Lobos Host Aggies Tuesday for Rio Grande Rivalry Finale

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — New Mexico Baseball returns home from a successful week on the road for its fourth and final Rio Grande Rivalry matchup of the season with New Mexico State on Tuesday at Santa Ana Star Field, with the Lobos (22-17, 10-8 MW) going for the clean sweep of the Aggies (19-21, 7-8 C-USA) after UNM took the first three meetings this season.

After winning more games on the road last week than they had the entire season previously, Head Coach Tod Brown’s Lobos look to keep building momentum when they return to Santa Ana Star Field — where they’re 15-5 this season — for all four games this week. UNM is 199-113 at Santa Ana Star Field since it became the Lobos’ home venue in 2013, meaning they need just one win this week for their 200th win at SAS Field all-time.

Winners of six of their last eight after back-to-back 3-1 weeks with weekend series victories, the Lobos remain one of the nation’s most productive offenses – they now rank a season-high No. 4 in the nation in team Batting Average (0.328), No. 5 in total hits (452), No. 8 in slugging (.558) and No. 3 in doubles per game (2.62) while cracking the Top 100 in the nation in in triples per game (41st, 0.31), on-base percentage (23rd, .422), scoring per nine innings (24th, 8.8), total base on balls (90th, 194) and homers per game (21st, 1.64).

Last week, UNM clinched the season series with NMSU in Las Cruces on Tuesday, improving to 3-0 against NMSU on the season with a 12-10 victory before winning two of three at UNLV (13-7, 3-10, 6-3) to secure their first road series of the season. The Lobos have now finished with at least nine team hits in each of their last eight games and are batting .378 as a team with 15.06 hits and 12.75 runs per nine innings in that span.

All of four of this week’s home games at Santa Ana Star Field will be available to stream free via the MW Network, with live stats, streaming options and more available via GoLobos.com/BSBGameDay. Follow @UNMLoboBaseball on IG, X and Facebook for comprehensive coverage, promotional updates, behind-the-scenes content and more.

vs New Mexico State (19-21, 7-8 C-USA)
April 22 | Albuquerque, N.M. | Santa Ana Star Field

vs San Jose State (20-20, 8-10 MW)
April 25-27 | Albuquerque, N.M. | Santa Ana Star Field

UPDATED MOUNTAIN WEST STANDINGS (Through 4/20)

JOSH McALISTER NAMED MW POTW
• After homering three times and posting a 1.638 OPS as New Mexico went 3-1 for the second week in a row, Lobo Senior Infielder Josh McAlister has been named Mountain West Player of the Week, the league announced Monday afternoon.
• McAlister is the fourth Lobo to earn Player of the Week honors this season along with Jordy Oriach (Feb. 24, March 3) and Tye Wood (April 15) – Cooper Brass has also earned MW Freshman of the Week honors this season (Feb. 17). It’s the first MW Weekly honors of McAlister’s career.
• McAlister slashed .400/.438/1.200 across four games (6-for-15) to help New Mexico go 3–1 on the road last week at New Mexico State (12-10) and UNLV (13-7, 3-10, 6-3), driving in a team-high eight runs and scoring three more while hitting three home runs, a double, and a triple. With their first true road series win of the year, the Lobos have now won six of their last eight since suffering a road sweep at first-place Fresno State April 4-6.
• The senior infielder finished with two RBI in all four games on the week with flawless defense across multiple infield positions (SS, 2B, 3B), handling 10 total chances for six assists and four putouts without an error.

LOBOS RAKING AT HOME
• The Lobos are 15-5 in home games at Santa Ana Star Field this year and batting .378 with an average of 13.0 runs and 15.3 hits per nine innings in those games. Their .750 winning percentage at home so far this season would be the second-best in any season with 15 or more games in the 12 years since Santa Ana Star Field became the Lobos’ home venue. UNM went 14-2 (.875) in their first season calling SAS Field home in 2013.
• UNM needs just one more win at home this year to reach 200 wins since Santa Ana Star Field opened to the public.

• The Lobos currently have the most home wins (15) in the Mountain West and the highest home win percentage (.750).
• Jordy Oriach hits for even more power at 5,300 feet above sea level – he’s slugging .913 at home (.772 overall) with 10 doubles, two triples and seven homers in Albuquerque. He leads four Lobos that are batting above .400 at home this season ahead of Khalil Walker (.423), Josh McAlister (.415) and Akili Carris (.407).
• RHP Josh Barnhouse has a 1.86 ERA at home across 10 appearances (19.1 IP), compiling a 3-0 record in those games.
• In games played in cities at 3,900 feet or higher above sea level, the Lobos are 18-7 (.720), batting .364 as a team.

