The UNM women's golf team made progressions as the season went along and will get a chance to make its biggest progressive impact next weekend. The Lobos will host this season's Mountain West Conference Tournament, which will be played at the UNM Championship Golf Course.
The UNM track and field team is enjoying one of its most successful seasons and is now getting some national attention. The Lobo women were listed as the No. 24 team in the country by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. UNM debuted at that spot in the first Division I Outdoor Track and Field Rankings for the 2008 outdoor season.
Senior tailback Rodney Ferguson enjoyed a fine season in 2007, rushing for 1,177 yards and 13 touchdowns for the UNM football team. But the then-junior missed the biggest game of the season, failing to participate in the New Mexico Bowl due to academic ineligibility.
Welcome to another edition of "From the Sports Gutter." This week, the topic is Major League Baseball. The American League has been putting a beating on the National League for the past decade-plus. Will any NL team step up to the plate and win the World Series this year? Maybe if the AL has an off year.
UNM head football coach Rocky Long said his team goes through cycles of experience and youth - and 2008 happens to be a year where inexperience will rule. So that makes the spring season, which begins this week, that much more important if the Lobos are going to continue to make strides in the program.
The UNM tennis team clawed its way to victory last weekend, racking up wins against Utah, Air Force and San Diego State. The Lobos beat Utah 4-3 on Friday before following up the win with a clean sweep against Air Force, 7-0 on Saturday. The Lobos closed out the weekend by defeating San Diego State 5-2 on Sunday.
Lacrosse may not be as big in the Southwest as it is on the East Coast, but members of the UNM lacrosse club are eager to change that. Marcos Rivera, the team's vice president, said his goal is for the school's club team to help generate interest in the sport.
The UNM men's soccer team lost one of its most successful goalkeepers in program history and is seeing some changes in the coaching staff. But none of that seemed to matter in the Lobos' spring season debut, as they defeated Air Force 3-0 and Fort Lewis 2-0 on Saturday at Robertson Field.
On display Tuesday night at Isotopes Park were all the elements of a professional game: the lights, the wooden bats, the press, the peanut gallery. However, instead of two major league teams, the UNM baseball team took on the Albuquerque Isotopes. On paper, the matchup may seem unfair.
The UNM volleyball team is keeping busy in the off-season. The Lobos went 5-0 at their spring invite last weekend, defeating teams from the University of Denver, Frank Phillips College and an all-star team made of ex-college players. Head coach Jeff Nelson said UNM is showing progression from last season.
Last weekend at Isotopes Park was hectic for the UNM baseball team. UNM pitcher Will Kerr threw a complete game, and Brian Cavazos-Galvez broke out of his early season struggles as the Lobos swept Vermont in a four-game series, improving to 18-10. Coach Ray Birmingham said it was important that his team didn't underestimate its opponent.
When Chris Parkes played tennis in his hometown of Southport, England, he was used to seeing his little brother cheer for him on the sidelines. Fast forward a few years later, and the Parkes brothers cheer for each other on and off the court as UNM tennis players.
The dugouts, like ghost towns, are deserted. All that remains in the stadium is an oasis of neatly trimmed grass and a pile of dirt beneath a slender piece of rectangular rubber. Even after all those rambunctious fans had piled out, Lobo utility man Dane Hamilton stayed to practice.
Maybe it's the slight variation between the school colors - red and maroon. Maybe it's because NMSU is so close to El Paso, and the Aggies come in with a Texas-sized chip on their shoulders. Or maybe - with the Rio Grande Rivalry as an added incentive - the Lobos and Aggies just want to get their hands on those state bragging rights.
Men's track and field Anthony Fairbanks was named Mountain West Conference Outdoor Track and Field Athlete of the Week after he broke the conference record in the javelin throw. The junior hit a mark of 224-11, which broke the MWC record by 2 1/2 feet. As of Tuesday, the distance is the fourth-best in the nation.
The women's NCAA basketball Sweet 16 field is complete, and Pittsburgh and Vanderbilt are moving on after winning first-round games held at The Pit this week. No. 6 seed Pittsburgh pulled off the only considerable upset of the games played in Albuquerque, knocking off No.
It's March Madness, and what a crazy year it has been. Let's go over some of this year's upsets. Duke vs. West Virginia The outcome of this one, a 73-67 Mountaineer upset, was predicated on Duke's inability to shoot the 3-pointer. Because Duke lacks a strong interior presence, it was heavily reliant on the transitional buckets and 3-pointers.
All season long, UNM head basketball coach Steve Alford talked about building a program rather than just building a season. So, if Lobo fans can look past the gut-wrenching end to postseason play, there should be plenty to get excited about in upcoming seasons.
After UNM lost nine of its last 10 games, head coach Ray Birmingham sounded off about the Lobos recent woes. "It'll test you," he said. But Birmingham was quick to downplay the team's struggles, choosing instead to focus on how he coaches his team through adversity.
The No. 5 seed West Virginia Mountaineers squeezed passed the No. 12 seed Lobos 61-60 at The Pit in the first round of the 2008 NCAA Tournament. The Lobos had trouble containing the Mountaineers' offensive threats, UNM head coach Don Flanagan said. "They are very difficult to defend and have a lot of weapons," he said.
Solutions by The State News
