On Senior Day, Lobos prevail 7-3 over Wolf Pack
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – A stellar start by Jaren Jackson was backed by late offense on Sunday afternoon at Santa Ana Star Field, as the New Mexico baseball team prevailed 7-3 over Mountain West foe Nevada in the final home game of the 2023 season.
The junior left-hander pitched into the seventh inning, allowing no runs on four hits with five strikeouts and three walks. Jackson collected his third win of the season with the 101-pitch effort, before giving way to Brian McBroom and Arthur Steinkamp who finished the victory for the Lobos.
Chase Weissenborn’s bases-clearing double in the bottom of the sixth inning proved to be the turning point in the game, and Justin Olson and Konner Kinkade followed with back-to-back home runs in the seventh to secure the win. New Mexico kept its postseason hopes alive with the triumph, improving to 26-21 overall and 13-14 in Mountain West play with three conference games left on the schedule.
Seven different Nevada players each had one hit in the game, while Henry Strmecki drove in two of the visitors’ three runs. The Wolf Pack fell to 20-30 overall and is now 10-17 in conference play with the defeat.
Jackson worked a 1-2-3 top of the first inning, which included a strikeout and another sliding back-hand play by Chase Weissenborn at short.
Braydon Runion hit his team-leading 22nd double of the season and the 50th of his collegiate career in the bottom of the first, but he was stranded in scoring position as Nevada starter Jacob Biesterfeld worked around the early baserunner. Biesterfeld and Jackson locked into a pitcher’s duel from the start, with each logging five shutout innings.
Nevada managed just two baserunners in scoring position through the first six innings of the game, with Weissenborn and Kinkade turning a double play in the fifth inning to negate a leadoff single. Devon Dixon took away a leadoff single in the sixth, making a fully-extended diving catch on a line drive to his left off the bat of Matt Clayton.
The Lobo offense came to life in the bottom of the frame, when walks issued to Reed Spenrath and Olson sandwiched a fly out off the bat of Jake Holland that carried all the way to the wall in straightaway center. Dixon had the breakthrough knock, poking a double into the left-field corner that brought home Spenrath to make the score 1-0. After Kyle Smith was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Weissenborn shot the gap in right-center to score all three runs and give Jackson a 4-0 cushion.
Jackson struck out two more hitters in the top of the seventh, before a single by Mason Hirata spelled the end of his outing. McBroom got Nolan Wilson to fly out to leave two runners aboard and keep the score at 4-0.
The Lobos struck again with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, with Holland blasting a double to right-center and Olson delivering his 12th home run of the season over the fence in right. Kinkade then smashed a hooking fly ball off the left-field foul pole, upping the spread to 7-0.
Nevada gave itself a chance in the eighth inning, with Jesse Pierce hitting a one-out double, JR Freethy driving him in with a single, and Strmecki homering to left-center to make it a 7-3 ballgame. That proved to be all of the scoring the visitors could muster however, as McBroom recorded the final out before handing the ball off to the left-hander. Steinkamp recorded a spotless ninth inning, extending his scoreless inning streak to 11 2/3 frames across his last six outings.
Holland finished 3-for-4 and Weissenborn was 2-for-4 to lead the Lobos offensively. New Mexico made it 16 consecutive games with a home run, and upped its season total to 85 which tied for the third-most in UNM single-season history.
LOBO NOTES: New Mexico is now 28-31 all-time against Nevada and is 14-17 in home games against the Pack…Olson’s home run was the 23rd of his collegiate career…Kinkade’s home run was the second of his collegiate career…Jackson’s win was the 18th of his collegiate career…New Mexico claimed the season series between the teams 4-2.
NEXT WEEK: The regular season concludes with a Tuesday night game at New Mexico State and a three-game road series at San Diego State to conclude the conference calendar.