ALL-TIME SERIES
• With three wins over the Aggies already this season – one in Albuquerque and two in Las Cruces – UNM is 170-95 all-time against their rivals to the south, with a 79-34 record in home matchups and a 65-52 record in Las Cruces.
• UNM went 1-2 against the Aggies in 2024 before their initially-scheduled fourth game in Albuquerque was scrapped due to weather.
• Tod Brown is now 10-4 against the Aggies in his tenure as UNM Head Coach. Current NMSU head coach Jake Angier was Brown’s pitching coach at North Dakota State for three seasons (2011-2013).

LOBOS CLINCH RIVALRY SERIES IN CRUCES (4/21)
• A six-run opening frame propelled New Mexico to another high-scoring rout of in-state rivals New Mexico State in the third meeting between the two teams this season Tuesday night at Presley Askew Field, with the Lobos calming things down in the middle innings and holding on late to win 12-10 and secure the season series.
• With their third-straight win over the Aggies (18-19, 6-6 C-USA) and 20th win on the season, the Lobos (20-16, 8-7 MW) improved to 5-1 in midweek matchups and 7-1 in night games. They’ll face NM State one more time next Tuesday at Santa Ana Star Field with an opportunity to sweep the four-game season series for the first time since 2022.
• UNM scored 12 runs on 10 hits and 11 base on balls, drawing seven walks in the first two innings and capitalizing with nine runs in that span. They only needed three more – a solo homer from Will Asby in the third and a pair of run-scoring outs from Tye Wood in the fourth and sixth – to hold on in the final frame even after the Aggies took advantage of five walks in the bottom of the eighth to bring four runs across and cut the deficit to two.
• Khalil Walker (2-for-4, 3 RBI, 1 R, 2B) cleared the bases with a clutch two-out double in the opening frame that proved to be the difference and Will Asby (3-for-6, 1 RBI, 2 R, HR) mashed his seventh homer of the year to lead the way, with Tye Wood (0-for-4, 2 RBI, 1 R, BB), Luke Mansy (0-for-3, 2 RBI, 1 R, 2 BB) and Caleb Herd (0-for-2, 1 RBI, 2 R, 3 BB) all driving in or scoring multiple runs despite going hitless.
• LHP Justin Still (3.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R/0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K) set the tone immediately after taking over in the third, striking out the side while retiring three of four in the third before ending a scoreless fourth with his fourth punchout of the night – he also came one shy of a career-high from 2022 (5/15/2022) after striking out one more to limit the damage to just one unearned run in the fifth.
• After the Aggies made RHP Grant Origer (0.0 IP, 0 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 0 K) and RHP Josh Barnhouse (0.2, 1 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 0 K) pay with three runs in the bottom of the eighth, RHP Ty Cunningham (1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K) took over, closing the final frame with back-to-back strikeouts to earn his eighth save of the year.

LAST WEEKEND’S SERIES (AT UNLV, 4/17-19)
• New Mexico took its fourth MW weekend series of the year with two wins against UNLV last weekend (13-7, 3-10, 6-3) at Earl E. Wilson Stadium April 17-19.
• The Lobos slugged seven home runs across the series and hit .306 as a team (33-for-108) with a .565 slugging percentage and 22 runs scored.
• UNM tallied five multi-hit games from Akili Carris (.538) and received big-time production from Josh McAlister, who homered three times and drove in a team-high six runs while slugging 1.600 for the weekend to earn his first MW Player of the Week honors.
• Ethan Ott added two home runs and four RBIs, while Jordy Oriach hit .545 with three extra-base hits and three RBIs of his own.
• On the mound, the Lobo bullpen combined for a 3.00 ERA over 12.0 innings, led by senior closer Ty Cunningham, who earned two saves in 3.2 shutout innings and now leads the Mountain West with nine on the year.
• As a staff, UNM held the Rebels to a .250 average and just two home runs while striking out 17 and posting a 5.54 ERA overall for the series.

ALL-TIME SERIES
With two wins over the Aggies already this season, UNM is 169-95 all-time against their rivals to the south, with a 79-34 record in home matchups and a 64-52 record in Las Cruces.
•   UNM went 1-2 against the Aggies in 2024 before their initially-scheduled fourth game in Albuquerque was scrapped due to weather.
•   Tod Brown is 9-4 against the Aggies in his tenure as UNM Head Coach. Current NMSU head coach Jake Angier was Brown’s pitching coach at North Dakota State for three seasons (2011-2013).

