Staff Report
The Lobo baseball team wrapped up a sweep of Air Force Sunday, winning 19-6.
It was the second weekend in a row that UNM has swept a conference opponent. Last week they beat Utah three-straight to move into a tie for second place in the Mountain West Conference.
After sweeping Air Force, the Lobos now hold second by themselves with a 16-8 league mark. They trail only nationally ranked UNLV (20-4).
Josh Jezek had a monstrous game Sunday, plating 5 RBIs and hitting a key home run in the fourth that broke a 6-6 tie and started an avalanche of Lobo runs that buried the Falcons. Third baseman Josh Mader also had a big game, going 3-6 with 4 RBIs.
The 19-6 win was an edge-of-your-seat nail biter compared to the first game of the series, which the Lobos easily took 25-2. UNM got it going quickly in that game with three first inning home runs flying off the bats of Joe Salas, Sean Murray and Jeff Grady.
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The entire Lobo team rocked Air Force Friday, combining for a total of six home runs and 27 hits. Both marks tied for fourth most for a game in school history.
Sandwiched between the two blowouts was a tight, one-run game that came down to the Lobos final at-bat Saturday. With the score 3-2 in favor of the Falcons in the ninth, Lobo outfielder Josh Huwer clubbed a pinch-hit, two-out single that scored Murray and Corey Lizarraga. The Lobos won that game 5-4.
Despite huge offensive numbers for UNM batters, a key factor in the Lobos sweep was the team's starting pitching. James Vermilyea started Friday's massacre and allowed only one earned run and five hits, improving his overall record to 7-1 and keeping a perfect conference record of 4-0 intact.
Kris Gross started Saturday's close contest and lasted for eight and one-third innings. He allowed three earned runs and nine hits while striking out seven. Gross is 6-2 on the year.
Freshman Darren Coltrinari had a rough fourth inning in Sunday's win, when he allowed all six of Air Force's runs. The rest of the game, however, he pitched near-perfect baseball. Through three innings he faced the fewest possible number of batters, and he sat down 14 of the last 15 he faced. Coltrinari finished with eight strikeouts and no walks in eight innings.
The Lobos must now wait the entire week for their biggest series of the season. On Friday, May 9, the Lobos make their move into sparkling new Isotopes Park, where their first guests will be league-leading UNLV. The last time the two teams met, UNLV won all three games by a total of three runs.
