Lobos Host No. 17 Texas Tech, UNLV This Week at Home
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico Baseball plays four games at home this week to close out a 12-game homestand, hosting No. 17 Texas Tech on Tuesday for the Lobos’ final nonconference game before Mountain West play begins against UNLV March 8-10.
The Lobos (7-5) won back-to-back games to secure the series split in their four-game set with Hofstra last weekend, dropping a pair of one-run games with a tying run on third in the first two (9-10, 15-16) before hitting six homers over the next two games – three of which from Jake Holland with two more from Tye Wood – en route to comfortable 11-7 and 9-6 wins to avoid the series loss. They enter the week ranking No. 4 in NCAA D-I in double plays (14) and No. 11 in walks (85)
The Red Raiders (9-2) – No. 17 in this week’s NCAA/D1Baseball.com Top 25 – will be the second ranked opponent the Lobos face this season after opening the season against then-No. 7 Oregon State in Surprise, Ariz. UNLV (9-3, 2-1 MW) was picked to finish sixth in the conference, but is off to a hot start and leads the MW in a variety of offensive categories.
Tuesday’s midweek matchup is set for a 2 p.m. first pitch, with Friday’s MW opener set for a 2 p.m. start, Saturday’s at 2 p.m. and Sunday’s series finale at Noon. All four games will be streamed via the Mountain West Network at GoLobos.com/Watch. Follow @UNMLoboBaseball on socials for game day updates, behind-the-scenes content and more.
THIS WEEKEND’S PROMO
The first 100 fans in the door for Tuesday’s game vs. Texas Tech will receive free t-shirts. MWC Opening Weekend promos include a croakie giveaway on Friday, a student raffle on Saturday and Kid’s Day on Sunday.
vs. No. 17 TEXAS TECH (9-2)
March 5 | Albuquerque, N.M. | Santa Ana Star Field
Probable Starters: RHP Wyatt Hardy (UNM) vs. LHP Taber Fast (TTU)
vs. UNLV (9-3, 2-1 MW)
March 8-10 | Albuquerque, N.M. | Santa Ana Star Field
Probable Starters (FRI): RHP David Lopez vs. RHP Austin Cates
Probable Starters (SAT): LHP Daxton Purser vs. RHP Sam Simon
Probable Starters (SUN): RHP Wil Bannister vs. RHP Albert Roblez
ALL-TIME SERIES (Texas Tech)
UNM is 49-80-1 against Texas Tech all-time, but the Lobos are 29-25-1 against the Red Raiders at home and the two teams have split their last four meetings in the 2022 and 2023 seasons. The Lobos’ two wins in that span both came by the same score of 11-10, and both were at Santa Ana Star Field. Last season, Jake Holland walked off the Red Raiders – ranked No. 22 at that point – in the bottom of the ninth with a solo homer to avenge a 6-3 previous loss in Lubbock earlier that season.
ALL-TIME SERIES (UNLV)
UNM trails the all-time series 86-102, but holds a 42-29 advantage over the Rebels at home. The Lobos only faced UNLV for one series last season, taking a game off the Rebels but dropping the series (13-5, 5-7, 3-8). This will be the first time UNLV plays at Santa Ana Star Field since April 1-3, 2022. A series win for UNM would be the first since 2019.
LAST TIME OUT (VS. TEXAS TECH, 3/5)
UNM took an 8-7 lead heading into the seventh against No. 17 Texas Tech in midweek action Tuesday at Santa Ana Star Field, but the Lobos were kept off the board the rest of the way after a four-run sixth in response to fall 11-8.
Down 7-0 heading into the bottom of the second, the Lobos stormed back with four runs in the second and three more in the third to tie things, taking their first lead of the game on a fielder’s choice knock from Konner Kinkade, who drove in a career-high four RBI. But the Red Raiders’ four runs in response in the top of the fourth were enough to last the rest of the way as neither team scored again.
Devon Dixon went 3-for-5 – matching a career-high he’d notched just three times in his career prior – to lead a 12-hit outing for UNM, with Sean Stephens (1 R, 2 RBI) and Kinkade (4 RBI) both adding two knocks each.
