New Mexico utilized the fierce winds Tuesday night to blow past Grand Canyon University 7-3 at Lobo Field. Not normally known for its power in the lineup, the Lobos connected on two pitches early in the contest to put pressure on GCU. New Mexico never looked back after jumping to a 7-0 lead against the Antelopes.
New Mexico lost more than its strong safety last season — it lost a leader. The Lobos are looking to replace David Guthrie after he exhausted his eligibility last year. UNM does have plenty of depth at the safety positions with several players who have in-game experience. However, safeties coach Charles McMillian said it will be difficult to replace Guthrie because of the type of leader he was.
It was a productive weekend for the New Mexico softball team as the Lobos took the series against Colorado State with a 7-4 win on Sunday. The Lobos fell 2-0 to the Rams on Friday but took a 4-3 win on Saturday. UNM head coach Erica Beach said the rubber game would be difficult. “We always have competitive series against Colorado State, no matter what the records are,” she said. “We had great pitching, great hitting and great defense today. It was a tough fought game ... I’m really proud of these girls for toughing it out and being gritty.”
The UNM women’s basketball team handed out six team awards at its end-of-year banquet, held Friday night at the Albuquerque Marriott. According to a release, freshman Cherise Beynon received the Student-athlete of the Year award and the Most Improved Player award.
Tyler Stevens made history in just his sixth career start. New Mexico’s freshman starting pitcher tossed a one-hit complete game shutout in a 5-0 win over Air Force on Sunday at Lobo Field. It was the first one-hit game thrown by the Lobos since 1976 when Tom Bepko and Craig Steiner combined to give up one hit against Colorado Mines in seven innings. The last individual pitcher to throw a one-hitter was Ron Simms, who did it against New Mexico State in 1973. “Nothing really much to say except I just attacked the zone and I had great defense,” Stevens said. “When you have hits at key times, you just have to throw strikes and pound the zone and let your defense work.”
Maybe it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Clay Davie decided to be a football coach. After all, his father, New Mexico head coach Bob Davie, has been in the coaching game for almost 30 years. But Bob Davie never tried to pressure or persuade his son into becoming a coach.
Following New Mexico’s first Mountain West series loss, the Lobos will look to get its offense back on track after being shut down by Fresno State. Head coach Erica Beach said her squad struggled against one of the best pitchers in the conference, but that the offense must maintain its confidence against a potent Colorado State team.
The New Mexico men’s and women’s outdoor track and field teams won six events at the Don Kirby Invitational on Saturday. Distance runner Peter Callahan, thrower Michael Ellis, jumper Logan Pfilsben and distance runner Sophie Connor all claimed gold, while the UNM’s men’s and women’s 4x400 meter relay teams took first.
The UNM men’s soccer team earned a 2-1 victory over Air Force Saturday in its last home spring match of the season. The Lobos hosted the Falcons at Robertson Field and to pull off the win after 90 minutes of regulation time and 20 minutes of overtime.
New Mexico’s inability to find the strike zone late in the game hindered the Lobos’ chances of sweeping Nevada. In the top of the sixth with the game tied at 4, junior pitcher Lauren Soles was all over the zone in her short relief attempt. Nevada took advantage of the righty’s wild outing, scoring three runs in the top of the sixth eventually leading to the Wolf Pack’s 7-4 victory at Lobo Field on Saturday.
The timing wasn’t right for Austin Apodaca. After being committed to Washington State for nine months, it didn’t feel like the correct decision for the high school quarterback to take a visit to New Mexico and see what the Lobos had to offer.
After taking the first game on the road against San Diego State, UNM dropped the final two games of the three-game series. In the rubber match, the Lobos made a late run at the Aztecs, but two runs in the top of the ninth wasn’t enough for New Mexico.
Spring football has shown how thin New Mexico is at the linebacker position. The Lobos do have several linebackers with game experience on the roster, but that is mostly limited to backup minutes. The only regular starters in spring football are redshirt freshman inside linebacker Kimmie Carson and sophomore outside linebacker Donnie White. Both started eight games last season.
New Mexico turned to its defense and leading hitter to garner the program’s first win against Nevada Thursday in a 4-3 walk-off victory. In the bottom of the seventh with a runner on third, UNM’s junior center fielder Mariah Rimmer hit a shot over Nevada’s left fielder to take the first of a three game series against the Wolf Pack.
New Mexico’s youth shined against the No. 19 team in the country during a 6-5 victory over the Texas Tech Red Raiders Tuesday afternoon at Lobo Field. Two freshman utility players led the Lobos through an unscathed ending despite UNM’s rocky start. Hayden Schilling and Lewis Gonzalez helped shut down Texas Tech’s offense in the final three innings of play, pitching scoreless relief efforts.
Not many quarterbacks switch positions after starting for their first three years in college. However, Cole Gautsche is making that transition. It was announced earlier this year that he will be moving to tight end after being New Mexico’s starting quarterback for the last three seasons. The junior will also redshirt this upcoming season in order to fully heal the broken left foot he suffered in a 31-28 win at UNLV this past November.
The New Mexico men’s soccer team won its first spring home exhibition of the year with a 4-2 victory over Fort Lewis on Saturday. With the match tied at 2, sophomore midfielders Olav Hovstad and Wayde Scibilia scored goals late to lift UNM. “Our quality showed throughout the match,” UNM head coach Jeremy Fishbein said in a press release. “We scored two late to win 4-2. Overall, we were a little casual in our approach to the game, but it’s hard to recreate the atmosphere we usually play in front of when it’s the spring and a day game.”
Last week, New Mexico became one of the first Mountain West schools to announce that it has decided to fund the full cost of attendance for its student athletes. In an interview with LoboTV Thursday, Vice President for Athletics Paul Krebs said UNM will fund the full cost of attendance, which will add almost $1 million to the athletic budget. Athletic scholarships will increase by approximately $2,700, Krebs said. In the past, athletic scholarships only covered tuition and fees, room and board and books. The full cost of attendance now includes those needs plus course fees, academic-related supplies and other basic necessities.
It might be time for the New Mexico wide receivers to finally play a more active role in the passing game. For the past three years in Bob Davie’s triple option offense, UNM wideouts have done more blocking than catching. In this spring practice, there has been an emphasis on improving the air game, but that has been the case for the past couple of seasons. No wide receiver under Davie at UNM has caught 20 or more passes. The most catches a wide receiver has had in one season are 19, which happened twice in 2013 when receivers Jeric Magnant and Marquis Bundy both hit that mark.
Jake Cole had it going on at Lobo Field on Sunday. The junior reliever pitched 3 1/3 innings, giving up zero hits and striking out three batters in a 5-1 New Mexico victory over Fresno State. Cole also earned his first victory of the season. “I don’t really think about it when I’m throwing,” he said. “I just try to get the job done and keep us in place to win.”
Solutions by The State News
