Aztecs Welcome UNLV For MW Weekend Series

SAN DIEGO – San Diego State resumes its Mountain West schedule this weekend when it battles UNLV in a three-game series, March 28-30, at Tony Gwynn Stadium.

Friday’s opener is slated to begin at 6 p.m. PT, while Saturday’s showdown is scheduled for a 4 p.m. start, followed by Sunday’s finale at noon.

Along with live stats, all three games will air live on the Mountain West Network, with links to both platforms available on GoAztecs.com. Fans can also catch the action on their TVs or smartphones by downloading the MW app.

Plenty of promotions are on tap for the upcoming weekend, including Friday night when free Aztec koozies will be presented to the first 250 fans in attendance. Additionally, the first 250 patrons will receive a free SDSU beach towel on Saturday, while the first set of Aztec Baseball trading cards will be given away to the first 100 spectators for Sunday's matchup to help celebrate Little League Day at the ballpark.

SDSU (6-19, 2-4 MW) is coming off a 7-2 loss to UC Riverside at home on Tuesday, while UNLV (14-10, 2-4 MW) rallied to defeat Arizona State at Las Vegas Ballpark the same evening. Both teams are tied with Air Force for sixth place in the Mountain West standings.

PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
Friday, March 28, SDSU: Marko Sipila, RHP (1-2) vs. UNLV: Carson Lane, RHP (2-2)

Saturday, March 29, SDSU: Omar Serrano, RHP (1-3) vs. UNLV: LJ Mercurius, RHP (2-2)

Sunday, March 30, SDSU: Garvey Rumary, LHP (0-3) vs. UNLV: TBD

Marko Sipila and Omar Serrano are projected to make their seventh consecutive starts on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Sipila is scheduled for his first Friday start in a Scarlet and Black uniform, swapping places with Serrano, who is slated to pitch on Saturday.  Meanwhile, Garvey Rumary is pegged for his fourth straight Sunday start and sixth of the season.

Serrano tossed his second career complete game vs. San José State on March 15, yielding just one run on five hits and three walks with a season-high eight strikeouts, as the Scarlet and Black rolled to a big 16-1 run-rule victory in the first game of a doubleheader.

In his longest stint of the 2025 campaign, Sipila collected a season-high eight strikeouts in eight-plus innings against SJSU in the nightcap of a twin-bill, allowing four runs on eight hits and one walk, as the Aztecs held on for a 6-4 triumph.

In addition, Rumary fanned a collegiate-best seven hitters in the finale of that Spartan series when hie pitched a career-long 5 2/3 innings.

SDSU IN MW RANKINGS
As of March 27, Aztec pitchers lead the Mountain West in strikeouts (217) and innings pitched (217.1) while ranking fifth in opposing batting average (.304) and sixth in ERA (7.33).

Offensively, SDSU is tied for the conference lead with 10 triples and ranks fourth with 44 doubles. In addition, the Scarlet and Black is slotted seventh in hits (218) and batting average (.260) while occupying the eighth spot in runs scored (134) and RBIs (121).

Individually, Chris Canavan is tied for the MW lead with 14 games pitched, while Evan Miranda is slotted third with 13 appearances, followed by Peyton Rodgers with 11. Additionally, Rodgers is tied for fifth in the conference with two saves.

Elsewhere, Marko Sipila leads the league in innings pitched (33.2) and shares the sixth spot in strikeouts (30), while Omar Serrano ranks eighth with 29 punchouts of his own.

Garvey Rumary also finds himself among the MW leaders, tying for fifth in fewest hits allowed (27).

At the plate, the Aztecs have been paced by freshman CJ Moran, who is still tied for seventh in the league with a .365 batting average despite sitting out the last four games and ranks ninth with a .456 on-base percentage.

Not to be outdone, Nevan Noonan shares the second spot in the league with 10 doubles, while Moran is tied for eighth with eight two-baggers.

In addition, Evan Sipe (6) and Drew Rutter (5) own the top two places in the MW in sacrifice hits. Rutter also shares the second spot with three triples, alongside teammates Zane Kelly and Jake Jackson.

Jackson tied a program record with two triples against Seton Hall on Feb. 14, becoming the first SDSU player to accomplish the feat since James Guerrero against New Mexico on April 9, 2005.

AZTEC NOTEBOOK
Despite missing the Washington State series and Tuesday night’s game vs. UCR, CJ Moran still owns the team’s longest current hitting streak at nine games and is tied for the No. 1 spot on the squad with multiple hits on eight occasions alongside Nevan Noonan. Additionally, Moran shares the top perch with Finley Bates, posting two or more RBIs in five starts.

