Stajduhar chosen Mountain West Player of Year
UNM lands four on all-league 1st team
The University of New Mexico Lobos were mere spectators for Wednesday’s opening games of the Mountain West Conference baseball tournament.
It was a pretty good day for the Lobos, all the same.
Second-seeded UNM (35-21) and No. 1 Fresno State (37-20) enjoyed first-round byes and will see their first action today at Santa Ana Star Field. Today, the Bulldogs will take on fifth-seeded Air Force at 3 p.m.; the Lobos will face third-seeded Nevada at 7 p.m.
Fresno State and UNM were well-represented on the All-Mountain West teams announced Wednesday. FSU, which edged New Mexico and Nevada by one game in the regular-season race, had the most players selected — four first-teamers, four secondteamers, coach of the year Mike Batesole and co-pitcher of the year Jimmy Lambert.
New Mexico coach Ray Birmingham was satisfied with his team’s haul — four firstteam members and one on the second-team. Lobo third baseman Carl Stajduhar was named Tony Gwynn Player of the Year.
Stajduhar joined second baseman Jared Holley, catcher/designated hitter Chris DeVito and starting pitcher Tyler Stevens on the first team for UNM. Outfielder Luis Gonzalez was a second-team pick.
All-Mountain West honors were chosen through a vote of the league’s seven head coaches.
“I feel like we’re well-represented,” Birmingham said.
Stajduhar, a sophomore, shook off a two-week slump to lead the Mountain West in batting (.421), slugging percentage (.746), home runs (9), runs batted in (39) and total bases (94). The numbers look that much better considering he endured a 4-for-38 funk early in the conference season.
“Carl dug himself out of that just because of how hard he works,” Birmingham said. “He’s such a conscientious kid and he improved offensively and defensively this year. He’s on the list for Team USA, and I hope this helps him nail down a spot. ”
It was the second AllMountain West selection for Stajduhar and the first for UNM’s other honorees. Holley, a senior, hit .385 in league play and led the conference in doubles (18) and runs (38). DeVito, a junior, hit .348 and finished second in slugging (.670) and third in RBIs (32). Gonzalez hit .364 with 24 RBIs and 36 runs.
Stevens, a sophomore righthander, posted New Mexico’s best conference pitching numbers with a 3.46 earned-run average and 45 strikeouts.
Air Force’s Griffin Jax shared co-pitcher of the year honors with Lambert. Nic Ready of the Falcons and UNLV’s Kyle Isbel were named co-freshmen of the year.
Holley, who injured his right ankle last week at Air Force, did not practice with the Lobos at Rio Rancho High on Wednesday. His availability for tonight remains uncertain, Birmingham said. Senior Michael Eaton will start at second base if Holley cannot play.
Wednesday
No. 6 SAN DIEGO STATE 7, No. 7 SAN JOSE STATE 3: Justin Wylie’s walk-off grand slam capped a five-run, ninthinning rally that earned the 20-36 Aztecs a victory in the tournament’s play-in game. Shane Timmons’ solo homer gave the Spartans (17-39) a 3-2 lead in the eighth, but Jordan Verdon’s RBI double and three walks (two intentional) set the stage for Wylie’s gamewinning shot.
No. 5 AIR FORCE 15, No. 4 UNLV 7 Nic Ready hit a grand slam and drove in six runs to pace the 29-25 Falcons’ 26-hit attack in routing the Rebels (24-31). No. 3 NEVADA 13, No. 6 SAN DIEGO STATE 5: Justin Hazard went 3-for-4 and drove in four runs as the Wolf Pack (34-22) rolled over the Aztecs (20-37). Nevada took control with a six-run first inning and racked up 17 hits.
WAC tourney
New Mexico State (32-21), the No. 2 seed, plays a winners’ bracket game today at 3 p.m. in Mesa, Ariz., vs. Utah Valley, which beat CSU Bakersfield on Wednesday night, 6-4.
Aggie junior Daniel Johnson was named WAC Player of the Year by the league’s 10 head coaches. A native of Vallejo, Calif., he led the league in hitting in WAC games (.416), and led the conference in hits (85), runs (62), home runs (12), stolen bases (27-for-31), slugging percentage (.642) and total bases (145).
In addition to Johnson, junior catcher Mason Fishback was NMSU’s other firstteamer. He hit .384 in league play with 14 runs, 21 RBIs, and four home runs.