ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — New Mexico dropped the series opener to Abilene Christian on Friday night, falling 12-5 at Santa Ana Star Field after a late surge by the Wildcats.
The Lobos (14-8, 1-2 MW) jumped out to an early lead, scoring in each of the first three innings to take a 4-0 advantage. Anthony Diaz opened the scoring with an inside-the-park home run in the first, while RBI doubles from Caleb Herd and Khalil Walker keyed a two-run second.
WHEELS 🚗 @Anthony_diaz05 pic.twitter.com/avUX5098pv
— UNM Baseball (@UNMLoboBaseball) March 21, 2026
After Abilene Christian chipped away with runs in the fifth and sixth to tie the game, the Wildcats broke it open in the seventh with a four-run inning, taking advantage of walks and timely hits to seize control. ACU added two more in the eighth and three in the ninth to pull away.
New Mexico finished with 11 hits, getting multi-hit efforts from Khalil Walker (2-for-3, RBI) and contributions across the lineup, but left eight runners on base and was unable to match ACU’s late offensive output. Antonio Gianni and Lachlan Maude both produced in pinch-hit situations in the bottom of the ninth, with Gianni connecting on a leadoff single and Maude following with his first double as Lobo to score UNM’s first run since the third inning.
The first double as a Lobo for @lachlanmaude38 gets us back on the board 👊 pic.twitter.com/yss8k4Np5q
— UNM Baseball (@UNMLoboBaseball) March 21, 2026
On the mound, RHP Cristian Mogen (5.1 IP, 5 H, 3 R / 3 ER, 0 BB, 9 K) was sharp early, allowing three runs over 5.1 innings with a career-high nine strikeouts, but the Lobos’ bullpen struggled to contain the Wildcats down the stretch as ACU scored nine runs over the final three innings.
LHP Cooper Corkrean (0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K) got the Lobos through the rest of the sixth while RHP Talor Grubbs (0.1 IP, 0 H, 3 R / 3 ER, 3 BB, 1 K) was tagged with the loss, with RHP Ty Cunningham (1.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R / 3 ER, 1 BB, 1 K) and RHP Josh Barnhouse (1.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R / 3 ER, 0 BB, 1 K) closing out the rest of the way.
ON DECK
The Lobos (14-8, 1-2 MW) return for an opportunity to even up the weekend series in tomorrow’s Game Two, set to get underway at 2 p.m. MT. All of this weekend’s games will be broadcast via the MW Network at GoLobos.com/Watch, with live stats available via GoLobos.com/BSBStats. Follow @UNMLoboBaseball on IG, X and Facebook for comprehensive coverage.