LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State baseball team remains at home for a midweek tilt, April 11, against the Sul Ross State Lobos. First pitch for the contest is set for 2:05 p.m. MT on Presley Askew Field.
PROBABLE STARTERS
NM State (20-13, 6-0 WAC) sends
Chris Kucko to the bump for Tuesday's contest against Cody Remore for Sul Ross State (12-21, 5-13 ASC). Kucko, the Aggies usual midweek starter, has appeared in seven games with four starts with a 13.00 earned run average in 9.0 innings of work. The opposing hurler holds a 4-3 record in 10 starts with a 3.13 ERA over 54.2 innings.
GET CONNECTED
Get up to the minute information and news about the NM State baseball team all season on Twitter, and Instagram by following @NMStateBaseball and on Facebook.com/NMSUAthletics.
GET YOUR SEASON TICKETS NOW!
With the start of the 2017 season tickets, Aggie fans can be a part of the action for all 23 home games (including three double-headers) for just $100 per seat. Season tickets will guarantee fans a seat in the reserved section of 104 behind home plate. Fans can purchase 2017 Aggie baseball season tickets by going to the Pan American Center ticket office or by calling 575-646-1420.
LOOKING AT THE LOBOS
Division III opponent Sul Ross State sits at 12-21 overall and 5-13 in American Southwest Conference play. The lobos are 3-7 in their last 10 contests, but won their most recent series 2-1 over Letourneau between April 7 and April 8.
The opponent is led at the plate by first baseman Ryan Almager. The junior posts a team-high .367 batting average with five home runs and 33 runs batted in. Another Lobo excelling at the dish is sophomore Wesley Moss who has a .328 BA and a team-leading 10 stolen bases. The team holds a collective .300 average with 77 extra-base hits over 33 games.
From the bullpen the opponent looks to Ryan Todd, a right-handed reliever who has made 18 appearances posts a 1-1 record with a 4.44 ERA and 24 strikeouts over 26.1 innings of work. Tied with Todd for a team-lead in appearances is freshman hurler Peyton Marrett who holds a 2-1 record while only allowing nine walks over 27.1 innings. The pitching staff as a whole posts a 6.67 ERA with 6.87 strikeouts per nine innings of play. Tuesday's starter, Cody Remore, has recorded the only complete game shutout for the Lobos this season.
NM State has squared off against Sul Ross State 46 times in the team's history. The Aggies hold a 36-10 series edge. The most recent game between the two squads saw the Aggies defeat the Lobos 20-3 in seven innings back on March 17, 2009.
CHANGING THE RECORD BOOK
NM State has opened up Western Athletic Conference with back-to-back sweeps of Seattle U and UT Rio Grande Valley. The 6-0 WAC record for the team is the best start to conference play in program history, which tops an opening record of 5-1 recorded last season by the Aggies that finished 34-23 and 20-7 in the WAC.
FAMILY REUNION
The contest between the Aggies and the Lobos on Tuesday afternoon will put NM State's sophomore pitcher Matthew Munden against his brother, outfielder Mike Munden. Mike bats in the two spot for the Lobos and currently holds a .291 batting average and the junior has started in each of the 33 games for SRS. The brothers hail from El Paso, Texas and last played together at Coronado High School.
LAST TIME OUT
This past weekend, April 7-9, the Aggies hosted WAC foe UTRGV for a weekend series. Red-hot bats for NM State saw them sweep the series over the Vaqueros to a combined score of 32-11.
Mason Fishback led the attack at the plate going 6-for-12 with a .917 slugging percentage, 8 RBI, two doubles and a home run. The best work on the mound came from starter
Marcel Renteria who picked up his fifth win of the season after throwing 7.0 innings, allowing zero earned runs with five strikeouts.
WHO'S UP NEXT?
After the midweek contest versus Sul Ross, New Mexico State then hit the road for a three-game series at Sacramento State (15-16, 3-6 WAC). The three contests versus the Hornets can be heard on 91.5 FM KRUX with Adam Young on the call.
