The University of New Mexico baseball team will look to get back on the winning track when they host the Fresno State Bulldogs in a weekend series at Santa Ana Star Field.
This isn’t the first meeting between the two teams this season, as FSU hosted UNM (12-14-1, 6-6 MW) Mar. 9-11 and won two off its three home games at Bob Bennett Stadium in Fresno, California.
Most recently, however, the Lobos are coming off of a 16-6 loss on Monday at home against the University of Arizona, in which the Lobos cycled through eight pitchers and gave up 18 hits in the process.
The Wildcats dominated the Lobos from the get-go, scoring all 16 runs within the first five innings of the game, including a five run second inning and seven run fourth inning.
Lobo senior pitcher James Harrington struggled in his third start of the season, giving up six hits and six runs to UA in just 1.1 innings on the mound.
But it wasn’t just pitching in which the Lobos struggled with against the Wildcats on Monday. Hitting, too, was a problem. At least at first. UA, and its bullpen, held the Lobos to just two runs—which were scored in the first two innings of the game—before surrendering a four run sixth inning.
Heading into Friday evening, the Bulldogs (17-11, 4-8) have been red hot. They defeated the University of San Francisco 9-1 on Wednesday, and have won four of their last five, including their last three straight.
Though FSU has amassed 17 wins so far this season, conference play has been a bit of a problem. Of the 12 games they have played in the Mountain West, the Bulldogs have won just four of them—two of which were against UNM. They’re also in sixth-place in the conference, of which there are seven teams total.
On the other hand, UNM has posted a 6-6 record in conference action, including a win against FSU on the road. They’re currently fourth in the standings.
Leading the Lobos at the plate so far this season has been junior Hayden Schilling with a .358 batting average, 16 runs, 13 RBI, nine doubles and a triple.
Junior Jared Mang, although he missed some games early in the season, has posted a .314 batting average—second best of all UNM players—to go along with 17 runs, 14 RBI, four home runs and a double.
UNM’s bullpen has compiled a 5.54 ERA compared to a 4.25 ERA for FSU’s bullpen.
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As far as hitting goes for the Bulldogs, junior Zach Ashford has been a problem at the plate. He’s put together a .373 batting average at the plate, as well as racked up 15 runs, 13 RBI, seven doubles, two triples and a homer.
First pitch between the Lobos and FSU is at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, April 6.
Matthew Narvaiz is a senior sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. He primary covers men’s and women’s basketball, and baseball. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @matt_narvaiz.