During his nine-game hitting streak, Moran is batting .500 (16-for-32) with three doubles, seven RBIs and nine runs scored, raising his season average from .262 to .365.

Noonan and Daniel Arambula have started all 25 games for the Scarlet and Black this season.

Arambula is lone SDSU player to start every contest at one position (third base), while Bates (leadoff) leads the team with 23 games played in the same spot in the batting order.

Earlier this month, Arambula garnered Mountain West Freshman of the Week accolades after leading the Scarlet and Black to a doubleheader sweep of SJSU on March 15, when he batted a combined .571 (4-for-7) with two homers, eight RBIs and four runs scored.

The Aztecs are 6-2 this season when leading after six innings and 5-1 when outhitting the opposition.

San Diego State has emerged victorious in 82 of its last 128 games dating back to 2019 when hitting a home run, including a 4-2 mark this year, a 14-13 ledger during the 2024 campaign and a 14-12 record in 2023.

Since 2019, the Aztecs are 76-62 in their last 138 games when striking out 10 or more batters. SDSU pitchers fanned 17 hitters in its season opener against Seton Hall at the MLB Desert Invitational.

The Aztecs are 173-65 over the last seven-plus seasons when scoring five or more runs, including a stellar 38-6 record during the 2017 campaign.

Against Nebraska on Feb. 16, the Aztecs employed 21 players on the night, including five true freshmen who were making their first career appearances (Evan Escobar, Cody Liscio, Dillon Marrisett, Alito McBean, Hank Tripaldi). Tripaldi singled in his first collegiate at-bat with a grounder through the right side in the eighth.

In all, 16 of SDSU’s 17 true freshmen have seen action this season.

Escobar has started five games at shortstop, notching his first two collegiate RBIs on Tuesday against UC Riverside, while Tripaldi made his first career start at Washington State on March 22.  Previously, McBean earned his initial career start on the mound in the Aztecs’ home opener against Seattle on Feb. 20.

SERIES RECORD VS. UNLV
San Diego State holds a 102-77 advantage in the all-time series dating back to 1978.

The Aztecs are 51-27 vs. the Rebels in San Diego, 48-44 in Las Vegas and 3-6 at neutral sites.

UNLV is one of five programs SDSU has recorded over 100 victories against. The other four are New Mexico (134), Air Force (122), Fresno State (113) and Utah (104).

In the lone series between the two squads in 2024, the Aztecs dropped two of three games to the Rebels at home, sandwiching a 7-5 triumph between a 9-2 setback and a 14-5 defeat.

Among returners, Jake Jackson batted .375 (3-8) in last season’s series with a double, triple and three runs scored, while Finley Bates hit .286 (4-14) with a pair of homers, a double and three runs scored.

In addition, Omar Serrano was the winning pitcher in that 7-5 victory, allowing just one run on eight hits and two walks to go with five strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings, while Evan Miranda collected his first career save after pitching the final 2 2/3 innings when he yielded one run on four hits and one walk.

In 2023, Serrano made three relief appearances against the Rebels, surrendering just one hit and one walk with 10 strikeouts in a combined nine scoreless innings.

The Aztecs will face UNLV next month in a return series at Earl E. Wilson Stadium in Las Vegas, April 25-27.

REBELS AT A GLANCE
UNLV scored seven runs in the eighth inning on Tuesday to complete an 11-6 come-from-behind victory over Arizona State at Las Vegas Ballpark.

The Rebels (14-10, 2-4 MW) enter the weekend in a tie for sixth place in the Mountain West with the Aztecs and Air Force after winning the first two games of a home series against Fresno State, March 21-23. UNLV emerged victorious by scores of 9-0 and 4-1 before dropping an 8-7 decision in the finale.

With the results, the Rebels raised their record to 9-3 at home this season compared to a 5-7 mark in road/neutral contests.

Prior to the 2025 campaign, UNLV was picked to finish in a tie for fourth place in the Mountain West preseason coaches poll, along with SDSU and New Mexico, while junior infielder Paul Myro IV was named to the preseason all-conference team.

The Rebels have received a boost from a pair of transfers this season in outfielder Dean Toigo and infielder JP Hefft, who are tied for second in the MW with 36 hits apiece.

Toigo, a senior who played at Hope International in 2024, leads the MW with 32 RBIs and shares the top perch with eight home runs while ranking among the conference leaders in total bases (2nd, 65), batting average (T-3rd, .383), slugging percentage (3rd, .691) and on-base percentage (8th, .458).

In addition, Hefft (.356), a transfer from Saddleback College, is tied for fifth in the conference with 22 RBIs and shares the eighth position with four stolen bases.

UNLV sports three additional players with batting averages over .300, including infielder Gunnar Myro (.365), outfielder Cole Koniarsky (.359) and infielder Cooper Sheff (.326).

