- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,129,560
- Reaction score
- 59
You must be registered for see images attach
Mar 7, 2020; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; A detailed view of the Mountain West logo on the baseline seen before the Conference tournament final between the San Diego State Aztecs and the Utah State Aggies at Thomas and Mack Center. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-Imagn Images
San Diego State baseball with a win in the Mountain West Conference Tournament
Aztec basketball dealt a loss with the loss of transfer Nick Anderson
Golf season ends, but conference honors belong to the Aztecs
The Aztecs entered the Mountain West Conference Baseball tournament as the number one seed. They have been on a tear of late and that continued as the Aztecs played the New Mexico Lobos in game three of the tournament. Squaring off against the #5 seeded Lobos, winners the day before against Nevada, 13-4, the Aztecs showed their dominance in a 11-6 win. The Aztecs started slow, spotting the Lobos a 5 run lead, but the offense was soon set to explode. Between the fourth and sixth innings, the Aztecs put up 10 runs including two home runs and a triple to lead 10-5. Each team would tally solo runs the rest of the way giving the Aztecs a first game win. The Aztecs were paced by Adam Magpoc and Max Farrell who both went 3 – 5 with a home run. Jake Jackson also contributed three hits including a double. In all the Aztecs tallied 15 hits. Isaac Araiza was credited with the win in one inning of work and Aidan Russell got the save, finishing out the last four innings. The Lobos were paced by Luke Mansy who went 3 – 4 with 2 runs scored and adding a double. Ty Cunningham took the loss in relief, throwing 1 ⅓ innings and giving up 3 hits and 3 runs.
The Lobos will face Air Force in today’s game. The Falcons were on the losing end of a 5-1 game against Washington State. This will be the first elimination game. The Aztecs continue into the winners bracket where they will take on #2 seed Washington State in the second game. The nightcap game will feature the winner of New Mexico and Air Force playing the non-advancing team (losing team) between the Aztecs and Cougars.
On the basketball front, the Aztecs were dealt a setback, when Rice transfer Nick Anderson suffered a season ending ACL and meniscus tear. The Aztecs were counting heavily on Anderson to help lead the team this season after being a dominant player for the Owl. The injury occurred during a workout in Houston. During warmups, he was driving to the basket where he planted and a knee buckled.
“It popped weird,” said Anderson, who will undergo surgery on Friday. “I felt something was off. I wasn’t expecting that, but I definitely knew something was wrong.
I was pretty devastated, I can’t lie. I’m still going through the process. I’ve gotten into a better headspace since then. It was definitely upsetting for the first few days, especially after hearing the results. It was a lot mentally, for sure.”
Anderson, a 6-foot -4 senior averaged 15.5 points for Rice last season while shooting 40% from beyond the three-point line. He was expected to provide a much needed outside shot for the Aztecs. Anderson plans to join the team in mid-July and continue his rehab while on campus through the summer and fall. It’s likely he will see action in the 2027 season since surgery recovery will take him until the latter part of the upcoming season.
Coach Brian Dutcher added, “No one feels worse for Nick than I do. We’re still going to have him here, we’re going to help him get through his rehab, file an appeal to see if we can get him an extra year, but we will be there for him to support him.
Players have come out on the other side of this. The question is whether we can get him another year of college basketball. If not, get him rehabbed and get him back into playing shape where he can try to play professionally.”
The Aztecs may be on the fringe of signing a transfer wing to help provide the much needed outside shot. They have two remaining spot to fill, one with an immediate timetable to play, while the other might be more developmental. The roster includes four returning players, three European pros, three transfer portal players and one incoming high school senior. Knowing Coach Dutcher, he may have a few more cards up his sleeve. He remains one of the more successful and respected basketball coaches. No doubt, he is looking forward to taking the Aztecs into the new season in the Pac-12 Conference.
Over to the golf links, the Aztecs men’s team finished their season in 13th place at the NCAA regionals in Arizona. Sophomore Harry Takis finished in 13th place in the individual. The Mountain West Player of the Year finished his season with a 69.23 scoring average. The Aztecs round out their Mountain West seasons with seven league championships including winning four straight from 2022 – 2025. On the women’s side, Ema Narita was named to the All-Mountain West First Team. She finished the year with a 72.79 stroke average, the fourth best in program history.
Continue reading...
