Lobos Open MW Series at San Diego State Thursday
After a 3-1 week punctuated with a doubleheader sweep of San Jose State on Saturday to claim their second Mountain West series win and move into a four-way tie for first place in the league standings, the New Mexico Lobos (15-9, 6-3 MW) continue conference play on the road at San Diego State (6-16, 2-7 MW) March 28-30.
With no midweek action this week, UNM gets a four-day respite going into this weekend’s three-game set at Tony Gwynn Stadium – the Lobos are looking to snap a streak of 11 straight losses to SDSU dating back to 2021 and secure their first series win over the Aztecs since 2019. With Easter on Sunday, the series begins a day early with a 7 p.m. MT first pitch on Thursday.
One of only two teams in the conference that have won seven of their last 10, the Lobos find themselves in a four-way tie with Air Force (10-13, 6-3 MW), Fresno State (16-7, 6-3 MW) and Nevada (10-11, 6-3 MW) for first place in the Mountain West with every team having played at least three series. It’s Lobos’ best nine-game start to conference play since 2017 and best of Head Coach Tod Brown’s three seasons in Albuquerque.
The Lobos have found a penchant for the long ball in the month of March – after homering four times in their first eight games, they’ve connected on 26 for a total of 61 RBI in their last 16 games since March 1. UNM has won all 10 games this season in which the Lobos hit multiple homers and are slugging a MW-best .540 as a team after mashing 10 over four games last week.
In conference matchups, UNM is batting .354 as a team with an OPS of 1.036 while averaging 10.67 runs and 12.56 hits per game.
On the season, UNM also ranks No. 3 in all of D-I college baseball in total double plays (28), No. 4 in total doubles (64), No. 5 in total hits (278), No. 6 in team on-base percentage (.448), No. 8 in batting average (.332), No. 11 in runs scored (225), No. 17 in base on balls (153) and No. 27 in slugging (.540) – the Lobos lead the Mountain West in all of those categories.
Thursday’s series opener and Friday’s Game Two are both set to get underway at 7 p.m. MT, with Saturday’s finale at 2 p.m. Only Thursday’s series opener will be streamed via the Mountain West Network, with live stats for all three games available via GoLobos.com/BSBStats. Follow @UNMLoboBaseball on socials for promotional/marketing and gameday updates, behind-the-scenes content and more.
vs. San Diego State (6-16, 2-7 MW)
March 28-30 | San Diego, Calif. | Tony Gwynn Stadium
LAST TIME OUT
Over a 3-1 week last week, UNM slugged .686 (10 HR, 10 2B, 1 3B) and averaged 13 hits and 12.75 runs per game, drawing 28 walks while only striking out 25 times. Eight different players picked up at least three RBI and six different players homered – Jake Holland homered four times and Will Asby did it twice, with Reed Spenrath, Devon Dixon, Gene Trujillo and Jose McAlister all hitting one each.
UNM claimed its first series win over reigning MW Champs San Jose State since 2021 with a resilient bounceback effort to sweep Saturday’s doubleheader.
After dropping a 16-13 heartbreaker in the series opener Friday despite leading for six innings, the Lobos held off the Spartans in the ninth inning of Saturday’s Game One for a 7-5 win and outscored them 17-1 in response to a three-spot in the first inning of Game Two for a 17-4 seven-inning win that sealed the series. The Lobos’ victory on Saturday was actually their second mercy rule win of the week – they dispatched in-state rival New Mexico State 14-4 in seven innings in midweek action last Tuesday.
The Aztecs (6-16, 2-7 MW) headed to Hawaii last weekend for nonconference weekend series action, getting outslugged the first two games (5-16, 0-16) before dropping the finale in a tight one in extra innings (5-6, 10 Inn.). Their losing streak is at six games dating back to March 12.
ALL-TIME SERIES
UNM is 84-132 against the Aztecs in an all-time series that dates back to 1960 – they’re 24-56 against them as WAC opponents (1978-1998) and 60-74 as members of the Mountain West (1999-present). The Lobos are currently on an 11-game losing streak to SDSU and have dropped five weekend series to the Aztecs since the last time they took two out of three in 2019 – also in San Diego.