Sheff, the reigning MW Freshman of the Week, leads the league with 28 runs scored and ranks second with four sacrifice flies while sharing the ninth spot with four home runs.

Elsewhere, Gunnar Myro, who is the younger brother of Paul Myro IV, is tied for seventh in the conference in batting average.

The Rebels are expected to start Carson Lane in Friday’s opener, followed by fellow right-hander LJ Mercurius on Saturday, while Sunday’s starter is yet to be determined.

Lane has posted a 2-2 record thus far, ranking third in the MW in strikeouts (36), fourth in opponent batting average (.235) and fifth in ERA (3.82). The UNLV sophomore combined on a no-hitter in his last start vs. Fresno State, striking out nine batters against three walks in eight scoreless innings before giving way to Will Marquart to begin the ninth. For his efforts, Lane earned Mountain West Pitcher of the Week honors.

Last season, Lane started the series finale against the Aztecs, giving up two runs on five hits and a pair of walks in 2 1/3 innings but did not factor in the decision.

Meanwhile, Mercurius was also triumphant in his last start, fanning six batters to offset four hits and three walks in six scoreless frames vs. Fresno State on March 22 to even his season record at 2-2. The Rebel has compiled a 4.91 ERA with 28 strikeouts this season.

Last year, Mercurius pitched two innings of middle relief in SDSU’s 7-5 triumph over UNLV, allowing four unearned runs on two hits and one walk. The Rebel hurler was a prep teammate of Aztec outfielder Zane Kelly at Faith Lutheran High School in Las Vegas.

As a staff, UNLV pitchers are slotted second in the MW in ERA (5.26), opposing batting average (.259), strikeouts (215) and fewest hits allowed (203) but have given up the second-most walks in the league (129).

At the plate, the Rebels find themselves among the top half of the conference in batting average (2nd, .299), hits (3rd, 239), home runs (3rd, 24), slugging percentage (3rd, .446), on-base percentage (4th, .382) and runs scored (4th, 149).

AZTECS IN MLB DRAFT
Since 1965, San Diego State has had 227 student-athletes chosen in the MLB First-Year Player Draft, including 31 selections since 2015.

Former Aztec center fielder Cole Carrigg was taken by the Colorado Rockies as a catcher in the Competitive Balance "B" Round with the 65th overall pick of the 2023 MLB First-Year Player Draft; pitcher TJ Fondtain was selected by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 14th round (423rd overall), while fellow hurler Kelena Sauer went to the Toronto Blue Jays shortly thereafter in the 15th round (454th overall).

With its selections, SDSU has had multiple players picked in six of the last eight years and nine of the last 12.

In 2022, former Aztec right-hander Troy Melton was chosen by the Detroit Tigers in the fourth round with the 117th selection overall.

The previous year, in 2021, SDSU had five individuals drafted by MLB organizations: Mike Jarvis and Wyatt Hendrie (Pirates), Matt Rudick (Mets), Jaden Fein (Nationals) and Michael Paredes (Twins).

LOCAL HEROES
San Diego State sports eight players on its current roster who are alumni of San Diego County high schools, including Xavier Farnum (Christian), Trevor Fox (St. Augustine); Jake Jackson (Madison); Nevan Noonan (Francis Parker); Peyton Rodgers (Torrey Pines); Eli Selga (Cathedral Catholic); Connor Shaw (Westview); and Evan Sipe (San Marcos).

MW TO HOST 2025 BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP IN MESA, ARIZONA
The Mountain West, in partnership with the Arizona Sport and Entertainment Commission, will host the Credit 1 Baseball Championship, May 21-24 at Sloan Park in Mesa, Arizona. The agreement marks the first time the MW baseball tournament will be held on a neutral field and in the state of Arizona.

“Hosting the baseball championship in a first-class venue like Sloan Park is a tremendous opportunity for the Mountain West, our baseball student-athletes and our fan base,” said MW Commissioner Gloria Nevarez.

The six-team double elimination format begins on Wednesday, May 21, with the No. 3 seed facing the No. 6 seed. The second game will feature the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds.

On Thursday, May 22, the top two seeded teams square off with the winners from Wednesday. The winners of Thursday’s first two contests advance to Friday, while the losing teams battle in elimination games. The MW champion will be crowned on Saturday, May 24, earning the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

Ticket information for the 2025 Credit Union 1 Mountain West Baseball Championship will be available next month.

UP NEXT
Following this weekend’s series, San Diego State will battle USC on Tuesday, April 1 at Great Park in Irvine, California. Game time is set for 6 p.m. PT, and contest will air on Big Ten Network Plus.

 

-SDSU-