In his season debut, Akili Carris got the start at third base and picked up his first career RBI with a double and Khalil Walker (2 R, 1 RBI), Tye Wood (2 R), Reed Spenrath (1 R), and Will Asby all added a hit each. UNM actually outhit Texas Tech 12-11, with four Lobos connecting on a two-bagger each.
SPENRATH BACK ON TRACK
After going hitless through UNM’s first four games and striking out six times in that span, Preseason All-MW First Baseman Reed Spenrath is back to his old ways – he’s now riding a nine-game hit streak, with multiple hits in four of those games to go with six doubles and a triple. He’s yet to exit the yard, though – he hit a team-high 19 homers last season for UNM.
Pitchers have been throwing carefully to Spenrath – he’s drawn a walk in 10 out of his 13 games this season, with a career-high four against Hofstra on Saturday. Spenrath still has a 16-game on base streak dating back to the end of the 2023 season, even though he didn’t have a hit this season until Feb. 22. He drew one walk in each of his first five games.
LOBOS SHOWING SOME POWER
UNM’s bats caught fire in the four-game series against Hofstra last weekend, with the Lobos’ connecting on eight homers in that span after only hitting six in the eight games previous. The Lobos have hit multiple homers in three of their last six games, including a season-high four homers against Hofstra in the second leg of a doubleheader on March 2.
In UNM’s last five games, Jake Holland has hit three homers and Tye Wood has hit two – with the second being UNM’s first grand slam of the season. Ethan Ott, Will Asby and Kyle Smith all added on each.
UNM has hit 17 doubles in its last five games as well, with a season-high six against Hofstra on March 1 and four against No. 17 Texas Tech on Tuesday. Spenrath has led the way in that span with four doubles, with Will Asby adding three more and Ott, Josh McAlister, Smith and Devon Dixon all adding two each. McAlister also added a triple to make it a total of 26 extra bases hits since last Friday.
LOPEZ SETTLING INTO FRIDAY ROLE
RHP David Lopez (will be making his fourth start of the season and second Friday start after proving himself as one of the Lobos’ most durable arms through 14 ⅔ innings of work. He’s notched five strikeouts in each of his last two starts while walking two or less in both, holding Hofstra to just one extra base hit in an efficient outing last Friday (5 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K).
PURSER AND BANNISTER BACK ON THE BUMP
LHP Daxton Purser (10.2 IP, 3.38 ERA) and RHP Wil Bannister (12.2 IP, 5.68 ERA) will both reprise their starting roles from last weekend – Purser’s second career start and Bannister’s third. Purser posted a team-best 3.38 ERA over two appearances last weekend for a total of 5 ⅓ innings of work, holding Hofstra to two earned runs in that span and blanking them for the first three innings for the first time all weekend in a crucial series finale to help the Lobos secure the split. Bannister earned the win in his second start last weekend, striking out three while minimizing the damage from nine Hofstra hits to hold them to just five runs during his time on the mound.
SCOUTING THE REBELS
The Rebels enter the weekend 9-3, with series wins over Pacific and Bradley and midweek wins over then-No. 23 Stanford and Utah Tech before MW play began. UNLV has already started off Mountain West play with a series win, beating San Jose State last weekend in two out of three (23-5, 8-7, 13-16) but falling to BYU in midweek action on Tuesday (4-6) to move to 3-2 over the last five. Austin Kryszczuk led the Rebels with seven RBI over the three-game weekend series while batting .333 on the weekend – four other Rebels drove in at least four runs and eight batted above .300 in that span.
Friday starter Austin Cates didn’t allow a single run on five hits last weekend, striking out 11 while only walking one. He’s one of four UNLV throwers who posted a 0.00 ERA in the series.
LAST WEEKEND
– Sean Stephens (8 H) and Reed Spenrath (7 H) both batted .500 over the series to lead all Lobos who appeared in all four games, with eight Lobos batting above .300 on the weekend and 10 picking up at least three hits in that span. Stephens went 4-for-5 on stolen bases against Hofstra, with the rest of team combined going 1-for-3.
