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May 14—Playoff baseball effectively starts Thursday for the University of New Mexico Lobos.
UNM hosts Fresno State for a regular-season-ending three-game series and both teams have a lot on the line. The Lobos (29-19, 16-11) and Bulldogs (26-26, 16-11) have both clinched spots in next week's Mountain West tournament, but a first-round bye and even a potential conference title are still up for grabs.
UNM and FSU enter the series one game behind first-place Nevada in the MWC standings, with the Wolf Pack finishing up at San Jose State. Should Nevada drop a game or two, the door opens for the Lobos or Bulldogs to grab or share a league title, but that would amount to icing on the cake.
The top two seeds in this year's revamped conference tournament earn first-round byes and advance to a double-elimination four-team bracket. Seeds 3-6 open with single-elimination games and a much tougher path to securing the Mountain West's automatic NCAA Regional berth. The tournament is next week in Mesa, Arizona.
"Getting a bye is a huge deal," UNM senior Josh McAlister said. "That's really what we're setting our eyes on. Winning a conference title would be great but we can't control what happens in San Jose. We know if we win this series, we're a top-two seed. That's our whole focus right now."
It won't be easy. Fresno State was the preseason pick to win the MWC title, and the Bulldogs swept a three-game set from UNM in Northern California in April. FSU leads the conference in most pitching statistics and ranks second to UNM in batting average.
"They're good in all phases," Lobos coach Tod Brown said, "and they pretty much took it to us the last time we played them."
But Fresno State has sputtered down the stretch, dropping five of its last six MWC games, and has never enjoyed much success in Albuquerque. The 'Dogs are 9-22 overall at UNM where they were swept last season.
The Lobos are 18-6 at home in 2025.
"We don't want to look ahead, but we're confident," McAlister said. "Playing at Santa Ana (Star Field), we'll take on any team in the country."
Home cooking certainly has proven tasty for the hot-hitting Lobos, who have cashed in on Santa Ana Star Field's high altitude, spacious outfield gaps and frequent winds blowing out. UNM leads the Mountain West in nearly every significant hitting statistic and leads the nation in batting average (.338), doubles (133) and total hits (598).
No Lobo has enjoyed playing at home more than McAlister, who has put together his best collegiate campaign in his second year at UNM after transferring from Ohio State. He ranks among the MWC's top six in batting average (.364), slugging (.695), on-base percentage (.456), home runs (14) and stolen bases (13 in 14 attempts).
"Josh has been a difference-maker in the field, on the basepaths and with his bat," Brown said. "He's so versatile being able to play three infield spots (second base, shortstop and third base). He's been great for us."
McAlister said he was "encouraged" to enter the NCAA transfer portal when Ohio State changed coaches for the second time during his two seasons with the Buckeyes. The Homewood, Illinois native soon got a phone call from Brown and was intrigued.
"I was in the portal with cast on my broken thumb," McAlister said. "I didn't know what was going to happen and the only thing I knew about New Mexico was the weather was better than Chicago's. But people have been nothing but great to me here. I really like it."
McAlister says good health and a more relaxed mentality have helped him stay in a productive groove this season. The only speed bump came when he was hit in the head with a pitch at UNLV and suffered a concussion, missing the next three games.
"That first at-bat coming back was a little scary, I won't lie," McAlister said. "Once that was behind me, it was pretty much back to normal."
Now, McAlister and his teammates simply want to extend the season for as long as possible. The Lobos will honor 15 graduating seniors prior to Saturday's finale, capping what they hope will be a memorable weekend.
"You want to play meaningful games in May and June and we've put ourselves in position to do that," Brown said. "We're expecting great crowds this weekend and we're excited. It's up to us to put on a great show."
NOTES: UNM will host a fan tailgate outside Santa Ana Star Field before Thursday's game, beginning at 5 p.m. with food, drink and yard games available. Admission to all three games in the series is free. Start times are 6 p.m. Thursday, 2 p.m. Friday and noon Saturday.
