I've come to a realization. It's been hard. It's been tough to swallow. And I haven't liked it one bit. But, it was just a matter of time. I mean, I couldn't expect the San Antonio Spurs to stay on top forever. They had a good run - one for the ages. It just wasn't their year.
The foundation has been laid, and arguably even some of the infrastructure. Posting a 34-25 record under first-year head coach Ray Birmingham, the Lobo baseball team entered the Mountain West Conference Championships as the No. 2 seed in what Birmingham admitted was an unexpected position.
Skiing Recap: UNM finished seventh at the NCAA Championships on March 8 and fifth at the NCAA West Regional on Feb. 23. Season highlight: The Lobos placed seventh out of 21 teams at the NCAAs. Karin Ohlin and Thomas Schwab earned All-American honors at the championships.
UNM soccer player Michael Reed regularly finds himself shin deep in buckets of ice and wrapped up from knee to hip. He said trainers and teammates make fun of him, but that's OK. Reed is just happy to be here. Reed, a sophomore, earned himself a starting position as a midfielder for the Lobos right out of high school but tore his meniscus before the 2006 season started.
Welcome to another edition of "From the Sports Gutter." This week, the topic is the NBA Playoffs. Kobe Bryant was named NBA MVP as his Los Angeles Lakers have started 5-0 in the 2008 playoffs. That news might only fire up Chris Paul, who is already playing at an outstanding level.
Staff Report In his first 10,000-meter race of the season, Jeremy Johnson secured his spot at the 2008 NCAA Track and Field Championships. Johnson hit an automatic qualifying time of 28:33.08 late Sunday at Stanford's Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational. He was named Mountain West Conference Track Athlete of the Week on Monday, along with Colorado State's Drew Morano.
Events UNM won at the Don Kirby Memorial Invitational: Women's 200-meter dash Ariel Burr - 23.67 Women's 500-meter run Sheyenne Lewis - 18:15.87 Women's 4x100 relay Burr, Sandy Fortner, Alesha Walker and Kristan Matison - 45.58 Women's pole vault Whitney Johnson - 12-1.
Baseball The Lobos won a three-game series at BYU over the weekend led by an explosive offense. UNM edged the Cougars 9-7 on Friday, pounding out 15 hits. Mike Brownstein led the Lobos, going 3-for-6 with a run and two RBIs. Pitcher Bobby LaFramboise picked up the win to improve to 5-2 on the season, and Clinton Cox earned his third save of the year.
A sick soccer player demands to see a doctor before practice. A baseball player needs an X-ray scheduled as soon as possible. A dehydrated football player on the verge of passing out requires medical attention. This, and much more, is all in an hour's work for Eric Beck.
Throughout the 2008 track and field season, UNM athletes have set school records, qualified for prestigious meets and enjoyed one of its finest seasons in years. And the Lobos will get a chance to show off their talents in front of a home crowd for the first time this season, hosting the Don Kirby Invitational on Saturday.
The third time wasn't a charm for the UNM baseball team. After suffering two defeats to UC-Irvine on Friday and Saturday - the Lobos lost 5-3 on Friday and 11-6 on Saturday - the Anteaters swallowed the Lobos on Sunday, winning 12-1. On Friday, UC-Irvine ace Scott Gorgen helped eke out a win.
Former UNM wide receiver Marcus Smith might have fallen into a best-case scenario, as he was selected in the fourth round by the Baltimore Ravens in the NFL Draft. Smith was the 106th overall pick in the draft, taken Sunday. "I'm happy to just be picked," Smith said.
If ever a Lobo could talk, Mike Roberts was that voice. For 40 years, Roberts has been the play-by-play announcer for UNM football and basketball. Last Friday, all that came to an abrupt end, when UNM informed Roberts he would not be retained. UNM Athletics Director Paul Krebs did not return phone calls Sunday.
The UNM football team produced expected results Saturday, with Cherry defeating Silver 35-7 at Ivan Head Stadium in Santa Fe. The Cherry team, made up of starters on offense and defense, performed well on both sides of the ball. UNM head coach Rocky Long said Cherry did what it was supposed to do, considering it was playing against the backups.
If all goes well, by the end of softball season, Lindsey Elcess could be UNM softball's all-time home run leader. Yet, with that big of a feat at stake, Elcess has managed to fly under the radar, steadily building a noteworthy résumé. That's not to say her accomplishments have gone unnoticed.
Staff report As a No. 3 seed, the UNM women's tennis team advanced to the Mountain West Conference Championship semifinals by beating No. 6 San Diego State 4-2 on Thursday. After New Mexico clinched the doubles match to jump out to a 1-0 lead, Lucy Scott defeated Ellie Krausova in two sets, 6-2, 6-2, and Emma Hayman put the Lobos up 3-0, when SDSU's Esther Cadua was forced to retire.
The UNM men's tennis team showed it deserved its myriad awards by cruising past Air Force 4-0 in the first round of the Mountain West Conference Tournament on Thursday. Lobo head coach Alan Dils was named MWC Coach of the Year on Wednesday while three singles players and two doubles teams were named all-conference.
What a turnaround. Last year, after the Lobo baseball team limped out to a 28-30 overall record and a 12-12 Mountain West Conference mark under former head coach Rich Alday, Athletics Director Paul Krebs decided to make a change. His selection was a reliable and proven winner from New Mexico Junior College - Ray Birmingham.
Welcome to another edition of "From the Sports Gutter." This week, the topic is NBA Playoffs. The Spurs have been the team of the decade. But with a stacked Western Conference, it will be hard for them to repeat. The Celtics should roll through the Eastern Conference, as long as they don't piss off LeBron James too much.
Wide receiver Marcus Smith produced one of the most stellar senior seasons in UNM football history. He broke records. He played in the Senior Bowl. He was invited to the 2008 NFL combine and is a likely pick for this weekend's NFL draft. But through it all, the most important part of his success was missing.
Solutions by The State News
