Sports

Sports

NM United: Team draws in home opener

Thomas Bulger | April 17

 New Mexico United tied 1-1 against San Diego Loyal in their first match in Albuquerque on Saturday, April 15. The two teams have now tied in their past four matchups. Through four matches this season, United has a record of 1-1-2. Fans had to wait six weeks into the season for the team to come back home. They showed up to support the team in droves with 11,233 in attendance Saturday night. Head coach Zach Prince praised the team's effort and credited Sam Hamilton's bounce-back performance after an uncharacteristic game against Monterey Bay.

---

Sports

Softball: Lobos split series in dramatic fashion

Thomas Bulger | April 17

 UNM's softball team faced the Colorado State University Rams in a two-game series over the weekend. Both games were called early with the Lobos losing the first game 10-1 in five innings, but rallying back the next game to win 12-4 in six innings. Each game was defined by a 7-run inning that allowed the team to take over. The Lobos had a balanced offense, but Rachel Hathoot and Ashley Archuleta each had four hits and one walk in the series. Hathoot had 5 runs batted in during the second game to help secure the victory.

---

Sports

Isotopes: The boys are back in town

Thomas Bulger | April 10

  The Albuquerque Isotopes had their first home series of the season against the Salt Lake Bees. The first three games of the series were competitive, but the Isotopes only came back to win one. The home opener on Tuesday, April 4 had a crowd of over 6,639 despite it being 43 degrees at the start of the game: the coldest first-pitch temperature at home in Isotopes history. They won their home opener 7-5, rallying late to secure the win. Isotopes gave up four hits but three of them were home runs, which led to the Bees getting an early lead.

---

Sports

Baseball: Lobos lose series to San José State

Thomas Bulger | April 10

  The Lobos fell to a 6-8 record in conference play after a tough series loss to San José State. They won the first game in the series, but then came up short in the following days. Reed Spenrath had an excellent series, getting nine hits on his 12 at bats. Brian McBroom pitched the last four innings of the first game, giving up two hits and one run. Isaac Gallegos pitched the third game and went 5.2 innings, giving up two earned runs over the course of 121 pitches.

---

Opinion

OPINION: Isotopes unveil tasty new menu for upcoming season

Elizabeth Secor | March 27

  The Albuquerque Isotopes unveiled their new concessions items for the upcoming 2023 season on Friday, March 24. Hungry fans can rest easy: almost everything sampled was a homerun. The executive chef of the ballpark, Jim Griego, crafted these new food creations; his inspiration came from wanting to give fans variety. “I wanted fans to feel like when they came to the park, there was choices. There were not just, a hot dog or a hamburger,” Griego said. “I wanted them to feel like they could come here and have a food destination.”

---

Sports

Bull riding stampedes into The Pit

Thomas Bulger | March 27

  The most dangerous 8 seconds in sports came to Albuquerque with the Ty Murray Invitational as part of the Professional Bull Riding "Unleash The Beast" tour. It was a near sold out crowd all three days of the event. In PBR riders have to stay on their bull for 8 seconds to receive a score. If the rider is able to do so he receives a score for how well he rode out of 50. The bull also receives a score out of 50 depending on how hard they bucked. These scores are added together for the ride's total score.

---

Sports

Baseball: Lobos upset at home with 2-0 loss to Aggies

Thomas Bulger | March 21

  On March 21 the University of New Mexico baseball team faced rival New Mexico State University and lost 2-0. The Lobos will face the Aggies four times this season; the series will resume in Las Cruces in April. Through March 20, the Lobos led the nation in batting average with a team average of .349, but had an uncharacteristic offensive performance Tuseday night despite being just a few hits away from stealing the game. Overall, the team had five hits: Kyle Smith led the team with two.

---

Sports

UNM student and pro rock climber seeks second national title

Gillian Barkhurst | March 20

  19-year-old competitive rock climber and University of New Mexico Lobo Isis Rothfork will represent New Mexico in Chicago at the Youth National Championships, hosted by USA Climbing, in July. With two landmark seasons under her harness, Rothfork remarked that she has a different mentality going into competition. “It’s like a different game, going in when you're not really chasing. You're kind of being chased.” Rothfork said.

---

Sports

Roadrunner Curling Club focuses on education and community

Maddie Pukite | March 20

  Curling since 2015, James Brickey brought the sport to the desert in 2017 with the formation of the Roadrunner Curling Club, aiming to introduce more people to the sport while forming a community in the process. The club meets at least three times per week, which includes lessons on Thursday nights and opportunities to compete. However, learning is a crucial principle of the club even when competing, according to Brandon Wichman, a club member.

---

Sports

Baseball: Lobos look strong in series win at start of conference play

Thomas Bulger | March 20

  The University of New Mexico baseball team played their first series of conference play on March 10-12 against the Air Force Academy Falcons. The Lobos won two of the three games. The Lobos lost 9-7 in 10 innings in the first game on March 10: UNM rallied late to tie the game in the ninth inning, but fell short in the 10th. The Lobos would go on to win the second game 15-0 on March 11, and won the third game 11-4 on March 12.