LAST MEETING (UNM 15, NMSU 10 – 4/1/25)
•   The Lobos’ offense came alive with a 17-hit outburst to beat the Aggies 15-10 in Cruces two weeks ago, led by Will Asby (3-for-5, HR, 3 RBI), Jordy Oriach (2-for-6, HR, 4 RBI), and Luke Mansy (3-for-4, HR, 3 RBI), who each delivered three-run bombs that changed the complexion of the game. Oriach got things started with a three-run blast in the first inning that matched Josh McAlister for a team-high nine on the season, while Mansy’s first career homer put the Lobos back in front in the fourth.
•   Asby added the exclamation point with another three-run shot in the eighth—his fifth of the season and third in the last four games.
•   Andrew Neil (2-for-5, 2 R) and Gene Trujillo (2-for-4, RBI) also contributed multi-hit performances, while Brodey Williams (1-for-1, 2 RBI, 2B) provided a key pinch-hit double to extend the lead. Karsen Waslefsky and Khalil Walker each scored a run, with Walker adding an RBI single and a walk.
•   Seven different pitchers saw action for the Lobos, with LHP Matt Cornelius (1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K) picking up his first win of the season in relief. Getting his first career start on the bump, RHP Cristian Mogen (1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 2 K) worked the opening frame before RHP Brian McBroom (1.0 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, 1 K) ran into trouble in the second. RHP Jack Messmore (1.2 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 2 K) and Luke Wiseman (1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K) steadied the middle innings before Tommy White (1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 K) and Ty Cunningham (1.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 K) closed things out.

MOUNTAIN WEST INDIVIDUAL STAT RANKINGS

LONG BALL LOBOS
Through 39 games this season, 14 different players have combined for 64 home runs, exiting the ballpark eight times last week on the road at New Mexico State and UNLV. UNM is averaging 164 homers per nine innings so far this season, moving up among the nation’s leaders in that category for the third week in a row from 31st in the nation last week to 21st heading into this week’s games.

With three homers last week, Josh McAlister has matched teammate Jordy Oriach – who also homered last week – with a Mountain West-leading 12 HR this season. Ethan Ott is just behind with 11 on the season after going yard three times in the Lobos’ last two weekend series, while Will Asby (8), Andrew Neil (4), Caleb Herd (4), Karsen Waslefsky (3) and Khalil Walker (3) all have multiple.

EARLY RETURNS
Walker & Asby Named Preseason All-MW; Lobo Baseball Tabbed Fourth in Coaches’ Poll:

• Outfielders Khalil Walker and Will Asby were named to the All-Conference Preseason Team and New Mexico was one of three teams tied for fourth in the Mountain West Preseason Coaches’ Poll released Monday ahead of the 2025 baseball season.
  Walker and Asby – who both were All-MW selections after their first season at UNM in 2024 – make UNM one of four teams with multiple preseason all-league selections along with Fresno State (four selections), Nevada (three selections) and San Diego State (two selections).
• With six first-place votes for a total of 43 points, 2024 MW Tournament Champions Fresno State are the favorites to win the conference again ahead of Nevada (35 points) in second and Washington State (1 first-place vote, 30 points) in third. With 27 points, the Lobos are tied for fourth alongside UNLV (1 first-place vote) and San Diego State, the third season in a row in which they’ve improved their preseason rank. Before the 2023 season, UNM was picked to finish seventh and ultimately finished fifth — before the 2024 season, they were voted fifth and closed out the regular season one game out of sharing a regular-season championship with Air Force.

Asby Named to D1Baseball.com’s Top 100 Outfielders: 

• Senior Will Asby clocked in at No. 91 in the nation on D1Baseball.com’s National Outfielders Rankings released last week. In his first season with the Lobos in 2024, Asby entered the outlet’s midseason Top 100 Outfielder rankings at No. 94 after not being ranked heading into the season.
• Last season, Asby ranked second in the league in runs scored (59), eighth in slugging (.601) and ninth in total hits (71), breaking the program record for single-season grand slams with four – he needs just one more to match Mark Wulfert’s career record of five.

“Keep an Eye On” New Mexico in Mountain West Race:

• D1Baseball.com slated New Mexico as the team to “Keep an eye on” in this year’s Mountain West race behind preseason favorite Fresno State, citing improved pitching depth and a host of high-level hitters returning.
• “This year’s team has a chance at making [an NCAA Regional] with five returnees who hit .300-plus, two returning weekend starters on the mound and five key pieces in the bullpen also coming back to campus.”