The Lobos will face the Aztecs three more times in Albuquerque April 26-28 to conclude the season series. They haven’t won both weekends against SDSU since 2017.
UNM was 0-6 against the Aztecs last season but lost four of those games by two runs or less. A win this weekend would be Coach Brown’s first against SDSU — the Aztecs are the only team the Lobos face this season that he has yet to defeat at least once in his coaching career.
SCOUTING THE AZTECS
MW Regular Season Co-Champions in 2023 after compiling a 18-11 record in-conference, the Aztecs sit at the bottom of the league standings through four weeks of play at 2-7 and are rated the lowest in the league by RPI (240). However, SDSU’s first three weekend series were against three of the current top four teams in the league in RPI – the Aztecs took a game off Fresno State on the road and Nevada at home before getting swept by Air Force in Pueblo, Colo. two weeks ago.
SDSU is batting .249 as a team but are led in batting average (.377) and OPS (1.053) by true Freshman Colby Turner – the Aztecs’ only qualified batter above .300. The Aztecs enter the week with a 6.52 ERA, good for fifth-best in the league, with the second-lowest opponent batting average in the conference at .262.
ON DECK
After this weekend series, the Lobos get a week off from conference action. Instead, they’ll face their third Pac-12 opponent this season in midweek action on Tuesday, taking on Arizona (10-12, 4-5 Pac-12) on the road in Tucson, Ariz. before returning home to play host to Sam Houston State (17-9, 3-3 C-USA) over the weekend of April 5-7.
MW AWARDS SWEEP
UNM swept the MW Weekly honors on Monday, with Jake Holland winning Player of the Week and Ryan Castillo winning Freshman & Pitcher of the Week for their respective performances over the weekend.
Holland led the Lobos with a .727 batting average and 2.000% slugging (2.750 OPS) with 14 RBI over three games last weekend, homering four times and hitting two doubles in the process. He batted .750 with runners in scoring position (6-for-8) and .667 in two-out situations (4-for-6) in that span. The senior catcher finished with multiple hits, runs and RBI in all three games, homering in each — Holland scored eight runs on the weekend, drawing three walks and only striking out once. He also started behind the dish in all three games, generating 25 putouts and three assists without any errors.
A weekend in review for the Orlando, Fla. native:
Led the Lobos with five RBI on a homer and two doubles in the series opener on Friday and homered twice in the series finale while racking up seven RBI to help the Lobos run-rule the Spartans, 17-4 in seven innings.
In a pivotal Game Two on Saturday – the first game of the doubleheader – he got on the base paths all in all five at-bats via a home run, two singles, a walk and a HBP. His seventh-inning solo shot tied the game up at 4-all and his RBI base knock in the eighth put the Lobos up 7-5 — a lead they’d hold onto through nine.
Drove in the first run for the Lobos with a sac fly in Game Two on Saturday after they fell behind 3-0 early — he hit his third homer of the weekend for 3 RBI in the next inning to cap off a five-run frame that changed the complexion of the game entirely. Added his fourth no-doubter in the penultimate frame to yield three more runs and put UNM up by 13.
Castillo – a true freshman making just his fourth appearance of the season on Saturday – was a revelation in relief in Game Two, earning his first career win while notching career-highs in innings pitched (5) and strikeouts (7) without surrendering a single earned run. He retired 13 of 15 batters he faced, allowing only two hits without any walks.
Entering the game in the third with runners on second and third and nobody out, Castillo allowed one unearned run on a sac fly and shut down the Spartans’ bats the rest of the way — he struck out the side in order in the fifth and then two more to open the sixth and reach five batters struck out in succession before a grounder made it another 1-2-3 frame. Castillo used only 65 pitches over those five frames — 38 strikes — while inducing five grounders and one flyout.
