LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State baseball team gets set for its second Western Athletic Conference series of the season against Sacramento State at Presley Askew Field, March 29-31.
PROBABLE STARTERS
Thursday, March 29 at 6:05 p.m.
NM State: Kyle Bradish | RHP | 2-1 | 3.03 ERA
Sacramento State: Scott Randall | RHP | 2-2 | 5.32 ERA
Friday, March 30 at 6:05 p.m.
NM State: Justin Dehn | RHP | 2-2 | 5.01 ERA
Sacramento State: Parker Brahms | RHP | 1-2 | 2.31 ERA
Saturday, March 31 at 11:05 p.m.
NM State: Jonathan Groff | LHP | 5-1 | 2.97 ERA
Sacramento State: Austin Root | RHP | 3-2 | 3.35 ERA
WHERE TO WATCH
Aggie fans who can't make it to Friday's contest can catch it on television with Adam Young on the call and Brian Cox serving as the analyst. The game can be seen on Comcast, channel 77 in the state of New Mexico, or streamed through ESPN3.
LISTEN UP!
The series opener and finale can be heard on 91.5 FM KRUX with Adam Young handling the play-by-play. Fans can also use their tablet or mobile device to listen on the TuneIn app by searching KRUX.
FOLLOW ALONG
Fans can also follow the game in real time with live stats on
StatBroadcast.
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.
CHANGE IT UP!
The series finale on Saturday, March 31, has had its start time move up one hour and first pitch is now slated for 11:05 p.m. MT.
SCOUTING SAC STATE
Sacramento State enters the weekend series at Presley Askew with a 9-13 overall record. This is set to be the Hornets first WAC series during the 2018 season. Last season, the Hornets finished 12-12 in regular season conference play before winning four straight in the WAC tournament to clinch the conference championship.
When the Hornets allow their opponents to score six or more runs, they are 0-9 this season. When they limit their opponent to five runs or fewer, however, they are 9-4.
Right-handed pitcher Tanner Dalton has received the ball in each of Sacramento State's last three save opportunities and has converted all three. The junior hurler has thrown 4.2 innings over those three appearances while allowing just two hits and one walk, and striking out six. His three saves lead the Hornets and are tied for sixth most in the WAC.
ANOTHER ONE
Following league opening play, the Western Athletic Conference announced players of the week on Monday, March 26. A strong weekend at the dish that proved pivotal in a series win over Seattle U, NM State's
Caleb Henderson earned the nod for hitter of the week.
Henderson came up big in the series opener against the Redhawks on Friday. The junior hit the go-ahead three-run home run to give the Aggies a three-run lead and an eventual 12-6 victory. The Conifer, Colo. natives bat stayed hot in the series finale as he crushed a two-run homer in an explosive third inning and added a three-run bomb in the fourth as NM State won in seven innings on Sunday, 12-2.
After the series win over Seattle U, Henderson finished the week going 6-for-12 from the plate with 11 RBI and a 1.250 slugging percentage. Through 25 games into the season, the first baseman sits second in the WAC in home runs (5), third in RBI (27), fourth in on-base percentage (.481) and fifth in slugging percentage (.622).
Henderson is now the fifth Aggie to earn player of the week honors joining
Marcus Still (Feb. 19),
Noah Haupt (Feb. 26) and
Joey Ortiz (March 5) as hitters of the week and
Kyle Bradish (Feb. 26) who earned pitcher of the week.
IN THE NATION
Six weeks into the 2018 season the NM State baseball team currently ranks in the top-20 in 11 different categories across the NCAA, including eight within the top-10:
NM State (Rk) Category NCAA
.443 (2nd)
OB% .447
243 (2nd)
Runs .255
9.7 (2nd)
Scoring 11.1
.335 (3rd)
Batting Avg. .357
.539 (3rd)
Slugging % .631
284 (4th)
Hits 305
.983 (9th)
Fielding Percentage .987
34 (9th)
Home Runs 51
10 (11th)
Triples 14
3 (16th)
Shutouts 7
55 (17th)
Doubles 76
LAST TIME OUT
The Aggies recently wrapped up their WAC series opener against Seattle U, March 23-25. Game one saw a tie ballgame in the seventh was broken wide open when
Caleb Henderson launched a three-run homer and the Aggies added insurance runs in the eighth to take down the Redhawks, 12-6.
In the second game of the series, the Aggies were able to muster a three-run rally in the ninth inning, the Aggies fell just short in a 5-4 loss to the Redhawks.
Looking for a series win in the finale, the NM State bats exploded for six home runs, including four in the third inning, for a 12-2 victory in seven innings and the series victory over the Redhawks.
UP NEXT
Following the weekend series with Sacramento State, the New Mexico State baseball team hits the road for a midweek matchup in a neutral location with No. 9 Texas Tech at 6 p.m. MT on April 3 in Midland, Texas.
