The Lobo baseball team will open Mountain West play on Friday afternoon as they travel to Air Force for a three-game series.
The series matchup is the 182nd matchup between the two teams, with the Lobos (4-3) holding a dominant lead of 134-47 against the Falcons (4-3).
According to golobos.com, the Lobos have won the last 10 series in Colorado, with the Falcons’ last home series win coming in the 2002 season. The Lobos also won the season series last year, taking two of the three games on the road.
But the Lobos probably aren’t coming into this series on the strongest of notes, dropping three of its last four games (two at Dallas Baptist and one at Texas Tech). The Lobos did pick up one win against Dallas Baptist and began the season at home with a
Air Force, on the other hand, will be playing at home for the first time this season, as they have been road warriors playing the first seven games on the road. The Falcons have played its share of tough opponents, losing to No. 2 LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana 10-3.
The Falcons have also taken on Navy, coming away with a series victory by winning two of the three games played.
AF’s Tyler Zabojnik has been outstanding at the plate so far this season, posting a healthy .480 batting average to go along with five RBI, two home
Pitching has been a big factor for the Falcons. The starting pitcher for Air Force, Matt Hargreaves (1-0), started the season with a win and has logged a 2.77 ERA with 13 strikeouts in two
But the Lobos also have a serious threat on offense. Junior pitcher Luis Gonzalez is hitting .407 at the plate on the season. He had a very impressive series against Dallas Baptist where Gonzalez frustrated the opposing pitchers on the way to hitting a whopping .727 (8-for-11) from the plate, one home run, two RBI, two doubles, two stolen bases and three runs scored.
The performance earned Gonzalez Mountain West Player of the Week Honors, joining first baseman Jack Zoellner as the second Lobos to receive the award so far this season.
Junior pitcher Tyler Stevens is expected to get the start on the mound for the Lobos on Friday, followed by senior Carson Schneider on Saturday and redshirt senior Johnathon Tripp on Sunday.
The Lobos start the series at Air Force on Friday, Mar. 3 at 3 p.m. with games on Saturday and Sunday to follow. All three games will be broadcasted live on ESPN Radio 101.7 The TEAM.
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Matthew Narvaiz is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers women's basketball and baseball. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @matt_narvaiz