---

Sports

Men's basketball: Lobos defeat Fresno State in final home game 94-80

Thomas Bulger | March 1

  On Tuesday, Feb. 28, the University of New Mexico men's basketball defeated the Fresno State University Bulldogs 94-80 in their final home game of the season. They improved to a 8-9 record in conference play. It was senior night at The Pit: Emmanuel Kuac, KJ Jenkins, Josiah Allick, Jaelen House and Morris Udeze were honored before the game. They received flowers and a framed photo of one their highlights. Fans celebrated the players with a standing ovation and a "thank you seniors" chant. Besides Udeze, all players have an extra year of eligibility they earned for the year they lost due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

---

Sports

Women's basketball: Seniors shine at The Pit

Thomas Bulger | February 26

  UNM had a great game; they beat the Aggies in every statistical category: they won the rebounding battle, had less turnovers and made 39 of their 71 shots. The team had 7 players with double digit scores. Every Lobo had a good game, but the seniors had a stand out performance. McGruder led the team in points with 17 and grabbed 7 rebounds. LaTascya Duff had 13 points, three assists and three rebounds. Brown had a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds. LaTora Duff scored 11 and had a team high six assists.

---

Sports

Men's basketball: Lobos lose to San Diego State on a buzzer beater

Thomas Bulger | February 26

 The University of New Mexico men's basketball team lost to the #22-ranked San Diego State Aztecs 73-71 via buzzer beater on Saturday, Feb. 25. The Lobos fell to 7-9 in conference play after the loss. It is now unlikely the Lobos receive an invite to March Madness. The only path to the NCAA tournament is to win the Mountain West conference tournament. The Lobos may have a losing record in conference play, but were very competitive in all of their losses; this is a team that could learn from adversity and apply that to the tournament.

---

Sports

Isotopes: New manager, hitting coach look to knock it out of the park this season

Miyawni Curtis | February 20

  Pedro Lopez is returning to the Albuquerque Isotopes for the 2023 season, not as the bench coach, but as their new manager. He will be joined by former Lobo baseball star Jordan Pacheco as the returning hitting coach. Staff from the Isotopes gathered on Friday, Feb. 17 for a press conference to celebrate the promotion of Lopez and introduce his goals for the new season. He is the eighth manager in Isotopes history, according to Minor League Baseball. Lopez said he is grateful and honored, but it won’t be easy. He has one goal for the upcoming season: winning.

---

Sports

Women's basketball: Lobos stay steady for the win

Thomas Bulger | February 20

  On Saturday, Feb. 18 the University of New Mexico women's basketball team defeated the San José State Spartans 70-61. The Lobos are on a 3-game winning streak and are now 17-11 overall and 9-6 in conference play. In a game where they nearly gave up multiple double-digit leads, the Lobos were resilient and found a way to win. They played smart basketball down the stretch and only fouled nine times during the game. They ultimately lost the rebounding battle 43-42, but fought for every ball. The team shot 22-26 from the free-throw line. The Lobos had four players with double-digit scoring with Vianè Cumber leading the team  with 16; she made four 3-pointers. Amaya Brown had a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

---

Sports

Men's basketball: Lobos stunned at home by Wyoming

Thomas Bulger | February 16

  On Tuesday, Feb. 14, the Lobos lost to the University of Wyoming Cowboys 70-56. The Lobos are on a four-game losing streak and were without Jaelen House for the second game in a row due to injury; Donovan Dent started in his place. The Lobos are now 6-7 in conference play and fell to sixth place. With another loss, the Lobos will need to win the rest of their games to be invited to March Madness. Winning the Mountain West conference tournament would also secure a spot in the NCAA tournament, though. The Lobos lost the rebound battle 39-32 which led to 16 second-chance points for the Cowboys. UNM made just 21 of their 57 shots.

---

Sports

Men's basketball: Lobos lose 77-76 in a heartbreaker

Thomas Bulger | February 9

  The University of New Mexico men's basketball team lost 77-76 to the University of Nevada Wolf Pack on Feb. 7. The Lobos lost on a Keenan Blackshear jump shot that left them with just 0.1 seconds on the clock. It was another close game against the Wolf Pack: the last time these teams played, it was a 97-94 double overtime loss in Reno on Jan. 23. The Lobos are 19-5 overall, but 6-5 in conference play. The Lobos are now the fifth seed in the Mountain West and are just out of contention for the regular season title, but with the team learning from these close games the Lobos could go far in the conference tournament.

---

Sports

Women's basketball: Lobos stun Aztecs at The Pit

Thomas Bulger | February 6

 On Saturday, Feb. 4 the University of New Mexico women's basketball team upset the San Diego State University Aztecs 83-78. The Lobos are now 14-10 overall and 6-5 in conference play. The Aztecs are second in the Mountain West conference with a 8-4 record. It was the Lobos’ “Love Pink” game at The Pit to honor breast cancer survivors. Fans were dressed in pink, and the Lobos wore pink and white jerseys for the game. The Lobos built an early lead and we're able to maintain it throughout the game. The Lobos won the rebounding battle 35-30 and made an amazing 56.9% of their shots, making 29 of their 51 attempts.

---

Sports

Women's basketball: Lobos look competitive in loss against UNLV

Thomas Bulger | February 2

 The University of New Mexico Lobos lost 93-75 to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Lady Rebels on Thursday, Feb. 2. The Lobos lost their three-game win streak, and are now 13-10 overall and 5-5 in conference play. UNLV remains the top team in the Mountain West conference being 11-0 in conference play. It was “Women in Sports” night at The Pit. At halftime, women from the Isotopes, UNM administration and all the Lobo women student athletes were honored on the court and received recognition from the fans with applause.

---

Sports

Men's basketball: Lobos ground Air Force for the win

Thomas Bulger | January 30

 The University of New Mexico men's basketball team defeated the Air Force Academy Falcons 81-73 on Friday, Jan. 27. The Lobos now have an overall record of 19-3 and are 6-3 in conference play. The Lobos had a steady lead in the first half but gave it up early in the second half. UNM was able to rally back behind some stellar play from their guards and the crowd keeping players engaged.