Slaten helps Lobos mow down Central Mich.

UNM shoots for three straight today

The stadium lights stayed on at Santa Ana Star Field on Friday night and UNM pitchers put on a dazzling show.

Justin Slaten and Chad Smith combined on a fourhit shutout as the University of New Mexico earned a 6-0 victory over visiting Central Michigan in Game 2 of a four-game series.

Slaten (1-1) worked seven strong innings, allowing three hits, no walks and striking out eight. Smith finished, allowing just one hit and no walks in two innings.

Garrett Gouldsmith’s twoout, two-run triple in the fourth inning got the Lobos (3-3) on the board against Chippewas starter Tyler Hankins (0-1). Danny Collier followed with an RBI single off the 6-foot-9 left-hander to make the score 3-0.

Connor Mang, who went 3-for-4 to pace the Lobos, led off the bottom of the sixth with a triple and scored on Larry Leitha’s double. Collier added a sacrifice fly to make it 5-0.

The game was in stark contrast to Thursday’s 20-9 UNM win that took 3:59 to complete — not including a 16-minute delay when the stadium lights went out in the ninth inning. Friday’s contest took just 2:47 to complete.

Mang was the only player on either team to collect multiple hits. Central Michigan (2-4) did not get a runner past second base.

NOTE: UNM outfielder Jared Mang suffered a broken bone in his left hand Thursday and is expected to miss two to three weeks, Lobo coach Ray Birmingham said. Mang was hit by a pitch late in the game. He stayed in to run the bases but was later removed. Mang, a junior, was recently named to the preseason AllMountain West team.