MOUNTAIN WEST BY THE NUMBERS
– Entering their fourth conference weekend series, the Lobos have the third-best RPI in the MW (164) behind Nevada (130) and Air Force (90).
– At 15-9 overall, the Lobos have the second-most wins and second-best winning percentage (.625) in the conference behind Fresno State (16-7). Those two teams have both won a conference-best seven out of their last 10 games each and are two of the four teams in the conference with a win in Quad 2 or better along with San Diego State and Air Force.
– In MW matchups only, UNM is batting a league-best .354 – they also lead the MW in slugging (.574) and on base percentage (.462), with the most efficient strikeout-walk ratio (55/54) in the league. The Lobos’ fielding percentage of .982 in conference matchups is the second-best in the league behind Nevada (.988).
-Through 24 games, the Lobos lead the Mountain West in 12 statistical categories:
– Batting Average (.332)
– Slugging Percentage (.540)
– On Base Percentage (.448)
– Runs Scored (225)
– Hits (278)
– Runs Batted In (209)
– Doubles (64)
– Home Runs (32)
– Walks (153)
– Double Plays (28)
– Total Bases (452)
– Saves (6)
They rank second in the league in six more:
– Putouts (519)
– Batters Struck Out Looking (60)
– Wins (15)
– Sac Flies (11)
– Stolen Bases (25)
– Assists (222)
COACH BROWN BREAKS 400
UNM’s 10-8 win over Nevada on March 17 was the 400th of UNM Head Coach Tod Brown’s career (North Dakota State 2008-2021, UNM 2022-present) — he’s one of only three UNM coaches to surpass 400 wins in their careers, trailing only Rich Alday (515-313 [1990-2007]) and Ray Birmingham (414-341 [2008-2020]) – the second and third-longest tenured Lobo Baseball coaches in program history – for the most career wins. Brown has posted a 62-67 record since becoming UNM’s 12th Baseball coach in the summer of 2021.
SEEING DOUBLE
The Lobos have excelled at getting two for one this season, ranking No. 3 in NCAA D-I in total double plays (28) and No. 4 in total doubles (64). They rank No. 4 in double plays per game (1.17) and No. 6 in doubles per game (2.67), leading the MW in all four categories.
After hitting two doubles last weekend, Jake Holland is tied for the MW lead and No. 14 in NCAA D-I in doubles with 11, with Asby (10 doubles) at No. 31 in the nation and ranking among the Top 100 in the nation in doubles per game (0.42).
UNM ranks No. 2 in the MW in assists (222), with Reed Spenrath ranking No. 2 in total putouts (181) and Devon Dixon ranking No. 2 in total assists (22) – Spenrath has been a part of 27 double plays (No. 1 in the MW), while Dixon has helped stitch 22 (No. 2 in the MW) with Chase Weissenborn pitching in on 14 (T-No. 5 in the MW) in just 13 games.
DIGGING THE LONG BALL
The Lobos have found a penchant for the long ball in the month of March – after homering four times in their first eight games, they’ve connected on 26 for a total of 61 RBI in their last 16 games since March 1 and have hit multiple in four of their last five games.
UNM has won all 10 games this season in which the Lobos hit multiple homers and are 12-4 in games in which they hit at least one. The Lobos are slugging a MW-best .540 as a team after mashing 10 over four games last week.
Nine different Lobos have hit a homer this season for a total of 32 through 24 games – 24 have been at Santa Ana Star Field.
Jake Holland leads the Lobos with nine homers and Will Asby has seven – Reed Spenrath has four, all of which have come in the last 10 games since hitting his first of the season on March 10 against UNLV. Devon Dixon hit his first homer of the season against Arizona State in Phoenix last Tuesday and followed with his second exactly a week later against NM State at home to lead four other Lobos – Tye Wood, Kyle Smith, Gene Trujillo and Josh McAlister – that have two each on the season.
HOLLAND AND ASBY BRINGING THE POWER
Jake Holland and Will Asby have combined for 16 of UNM’s 32 homers with 18 doubles and 42 RBI between the duo so far this season – they tout the two highest slugging percentages on the team at 1.016 and .699, respectively.
