by Andre van der Merwe
Daily Lobo
The University of New Mexico baseball team dropped a 1-0 lead against the Albuquerque Isotopes Tuesday night at Isotopes Park.
The Lobos (18-10) were in front through the first three innings until the Isotopes exploded in the bottom of the third to defeat the Lobos 6-2.
The Isotopes first got on the board in the bottom of the third when shortstop Robert Andino's single brought home designated hitter Mike Kinkade. The RBI seemed to spark the Isotopes' offensive explosion in the third. Isotope first basemen Jason Stokes followed Andino's RBI and put the game out of reach when he launched a grand slam. Most of the damage was done in the third inning, when the Isotopes scored five runs on five hits.
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In the Lobo dugout, junior center fielder Matt Foote was the most consistent against the Isotopes' pitching as he went 3-3, all of which were singles. Foote said he did not put extra pressure on himself even though he was facing a professional team.
"I tried to treat it like a regular game, and not stress too much about competition or the fact that these guys are Triple-A ball players." Foote said. "I just wanted to come in here and have some fun, and I still wanted to have some quality at-bats before this weekend."
Foote wasn't the only Lobo player to have success against the Isotopes' pitching. Junior first basemen and designated hitter Chris Carlson finished 2-3 with two doubles and an RBI. Carlson's RBI was the Lobos' second and last run of the night.
UNM is leading the Mountain West Conference in batting average this season, and Foote said that is because the Lobos have tremendous depth.
"One through nine, we don't have a guy in the lineup that is an easy out," Foote said.
Although the game didn't affect the Lobos' record, second basemen Jordan Pacheco explained what the exhibition game is all about.
"We're supposed to be out here for fun," Pacheco said. "I mean, they're just starting their season and we're halfway through ours. It's fun for us, but we want to see how our team is, how good we are doing and how we match up."
Although the game resulted in a loss, he said the experience can help boost the team's confidence as the Lobos continue the regular season.
"I think it was a booster for our hitters and our pitchers." Pacheco said. "I mean, to get a Triple-A guy out, your confidence goes up a little."