– Jake Holland drove in a team-high eight runs on 1.083 slugging — seven of which being in the last two games — and Kyle Smith added seven more in just two games, with Tye Wood, Ethan Ott and Will Asby all finishing with five each.
– UNM batted .355 as a team on the weekend, outslugging Hofstra .631 to .523 while connecting on 22 extra base hits to the Pride’s 18. Hofstra was a perfect 15-for-15 on stolen bases headed into last weekend but were caught stealing three times against UNM.
– As a team, the Lobos got on base at a .484 clip — all but two Lobo batters finished the series with multiple walks, with Spenrath and Mansy both drawing a team-high six.
LOBOS SWINGING HOT BATS
– UNM improved its team batting average for a second consecutive weekend after batting .353 over last weekend — the Lobos now tout a .315 team average, up from their .291 average after eight games and a .219 average through their first four. They’re also leading the conference and rank No. 11 in NCAA D-I in walks, drawing 85 in total.
– Reed Spenrath and Sean Stephens are both riding impressive on-base and hitting streaks — Spenrath has reached base successfully in 15 straight games dating back to last season and has picked up a hit in eight straight, while Stephens has reached safely in 10 straight with a five-game hit streak. Stephens has connected on two or more hits in four of his last five, while Spenrath has finished with multiple hits in three of his last five.
MOUNTAIN WEST BREAKDOWN
Through 12 games, the Lobos lead the Mountain West in 7 statistical categories:
– On Base Percentage (.444)
– Doubles (30)
– Home Runs (14)
– Walks (85)
– Putouts (309)
– Double Plays (14)
– Saves (4)
The Lobos rank second in the conference in 10 more categories — they’re just behind this weekend’s opponents UNLV in seven of them.
– Batting Average (.315)
– Slugging Percentage (.511)
– Runs Scored (101)
– Hits (129)
– RBI (93)
– Total Bases (209)
– Stolen Bases (12)
– Batters Struck Out (98)
– Batters Struck Out Looking (33)
– Wins (7)
SEASON-OPENING NOTES / EARLY RETURNS
– UNM looks to improve its standing in the Mountain West for a third consecutive season – the Lobos finished sixth (10-20 MW) in Brown’s first season as head coach in 2022 and narrowly missed out on the conference tournament with a fifth-place finish (13-17 MW) in 2023.
– The Lobos’ offense in 2023 was one of their most productive in recent memory – UNM’s .328 team batting average was the third-best in the NCAA and best in the Mountain West, as well as the Lobos’ best since 2013.
– UNM’s 26-25 record in 2023 was the most wins since 2017 and first winning season since then (not counting UNM’s 14-4 record in the canceled COVID season of 2020).
– Reed Spenrath has been named to the Mountain West Baseball Preseason All-Conference Team, with the Lobos picked fifth in the preseason poll as voted on by the league’s coaches. Spenrath was named to D1Baseball.com’s Top 50 First Baseman rankings last week, coming in at No. 46 in the nation. He was named one of three captains for this year’s Lobos squad along with fellow seniors Chase Weissenborn and Brett Russell.
BROWN’S PROGRAM-BUILDING RESUME
– In his first five seasons as head coach at North Dakota State, Brown’s teams improved their winning percentage in each season, going from 15-30 (.333) in his first season in 2008 to 40-20 (.667) in 2012 and finishing each of the next nine seasons above .400. The Bison reached the Summit League tournament eight times in that span, advancing to NCAA Regionals in 2014 and 2021.
– Brown coached the Bison to 40-win seasons in 2012 and 2021.
– In Brown’s second season at UNM, the Lobos improved to 26-25 from 21-33 the year prior, with the highest team batting average since 2013 (.328) and lowest team ERA since 2016 (5.95).
– In 16 years as a D-I Head Coach, Brown has finished the season above .400 13 times and above .500 five times – the only three seasons in which he’s finished below .400 were his first two years in Grand Forks (2008, 2009) and his first season in Albuquerque (2022).
