LAS CRUCES, N.M. - The Aggies are undefeated and looking to keep it that way.

NM State's season-opening homestand continues this weekend against Iona, as the Aggies welcome in the Gaels for a four-game set at Presley Askew Field.

Friday's first pitch is sscheduled for 3 p.m. MT at The 'Skew.

DON'T MISS THE ACTION
Single-game tickets to all Aggie home contests can be purchased via Ticketmaster or by calling Pan Am ticket office at (575) 646-1420.

NM State baseball season tickets are also available, starting at $75 for general admission and $100 for reserved seats.
 
WHERE TO WATCH
Friday and Sunday's contests will be streamed through the WAC Digital Network.
 
LISTEN UP
Fan can listen to Aggie baseball games via the Aggie Sports Network on Friday and Sunday. 

Adam Young's call can be heard on 91.5 FM KRUX. Fans can also listen to the game live on their mobile or tablet devices via the TuneIn app for free by searching KRUX

PROBABLE STARTERS
Friday, Feb. 21 at 3 p.m.
NM State: RHP Chance Hroch
Iona: RHP Stephen Hanson
 
Saturday, Feb. 22 at 12 p.m. (Game 1)
NM State: RHP Chris Barraza
Iona: LHP Mario Ferraioli

Saturday, Feb. 22 at 4 p.m. (Game 2)
NM State: RHP Lyle Hibbitts 
Iona: P Ryan Martin
 
Sunday, Feb. 23 at 11 am
NM State: RHP Chris Jefferson
Iona: RHP Hunter Sibley

BIG NICK ENERGY
Coming off a historic sophomore campaign, junior infielder Nick Gonzales was named a unanimous preseason All-American headed into the 2020 season.

He picked up First Team Preseason All-America recognition from Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, D1Baseball and Perfect Game and was named to the NCBWA Preseason All-America Second Team, becoming the first NM State student-athlete in program history to achieve unanimous preseason All-America status.

Gonzales showed his was worthy of the accolades in the Aggies' season-opening series last weekend against Texas Southern. He kicked off the campaign by slashing .571/.727/1.571 with four homers and a nation-leading 17 RBI in the four-game series sweep over the Tigers.

The 2020 WAC Preseason Player of the Year also extended his on-base streak to 70 games, which dates back to his freshman season.

The nation took notice of Gonzales' performance. He was named National Player of the Week by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, Player of the Week by Perfect Game/Rawlings and Hitter of the Week by the Western Athletic Conference.

ALL-AMERICAN AGGIES
Along with Gonzales, senior infielder Tristan Peterson and senior pitcher Chance Hroch received All-America honors prior to the start of the season.

Peterson was named a First Team Preseason All-American by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and picked up Second Team Preseason All-American honors from the NCBWA. Hroch, meanwhile, was tabbed a Third Team Preseason All-American by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper before picking up third-team honors from the NCBWA.

Peterson concluded the 2019 season batting .400 at the dish, ranking 14th in the country. The Tucson, Ariz., native was also ranked second nationally in RBI (90), fourth in slugging percentage (.769), ninth in on-base percentage (.520), 15th in homers (20), 18th in runs (69) and 25th in total bases (150).

Hroch, who tossed seven innings of two-run ball and earned the win in the Aggies' season opener, finished with a team-high 10 wins in 2019 – good for 11th-most in the country. The righty went 10-1 in 15 appearances with a pair of complete games for the Aggies, including two shutouts, one year ago, posting a 2.74 earned runs average while striking out 69 batters and holding opponents to a .245 average.  
 
SCOUTING THE GAELS
Iona heads into its second series of the season with a winless 0-3 overall record.

The Gaels opened the 2020 campaign last weekend in Mt. Pleasant, S.C., squaring off against Charleston twice and Maryland once. Iona lost, 5-4, to Charleston on Friday, Feb. 14, before suffering an 8-2 and 12-1 setback to Maryland and Charleston, respectively, one day later.

Redshirt sophomore infielder Jake Liberatore powered the Gaels' offense through the first three games, slashing .308/.357/.692 with four hits, including one homer and triple, in 13 at-bats.

Senior righty Stephen Hansen, who will toe the rubber in Friday's series opener, went 5 1/3 strong in his first outing of the season, striking out three and limiting Charleston to five runs (four earned) on five hits. 

For complete coverage of New Mexico State baseball, follow us on Twitter (@NMStateBaseball), Instagram (@NMStateBaseball) and like us on Facebook (NM State Baseball).

++ NM State ++