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UNM hosts Fresno State for a regular-season-ending three-game series and both teams have a lot on the line. The Lobos (29-19, 16-11) and Bulldogs (26-26, 16-11) have both clinched spots in next week's Mountain West tournament, but a first-round bye and even a potential conference title are still up for grabs.
UNM and FSU enter the series one game behind first-place Nevada in the MWC standings, with the Wolf Pack finishing up at San Jose State. Should Nevada drop a game or two, the door opens for the Lobos or Bulldogs to grab or share a league title, but that would amount to icing on the cake.
The top two seeds in this year's revamped conference tournament earn first-round byes and advance to a double-elimination four-team bracket. Seeds 3-6 open with single-elimination games and a much tougher path to securing the Mountain West's automatic NCAA Regional berth. The tournament is next week in Mesa, Arizona.
"Getting a bye is a huge deal," UNM senior Josh McAlister said. "That's really what we're setting our eyes on. Winning a conference title would be great but we can't control what happens in San Jose. We know if we win this series, we're a top-two seed. That's our whole focus right now."
It won't be easy. Fresno State was the preseason pick to win the MWC title, and the Bulldogs swept a three-game set from UNM in Northern California in April. FSU leads the conference in most pitching statistics and ranks second to UNM in batting average.
"They're good in all phases," Lobos coach Tod Brown said, "and they pretty much took it to us the last time we played them."
But Fresno State has sputtered down the stretch, dropping five of its last six MWC games, and has never enjoyed much success in Albuquerque. The 'Dogs are 9-22 overall at UNM where they were swept last season.
The Lobos are 18-6 at home in 2025.
"We don't want to look ahead, but we're confident," McAlister said. "Playing at Santa Ana (Star Field), we'll take on any team in the country."
Home cooking certainly has proven tasty for the hot-hitting Lobos, who have cashed in on Santa Ana Star Field's high altitude, spacious outfield gaps and frequent winds blowing out. UNM leads the Mountain West in nearly every significant hitting statistic and leads the nation in batting average (.338), doubles (133) and total hits (598).
No Lobo has enjoyed playing at home more than McAlister, who has put together his best collegiate campaign in his second year at UNM after transferring from Ohio State. He ranks among the MWC's top six in batting average (.364), slugging (.695), on-base percentage (.456), home runs (14) and stolen bases (13 in 14 attempts).
"Josh has been a difference-maker in the field, on the basepaths and with his bat," Brown said. "He's so versatile being able to play three infield spots (second base, shortstop and third base). He's been great for us."
McAlister said he was "encouraged" to enter the NCAA transfer portal when Ohio State changed coaches for the second time during his two seasons with the Buckeyes. The Homewood, Illinois native soon got a phone call from Brown and was intrigued.
"I was in the portal with cast on my broken thumb," McAlister said. "I didn't know what was going to happen and the only thing I knew about New Mexico was the weather was better than Chicago's. But people have been nothing but great to me here. I really like it."
McAlister says good health and a more relaxed mentality have helped him stay in a productive groove this season. The only speed bump came when he was hit in the head with a pitch at UNLV and suffered a concussion, missing the next three games.
"That first at-bat coming back was a little scary, I won't lie," McAlister said. "Once that was behind me, it was pretty much back to normal."
Now, McAlister and his teammates simply want to extend the season for as long as possible. The Lobos will honor 15 graduating seniors prior to Saturday's finale, capping what they hope will be a memorable weekend.
"You want to play meaningful games in May and June and we've put ourselves in position to do that," Brown said. "We're expecting great crowds this weekend and we're excited. It's up to us to put on a great show."
NOTES: UNM will host a fan tailgate outside Santa Ana Star Field before Thursday's game, beginning at 5 p.m. with food, drink and yard games available. Admission to all three games in the series is free. Start times are 6 p.m. Thursday, 2 p.m. Friday and noon Saturday.
Continue reading...