SPENRATH CRACKS THE TOP 50 1B’S
– UNM Senior First Baseman Reed Spenrath was named to D1Baseball.com’s Top 50 first baseman rankings, coming in at No. 46 in the nation. A first-team all-conference selection in first season with the Lobos, Spenrath led the team and ranked second in the conference in 2023 with 19 home runs – the sixth-most in a single season in program history – and 65 RBIs. The 6’5” power hitter also led the team and ranked third in the conference with 54 runs scored, batting .321 while reaching base at a clip of .421. He finished the season with 16 multi-hit games and 18 multi-RBI games.
YOUR 2024 LOBOS ROSTER
– UNM’s 2024 roster includes 16 returning players with 24 newcomers – the Lobos return seven position players who started at least 10 games in 2023 and losing six.
– Of the Lobos’ newcomers, 8 are freshmen and 16 are transfers – 12 from junior colleges and four from four-year institutions.
– 29 players are upperclassmen – 13 seniors and 16 juniors – the most upperclassmen Brown has had on a roster in Albuquerque.
PITCHING ROUNDUP
– The Lobos lost three weekend starters (Tristin Lively, Riley Egloff, Isaac Gallegos) to graduation and the MLB Draft, but return LHP Jaren Jackson, who made eight starts last season while pitching the most innings of any returner (44.2 IP).
– Five returners – Brian McBroom, Arthur Steinkamp, Ben Baker-Livingston, Justin Still and Wil Bannister — all saw significant action in ‘23. UNM brings in 12 incoming pitchers this season – eight transfers and four freshmen.
– Steinkamp posted the lowest ERA of any pitcher with more than two appearances in 2023 (2.81), going his final 10 appearances without walking a single batter and only walking four on the season.
– McBroom led the Lobos with 25 appearances all out of the bullpen in ‘23, leading the team and ranking seventh in the conference with three saves while allowing zero or one earned runs in 20 appearances.
RETURNER-FILLED LINEUP
– UNM returns three starters that batted above .300 in 2023 – Jake Holland (.333), Reed Spenrath (.321) and Sean Stephens (.349). Spenrath and Holland led the team in slugging percentage last year, with Spenrath slugging at a .721 clip and Holland at .633, good for second and fourth-best in the Mountain West that season.
– The Lobos also return senior middle infield duo Chase Weissenborn (.291) and Devon Dixon (.274). Weissenborn is the Lobos’ only returning player who started every game in 2023. Dixon and Weissenborn both connected on 10 doubles each last season.
– Other experienced seniors include catcher/DH Kyle Smith (20 starts in ‘23, 5 HR, 13 RBI) and infielder Konner Kinkade (10 starts, 35 appearances, 4 2B, 12 RBI). Both have earned multiple starts through the first eight games.
2023 BY THE NUMBERS
– UNM’s .328 batting average in 2023 was its highest since 2013 – The Lobos led the Mountain West in that category and ranked third nationally.
– The Lobos hit 87 home runs – their most since 2003. That total led the Mountain West and is the third most in program history.
– UNM slugged .559 on the season, the sixth-highest in program history and highest since 2003, leading the Mountain West.
– With a .974 fielding percentage – second-highest in program history (2017) – the Lobos led the Mountain West.
– Improving from a a 9.06 ERA as a team in Brown’s first season to a 5.95, UNM only allowed 3.20 walks per nine innings, its lowest average since 2014 and the best in the Mountain West. The Lobos’ 1.59 WHIP was its lowest since 2015.
– UNM scored 441 runs (most since 2017, led MW) and racked up 617 hits (most since 2017, led MW) to go with 24 triples (most since 2015, led MW) and 411 RBI (most since 2017, led MW).
– Lobo batters reached base at a .406 clip, UNM’s best average since 2017 (Led MW).
– UNM turned 48 double plays in 51 games, the most in the MW and 33rd-most in the nation. The Lobos’ .94 double plays per game ranked No. 9 in the nation.
TOP NEWCOMERS
Josh McAlister | INF | JR
The junior infielder transferred to UNM from Ohio State over the offseason, where he appeared in 87 games over three seasons, starting 76. He posted career-highs in walks (25), RBI (18) and fielding percentage (.954) in 36 games for the Buckeyes in 2023, and has started all four games at third base for the Lobos, getting on base in all four and finishing with four hits and two RBI as well as his fifth career homer.
