Making a trip through California proved no easy task for the Lobos.
First, they dropped a weekend series at Fresno State. Then, they dropped single game appearances at Cal Poly and Pepperdine.
Below are recaps of the two standalone games UNM appeared in:
Cal Poly, Monday
After finishing up their series at Fresno State, the Lobos jumped right back into things when they made a trip to Cal Poly.
However, for the second time this season, both teams took extra innings to get things done. In the end, it was Cal Poly who escaped with a 5-4 victory in the tenth inning.
Freshman Richard Ware scores UNM’s first run of the game on a single in the second inning. Then, sophomore Justin Watari hit a sacrifice fly to score another run in the process.
Meanwhile, senior James Harrington allowed three runs and eight hits in 4.1 innings on the mound for UNM.
With the Lobos down 4-2 in the seventh inning with one out after senior Danny Collier grounded out, the Lobos saw three straight singles from the likes of Watari and freshmen Phillip Sikes and Derek Marshall to load the bases. Then, freshman Daniel Zakosek hit a sacrifice fly to bring Watari home.
In the eighth, UNM added another run to tie the game up at four runs apiece.
The tenth inning saw junior closer Christian Tripp, who had recorded a 1-2-3 inning in the ninth to force extra innings.
But in the tenth, Tripp faltered. He allowed two singles to put runners at the corners with one out, before the runner at third base advanced to home plate after Tripp threw a wild pitch. It ended the game for both teams, with Cal Poly emerging victorious 5-4.
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
Pepperdine, Tuesday
Unlike UNM’s match against Cal Poly, Pepperdine didn’t need extra innings to beat them. Instead, a comeback spurred the Waves to an 11-7 victory at home.
After the Lobos took a comfortable 7-0 lead in the first six innings of play, Pepperdine, with two outs in the frame, willed its way back over the last 2.1 innings of the game.
Freshman Nick Krauth got the start on the mound for the Lobos, and was great for the most part. Before UNM allowed the comeback, Krauth allowed just one hit in the game, which came in the second inning when he allowed a two-out single.
With two outs in the sixth inning, Krauth allowed a single, then he walked a batter and then a home run brought the game within four runs, 7-3.
The Lobos gave up another run in the seventh before another Pepperdine homer made it just a two run UNM lead, 7-5, in the eighth inning.
Then, Pepperdine added another six runs in the frame to take home an 11-7 victory.
For UNM, Collier and Zakosek each had three hits. Collier added two runs and two RBI, while Zakosek had one run and three RBI.
In total, UNM had nine hits as a team compared to Pepperdine’s eight hits.
The losses to Cal Poly and Pepperdine dropped the Lobos to 6-10-1 overall, with a 2-4 record in conference.
Next the Lobos will play a doubleheader against Houston and Columbia in Houston, Texas. The first game against Columbia is at 2 p.m. on Friday, March 16, with the second game at 6:30 p.m. against Houston. Then, on Saturday, the Lobos will face Columbia at 2 p.m. again to close out the series.
Matthew Narvaiz is a senior sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers men’s and women’s basketball, and baseball. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @matt_narvaiz.
