The junior struck out three while walking none, and allowed three hits in the two appearances. Steinkamp has a team-high scoreless inning streak of 8.0 across his last four outings, and he has not walked a hitter since April 2 over seven outings. In 18 innings pitched this spring, Steinkamp holds a 2.00 ERA.
ASHBY CONTINUES ON THE RISE: On March 31 Lenny Junior Ashby was hitting .323 – his lowest batting average of the season. In the 20 games since then, the junior slugger has raised his average nearly 50 points, as he has climbed to .371 which ranks him third in the Mountain West. Ashby has collected three or more hits in three of his last seven games, and he upped his double total to 15 on the season to go along with six homers and 42 RBIs.
OLSON ADDS ANOTHER LONG BALL: Justin Olson connected for his 11th home run of the season in the series at UNLV, as he maintained a slugging percentage of .922 on the season. That mark would lead the conference by more than 100 points, but Olson’s 64 at-bats are below the limit to qualify for percentage-based statistics. Despite starting just 15 games, Olson ranks fourth in the conference in home runs and has managed to drive in 26 on the season. He is hitting .375 and reaching base at a clip of .518
DITZ RETURNS TO LINEUP: Battling an injury across the second half of the season, senior star Dylan Ditzenberger returned to the lineup last week and had four hits in nine at-bats for the Lobos. Ditzenberger maintained his batting average at .441, which ranks him fifth in the NCAA entering the weekend. The fifth-year senior who will be honored on Sunday is eight hits shy of 200 in his collegiate career, which began with five seasons at Kansas from 2018-22. He is also three RBIs shy of the century mark, and on Friday he will play in his 202nd collegiate baseball game.
GALLEGOS NOTCHES SEASON HIGH: Isaac Gallegos had a season-high eight strikeouts in his turn in Las Vegas, limiting the Rebels to four runs on six hits in six innings of work. That upped the Lobo newcomer’s season strikeout tally to 53, and it was his third appearance this season with at least seven punchouts in a game. Gallegos leads the team with a 3.53 ERA, and his opponents’ batting average of .233 is tied for second-best in the Mountain West. The next win for Gallegos will be the 20th of his collegiate career.
DIXON STAYS HOT: Like Ashby, Devon Dixon has been on a tear at the plate as of late and has elevated his batting average to .299 with his current seven-game hitting streak. That is up 47 points from where he was on April 25, as Dixon has gone 13-for-27 (.481) during that span. Dixon hit his sixth home run of the year last week, and had multiple hits in all three games against the Rebels. Defensively, he has committed just five errors in 164 chances primarily at second base, equating to a .971 fielding percentage.
STILL PUTS UP ZEROS: Sophomore lefty Justin Still contributed a pair of scoreless outings last week at UNLV, totaling 1 1/3 innings and allowing just one baserunner. That gave him 10 shutout appearances among his 16 games played this season, and he has 15 strikeouts in 19 1/3 innings of work.
SMITH’S STREAK ENDS: Kyle Smith had the second-longest reached base streak of the year for the Lobos come to an end, as an 0-for-4 at UNLV snapped a string of 18 consecutive games reaching. Smith also had a seven-game hitting streak during that time, and he is hitting .288 with five home runs and 13 RBIs in 17 games started this season. Smith has also been perfect defensively in 119 chances primarily behind the plate.
DAVID CLOSES IN ON 150 HITS: Jeffrey David enters the week with 148 hits in his career, and is also approaching 100-career RBIs with 93 to his name thus far. David tallied his 11th double of the season last week at UNLV, and is hitting .297 on the year while starting 39 games.
PIGFORD PLAYS AT HOME A FINAL TIME: Farmington native Deylan Pigford will play in front of his home crowd for the final time in his five-year collegiate career this weekend, and has played 186 collegiate baseball games at three different schools up to this point. Pigford is hitting .312 for the Lobos this spring, with nine doubles, three triples, and five home runs.
ITURRALDE AMONG SENIORS: Los Lunas native Adolfo Iturralde will see his collegiate career come to a close this spring, and the right-hander has been an effective option for the Lobos out of the bullpen. Iturralde has allowed zero runs in five of his seven appearances this spring, including each of his last two outings. He has struck out seven hitters in seven innings while allowing just one walk, and holds a 2.57 ERA. Overall in his four-year collegiate career, Iturralde has made 29 appearances while winning five games and striking out 112 hitters in 100 2/3 innings pitched.
DEWYER TO BE HONORED SUNDAY: Trent Dewyer will also be among the seniors honored on Sunday, as he closes his collegiate career in his lone season with the Lobos. Dewyer made one appearance this season, throwing 1 2/3 scoreless innings against St. Bonaventure on March 4 at home. A native of Albuquerque, Dewyer transferred back to his hometown team after stints at Luna Community College and Kansas Wesleyan University. Overall in his four collegiate seasons, Dewyer earned 10 wins in 30 appearances while striking out 171 hitters in 161 innings and holding a 4.30 ERA.
University of Nevada Wolf Pack
2023 Record: 18-28, 8-15 Mountain West
Head Coach: Jake McKinley
All-Time Series: Nevada leads 29-26
In Albuquerque: Nevada leads 15-12
First Meeting: 3/6/1994
Last Meeting: 3/25/2023
While Nevada’s hopes for the postseason aren’t nonexistent, the team faces must-win games for the final seven contests on its schedule. The Wolf Pack is coming off a 2-1 series loss to Fresno State, and a 10-9 defeat at the hands of Arizona on Wednesday night in Tucson. After the four games at New Mexico this weekend, Nevada closes the regular season with a three-game series at San Jose State on May 18-20.
Matt Clayton and Jesse Pierce are the top hitters for Nevada, with that duo combining for 19 home runs and being the lone hitters north of .300 on the season. Clayton’s 33 RBIs lead the team with Pierce close behind at 32. Henry Strmecki is third on the squad with eight home runs to go along with 28 RBIs, and he holds a .299 batting average. As a team Nevada is hitting .263 and is averaging 5.82 runs per game.
The Lobos will likely see the three regular starters for Nevada this weekend, with Peyton Stumbo, Kade Morris, and Jason Doktorczyk being the most consistent arms this season. Morris leads the squad with 76 strikeouts in 71 innings pitched, while Doktorczyk has 52 punchouts in 62 1/3 frames. Stumbo has the top ERA among the starters at 4.88, and has 49 strikeouts in 51 2/3 innings pitched. Kolby Kmetko leads the team with six saves, and has a 6.97 ERA across 20 appearances out of the bullpen. The pitching staff holds a team ERA of 6.17 and the opposition is hitting .282 off Nevada arms.