BROWN ON MCALISTER: “Very athletic, good defensive player; has some juice in his bat and can hit doubles and home runs. He brings some experience at the Division I level coming in.”
Tye Wood | OF | JR
A junior college transfer by way of Iowa Western, Wood hit for a .413 average last season at Iowa Western en route to his second First Team All-Region honor in as many seasons. In 2023, the switch-hitting outfielder connected on 16 doubles and five triples while stealing 23 bases. He’s finished with a hit and a run in all three games he appeared in over the weekend, drawing three walks.
BROWN ON WOOD: “He’s had a nice spring so far – he’s a guy that we expect to see a lot of playing action early.”
Khalil Walker | OF | JR
Another JuCo transfer outfielder, Walker comes to UNM by way of Eastern Arizona College, where he was named First Team All-ACCAC and Second Team All-Region while also finishing the season as a National Golden Glove nominee. He hit .350 for EAC last season, getting on base at a .458 clip while driving in 31 runs for the Gila Monsters. In 11 at-bats over his first weekend of action, Walker drew four walks and scored a pair of runs, connecting on a big double against Minnesota.
BROWN ON WALKER: “Left-handed hitter, high-speed guy, high-contact guy that can steal bases. Big defender in the outfield.”
Andrew Neil | RHP/INF | JR
Neil – a two-way player during his two seasons at Folsom Lake CC – was slated to start Friday’s season opener for the Lobos before a hand injury. He displays a potent three-pitch mix and accumulated a 9-3 record on the mound with a 4.44 ERA last season for the Falcons, hitting .320 with 25 RBI to go with eight doubles and three homers.
BROWN ON NEIL: “Hopefully here in the next two, three weeks, he’ll resume starting to throw and get back out there. He’s gonna be a big part of our pitching staff, either as a starter or a closer.”
A LOOK AT THE SCHEDULE
– UNM’s 54-game 2024 schedule, including 30 Mountain West Conference games, features five different teams that reached NCAA Regionals last spring – Oregon State, Texas Tech, Arizona, San Jose State and Sam Houston State – with 27 games against nine opponents that ranked in the Top 150 in the nation in last season’s final RPI rankings.
– UNM will play 30 games at Santa Ana Star Field in Albuquerque and 24 games on the road throughout the regular season.
– UNM’s first midweek matchup of the season with Texas Tech – who the Lobos walked off with a ninth-inning Jake Holland homer for an 11-10 win at home in their last meeting – is set for March 5.
– Mountain West play begins March 8-10 with a home series against UNLV, with UNM’s first true road games of the season the following week with a midweek matchup at Arizona State (March 12) and a three-game conference swing with Nevada in Reno (March 15-17).
– The first of four Rio Grande Rivalry matchups with New Mexico State will take place on March 19 at home before UNM plays host to defending MW Champions San Jose State (March 22-24). They’ll face the Aggies twice more in Las Cruces (April 9, April 30) before concluding the four-game season series at home on May 7.
– After a MW series with San Diego State on the road March 28-30, the Lobos get four consecutives matchups with 2023 NCAA Regional qualifiers, set for a midweek matchup with Arizona in Tucson on April 2 before returning home to host 2023 WAC Champions Sam Houston State for a three-game set April 5-7 – UNM’s final multi-game nonconference series of the season.
– Up next, another four-game homestand includes UNM’s only MW series with Fresno State April 12-14 before a matchup with D-II CSU-Pueblo on April 16. The Lobos then travel to Air Force – another MW opponent they’ll only face in one series – for a three-game series April 19-21 before heading down to Lubbock, Texas for their second and final meeting with Texas Tech April 23. Rematches with San Diego State at home (April 26-28), UNLV on the road (May 3-5), Nevada at home (May 10-12) and San Jose State on the road (May 16-18) comprise the remainder of UNM’s regular season, with Senior Day set for May 12.
– Should the Lobos finish among the Top Four in the Mountain West standings, they’ll earn a berth to the MWC Championships May 23-25, hosted this year by San Diego State. The winner earns the conference’s automatic berth to an NCAA Regional.