Holland won MW Player of the Week honors after batting for a .727 batting average and 2.000% slugging (2.750 OPS) with 14 RBI over three games last weekend, homering four times and hitting two doubles in the process. He batted .750 with runners in scoring position (6-for-8) and .667 in two-out situations (4-for-6) in that span. The senior catcher finished with multiple hits, runs and RBI in all three games, homering in each — Holland scored eight runs on the weekend, drawing three walks and only striking out once. He also started behind the dish in all three games, generating 25 putouts and three assists without any errors. He’s now up to eighth multi-hit games and six multi-RBI games so far this season with 11 doubles (T-No. 1 in MW) and nine homers (T-No. 1 in MW) despite only starting in 16 of UNM’s 24 games.
Batting .304 on the season, Will Asby leads the Lobos in multi-RBI games with seven and overall RBI with 31 (T-No. 1 in the MW, No. 55 in NCAA D-I) — he’s been rung up the fewest times of any Lobo (Min. 2.5 AB/game) with a 14-10 strikeout to walk ratio that ranks as the Lobos’ second best just behind Tye Wood (21-14).
The grad transfer by way of University of San Francisco has already driven in more runs in 24 games with the Lobos than he did all season across 38 appearances for the Dons in 2023 (26). He has also already matched his homer output from last season with seven bombs – the second-most in the league — and has hit two of UNM’s three grand slams already this season, against UNLV on March 9 (W, 31-15) and New Mexico State on Tuesday (W, 14-4).
That 31-run game on March 9 was Asby’s third game this season with four or more RBI; he drove in career-high nine runs that night, good for the second-most in a single game in program history. The Lobos matched the program record for single-game scoring with their 31 runs that night.
SPENRATH BACK TO FORM
– After mashing 19 homers in his first season in Albuquerque, Reed Spenrath was productive at the plate through his first 16 games (.300/.455/.483) but with just one thing missing – a home run. He finally broke through with his first of the year and the Lobos’ 18th of the season in the weekend finale against UNLV on March 10, smacking a three-run shot more than 450 feet out of Santa Ana Star Field to put the Lobos up 5-4 late.
– He’s done so again three more times since then with two more multi-run homers against Arizona State (March 12) and Nevada (March 17) and a solo shot against New Mexico State (March 19). UNM is 4-0 in games in which Spenrath hits a home run, and he’s averaging 1.56 hits per game since hitting his first with six multi-hit games in that span.
Through six weeks of Baseball, Spenrath has accumulated 19 RBI while hitting seven doubles and three triples, connecting on 27 hits and drawing 17 walks.
Spenrath has nine multi-hit games and four multi-RBI games, starting all but one game at first while racking up 181 putouts and 14 assists. He’s been a part of 27 of UNM’s 28 double plays (No. 3 in NCAA D-I) this season.
– Spenrath was named to D1Baseball.com’s Top 50 first baseman rankings (No. 46) and Preseason All-MW ahead of this season. A first-team all-conference selection in his first season with the Lobos in 2023, 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 – to go with 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.
OTHER BULLPEN NOTES
– RHP Brian McBroom (1-0, 8.1 IP, 8.64 ERA, 3 SV, 2 BB, 8 K) has the second-most saves in the MW this season with three of UNM’s league-leading six saves. The junior righty is up to eight saves in his three-year Lobo career. McBroom has held opponents to one run or fewer in five of his seven outings in 2024 — striking out eight and walking just two over 8.1 innings — and UNM is 5-2 in games in which he takes the mound.
– LHP Daxton Purser (0-0, 24 IP, 4.50 ERA, 18 BB, 16 K) went the longest of any Lobo pitcher this season without giving up a run in Saturday’s Game Two against Nevada in Reno, finishing with new career-highs in strikeouts (6) and innings pitched (6.0) while holding the Wolf Pack scoreless on two hits and four walks the entire time he was on the mound. It was his third scoreless outing of the season for the big lefty, who threw a career-high 99 pitches in the process. He reached 10 consecutive scoreless frames with another solid start against San Jose State on Saturday (5 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 1 K).