A LOOK AT THE SCHEDULE
– The 53-game schedule, including 30 Mountain West Conference games, opens up at the MLB Desert Invitational in Arizona (Feb. 14-16) and concludes with a conference weekend series at home vs. Fresno State (May 15-17). In that span, the Lobos will face four different teams that reached NCAA Regionals last spring – Arizona, UC Irvine, Grand Canyon and Fresno State – nine times.
– In total, UNM will play 27 games at Santa Ana Star Field in Albuquerque and 26 games on the road throughout the regular season, with 18 games against seven opponents that ranked in the Top 150 in the nation in last season’s final RPI rankings.
– Should the Lobos stand among the top six teams in the Mountain West standings upon the conclusion of that weekend, they’ll earn a berth to the expanded MWC Baseball Championships May 21-25, hosted this year in Mesa, Ariz. The winner earns the conference’s automatic berth into the NCAA Championships.

2024 IN REVIEW
– The Lobos wrapped up the 2024 season with the most wins (28), most MW wins (17) and best MW finish (2nd) since 2017 to punch their ticket to the conference tournament for the first time since that season.
– The last time UNM increased its winning percentage over three consecutive seasons was 2012-2014. It was also the second year in a row in which the Lobos outperformed their conference preseason rank — they were picked to finish 7th in the conference in 2023 and finished fifth before being picked to finish fifth this year and concluding the season one game out of a regular season championship. They were one of just two MW teams to finish the season above .500.
– At the conclusion of the 2024 regular season, UNM ranked No. 8 in the nation in batting average (.319), No. 15 in the nation in double plays (51) and No. 17 in doubles per game (2.24).
– The Lobos led the MW in nearly every offensive category in 2024, with a slugging percentage of .515 that tied for the 10th-best in program history (No. 35 in the nation) and an on-base percentage of .421 that was also 10th-best in program history and No. 15 in the nation.
– Jake Holland was named MW Co-Player of the Year and ABCA All-Region Second Team following the season, with four Lobos making the All-MW team (most since 2017) and UNM taking home eight MW weekly awards (most since 2013).

WOOD HEATING UP THE BASEPATHS
– The Lobos’ projected leadoff man this season, Tye Wood became a real threat on the basepaths down the stretch in 2024, only getting caught stealing once in his last 11 attempts.
– Wood ranked second in the conference with 20 swiped bags – the most in a single season since Josh Melendez stole 22 in 2012. He stole at least one base against each of the Lobos’ last four opponents in the regular season and wrapped up the season ranked second in the MW in on-base percentage (.488) behind Walker (.490).
– Wood stole three bags – matching Sean Stephens for the most in a single game last season by a Lobo – in UNM’s series opener against Nevada May 10.

SEEING DOUBLE
– The Lobos excelled at getting two for one in 2024, ranking No. 15 in NCAA D-I in double plays per game (0.94) and No. 17 in doubles per game (2.24). They ranked No. 21 in total DP (51) and No. 50 in total doubles (121).
– Last season, the Lobos had four players hit double-digit doubles — two of them, Khalil Walker (11) and Will Asby (17), return for this season.

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.
– He’s done the same in each of his first three years in Albuquerque, improving from 21-33 (10-20 MW) in 2022 to 26-25 (13-17 MW) in 2023 to 28-26 (17-13 MW) in 2024.
– 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). They finished 28-26 on the season (28-24 in regular-season games) the following season in 2024.
– In 16 seasons as a D-I Head Coach, Brown has finished the season above .400 13 times and above .500 seven 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 2025 LOBOS ROSTER
– UNM’s 2025 roster includes 13 returning players with 17 newcomers – the Lobos return seven position players who appeared in at least 20 games in 2024 while losing seven.
– Of the Lobos’ newcomers, five are freshmen and 12 are transfers – nine transfers are from junior colleges and three from four-year institutions.
– 30 players are upperclassmen – 15 seniors and 15 juniors – the most upperclassmen Brown has had on a roster in Albuquerque.

THE OUTFIELD
The Lobos have the best possible problem on their hands in the outfield, with three returning starters in Khalil Walker, Tye Wood and Will Asby as well as 2023 NJCAA All-American transfer Jordy Oriach (Frank Phillips College) in the mix to compete for a spot.

In 2024, Walker led the MW in batting average (.391) and on-base percentage (.490) – ranking 20th and 43rd in the nation in those categories – with the lowest strikeout-to-walk ratio (30 BB/24 SO) among conference players in his first season as a Lobo. Asby ranked second in the league in runs scored (59), eighth in slugging (.601) and ninth in total hits (71), breaking the program record for single-season grand slams with four – he needs just one more to match Mark Wulfert’s career record of five.

They’re joined in the outfield by a productive switch-hitter in Wood (51 starts in 2024), who ranked 44th in the nation in on-base percentage (.488) and stole 20 bases last season, the second-most in the league and most by a Lobo in a single season since Josh Melendez in 2012 (23).

THE INFIELD
First and foremost, the Lobos look to replace three crucial middle infielders that soaked up most of the reps at shortstop and second in 2024 – Chase Weissenborn, Devon Dixon and Konner Kinkade. After both splitting time at the hot corner last season, junior Akili Carris (.301 average, 30 GS) looks to slot in at third full-time with senior Josh McAlister (.287 average, 10 XBH, 25 GS) moving back to second base, where he played over two seasons at Ohio State (2021-22). Luke Mansy (14 GP/7 GS) and juco transfer Karsen Waslefsky (South Mountain CC) also look to get significant reps up the middle, with utility transfer Elias Fiddler (Utah) as another option with D-I experience. Cooper Brass – who redshirted last season as a true freshman – and freshman Shane Miller are also both in the mix for reps up the middle in their collegiate debut seasons.

With the graduation of Reed Spenrath – who started 89 of 104 games at first base for UNM the past two seasons – UNM has two sluggers that could feasibly move into the starting spot in Ethan Ott (.553 slugging, 23 RBI in 30 games in 2024) and Gene Trujillo (.630 slugging, 13 RBI in 25 games). Both showed plenty of power at the DH spot in 2024, combining for eight homers and 10 doubles even with limited AB’s. 

CATCHERS
UNM relied on two fifth-year catchers in 2024, and there’s a three-way competition for who will get the most reps behind the dish in ‘25. Ironically, Caleb Herd – a junior who played his true freshman season at UNM in 2023 before transferring to Pima CC and returning to UNM this fall – is the only catcher on roster who’s appeared in a collegiate game for the Lobos. But junior transfer Brodey Williams (McLennan CC) and 2024 greyshirt Luke Banister are both in the mix to become key pieces.

PITCHING STAFF
In ‘24, the Lobos’ pitching staff posted a 7.71 team ERA after losing all three weekend starters from 2023 to the draft or graduation – with 10 newcomers and 32 games at elevation in New Mexico, UNM’s arms had significantly improved by the end of the season, posting a 5.17 ERA over the Lobos’ final 10 games and a 5.98 over their last 20. 

In the process, they struck out 394 in total – the most in a single season in Brown’s tenure and seventh-most in a single season in program history. This year’s returning arms produced 233 of those punchouts.

This year, all three projected weekend starters are senior returners that all got significant reps in 2024 in RHP Dayne Pengelly (11 GS, 50 IP), RHP David Lopez (11 GS, 65.1 IP) and LHP Daxton Purser (7 GS, 35 IP). 

• From D1Baseball: “The highlight of the fall practice sessions had to be the performance of the three projected starting weekend pitchers: righthanders Dayne Pengelly and David Lopez and lefthander Daxton Purser. The three seniors offer a lot of experience and combined for 30 of last year’s 54 starts. Pengelly can hit 95 on the guns and though he had some peaks and valleys last year (4-5, 7.63), the coaches say he can flash “unicorn-level stuff” when he is on. His power slider is his go-to pitch when he needs a big out. Lopez also posted some lofty numbers (4-2, 7.71) but his low-90s fastball has good life and his four-pitch mix (fastball, curveball, slider, splitter) has shown good improvement over the course of the offseason. Purser came out of high school as the No. 2-ranked lefthanded pitcher in the state of Utah and held opposing batters to a .245 average last season, which was the best of all the regular Lobo pitchers. He did not allow an earned run in his final three appearances.”

Four other pitchers that saw crucial innings as midweek starters and/or trusty relievers also return – Brian McBroom (95.1 IP in 59 app. at UNM), Josh Barnhouse (18 app. 35.1 IP in 2024), Ryan Castillo (10 app., 20.1 IP in 2024) and Ben Baker-Livingston (52.2 IP in 24 app. at UNM) – with six transfer juniors and four freshmen joining them.

• From D1Baseball: “The bullpen has some interesting pieces and timely additions. Righthander Ryan Castillo exceeded expectations as a freshman last season and looks to improve on his  1-2, 11.57 numbers. The coaches say he showed flashes of “next-level strike throwing” in the fall sessions. Castillo could also figure into a starting role this coming spring. Two transfers who will play key roles this season are lefty Matthew Cornelius (12 appearances at Arizona State, 3-0, 10.80) and righty Jack Messmore (13 starts at Delaware State, 2-4, 6.47), who both have key D1 experience. Another southpaw who will play a big role in the bullpen plans will be JC transfer Presley Monteforte, who uses a ton of deception in his offspeed offerings, which makes his 87-89 fastball play way up.”