– RHP Josh Barnhouse (1-1, 18 IP, 9.50 ERA) is tied with LHP Jaren Jackson (2-4, 18.2 IP, 9 BB, 21 K) for most strikeouts on the squad with 21. He has taken the mound in four of UNM’s last seven games. Barnhouse matched a career-high of four strikeouts for the third time this season in three innings of scoreless relief to earn his first save of the season — it was his second scoreless relief outing of the week after entering the game and producing a clutch two outs against Arizona State last Tuesday that got the Lobos out of a jam.
STREAKS SUMMARY / LOBO GRAB BAG
– UNM’s season-best streak of 10 straight games with double-digit hits came to an end on March 10 with an eight-hit outing against the Rebels, but the Lobos connected on at least 11 knocks in each game last week. The Lobos finished with multiple doubles in each of their 12 consecutive home games from Feb. 22 to March 10, with six games of four or more two-baggers and two games with six.
– UNM has hit at least one double in all 24 games this season, with 17 games with multiple doubles in that span and nine with three or more. The Lobos have now homered in five straight games, with multiple in four of those games.
– Josh McAlister (out with injury since March 3) extended his team-best on-base streak to 12 games with a 3-for-3 (3 R, 3 RBI) outing on Saturday, with Chase Weissenborn, Kyle Smith and Will Asby all riding seven-game on-base streaks. Four other Lobos – Reed Spenrath (6), Jake Holland (6), Akili Carris (4) and Gene Trujillo (4) – all have active on-base streaks of at least four games.
– Holland has the longest active hit streak on the team at 6 – his current streak of four multi-hit and multi-RBI games is the best by a Lobo this year.
– Khalil Walker’s 11-game hit streak from 2/22 to 3/15 was the longest by a Lobo this season.
– Spenrath got aboard in 17 consecutive games to start the season – 20 if you count the end of the 2023 season – for UNM’s longest streak of that variety this year. He did so despite going hitless in his first four games to start the season.
RETURN OF THE MAC
In the series finale with San Jose State, Josh McAlister made his first start at third base since exiting the Lobos’ 9-6 win over Hofstra with injury on March 3 and showed little signs of rust, going 3-for-3 with three runs and three RBI. He finished a triple short of the cycle while drawing a walk, extending his team-best active on-base streak to 12 games.
Last season at Ohio State, McAlister batted .200 with 18 RBI in 36 games played – through just 13 games in 2024 at UNM, he’s batting .340 with 10 RBI. He’d started 12 of UNM’s 13 games at the hot corner until his injury.
31-RUN MADNESS
The Lobos matched a program record set in 2004 with 31 runs scored in their series-clinching win over UNLV on March 9, racking up 29 hits and getting multiple RBI from six different Lobos in the process. Will Asby drove in a team-high nine runs – the second-most in a single game in program history and the most since 2010 – and Kyle Smith added six more. UNM’s 29 hits in total are the most in a single game since 2010 and fourth-most in a single game in program history.
Asby was 2-for-2 with two doubles and 4 RBI in the first inning alone as the Lobos plated 20 runs in the first three frames. UNLV scored 15 runs in total and looked to get within striking distance late after plating eight between the fourth and sixth innings, but RHP Josh Barnhouse calmed things down in relief, allowing just one hit over 3 ⅔ innings of work while striking out four and walking two to calm things down and earn the first win of his UNM career.
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 was 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 ahead of the season, 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 Fargo (2008, 2009) and his first season in Albuquerque (2022).
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.
THE REMAINING 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.
– The first of four Rio Grande Rivalry matchups with New Mexico State ended with a 14-4 run-rule win – 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 this weekend’s MW series with San Diego State on the road has run its course, the Lobos get four consecutive 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 st 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.
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.
– The Lobos finished the season with a .974 fielding percentage – the second highest in program history (2017) – that also 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.