Aztecs Set for MW Tourney Opener vs. UNLV

SAN DIEGO – San Diego State begins its quest for a seventh Mountain West tournament championship and 29th conference title overall when the Aztecs square off against UNLV on Wednesday, May 21 at Sloan Park in Mesa, Arizona.

Wednesday’s clash is scheduled to get underway at 6:05 p.m. MST/PDT and will air live on the Mountain West Network. Links to the MWN and live stats will be available on GoAztecs.com.

Fans can also watch the 2025 Credit Union 1 Mountain West Baseball Championship via the free MW app on their smartphones or connected TVs through Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV or Roku. Mobile applications can be downloaded from the iOS App Store and Google Play.

The Mountain West tournament has been expanded to six teams this season after four squads competed for the title from 2017-19 and 2022-24, along with an earlier one-year run in 2012. The conference did not conduct a postseason tournament in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The MW postseason championshipfielded six teams from 2000-05, 2007-11 and again in 2013, while seven schools vied for the conference crown in 2006 and 2014-16.

SETTING THE SCENE
If the Aztecs defeat the Rebels, they will face top-seeded and regular-season champion Nevada (33-21, 19-11 MW) on Thursday, May 22 at 1:05 p.m., as the tournament enters its double-elimination phase.

Prior to the SDSU-UNLV showdown, third-seeded New Mexico (30-22, 17-13 MW) will square off against No. 6 seed San José State (26-28, 13-17 MW) in the other first-round matchup, beginning at 1:05 pm.

Meanwhile, second-seeded Fresno State (28-27, 18-12 MW) earned the other first-round bye and will await the winner of the Spartans-Lobos showdown on Thursday at 6:05 pm.

The Aztecs are making their conference-leading 22nd appearance at the Mountain West Championship, posting a league-record 50 victories (50-34) in MW postseason play.

Not to be outdone, SDSU has won a conference-record six Mountain West tournament championships in 2000, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2018.

In 21 conference games this season against the tournament field, the Aztecs are 10-11.

SDSU and UNLV split their season series at three games apiece, with each side posting a sweep on their respective home diamonds.

The Aztecs have already paid a visit to Arizona this season when they competed at the MLB Desert Invitational, Feb. 14-16. SDSU opened the season with a 16-11 victory over Seton Hall at Salt River Fields in Scottsdale before suffering back-to-back defeats to Grand Canyon (6-5) and then-No. 24 Nebraska (13-0) at Sloan Park in Mesa to round out the weekend.

PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUP
Wednesday, May 21, SDSU: Marko Sipila, RHP (3-3, 4.34 ERA) vs. UNLV: Carson Lane, RHP (6-3, 4.10 ERA)

Wednesday’s first-round game will feature a pair of all-conference hurlers in Lane, who garnered first-team accolades, while Sipila received second-team recognition.

Sipila and Lane have already squared off this season in the Aztecs’ 3-2 triumph at home on March 28. The SDSU right-hander emerged victorious after tying his career high with nine strikeouts and allowing just two runs on five hits and one walk in eight innings.

On the flip side, Lane recorded seven punchouts of his own but did not factor in the decision after giving up just one run on four hits and three walks in 5 1/3 innings, as the Aztecs rallied with two runs in the seventh to account for the winning margin.

For all games, Lane leads the conference in opponent batting average (.229) and ranks third in both ERA (4.10) and strikeouts (85), while Sipila is slotted fourth in both ERA (4.34) and opposing batting average (.267) and sixth in strikeouts (68).

MOUNTAIN WEST TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Below is a list of teams that have captured Mountain West tournament titles:

San Diego State - 6 (2000-13-14-15-17-18)

TCU - 4 (2006-07-08-10)

New Mexico - 3 (2011-12-16)

UNLV - 3 (2003-04-05)

Brigham Young - 2 (2001-02)

Fresno State - 2 (2019, 2024)

Air Force - 1 (2022)

San José State - 1 (2023)

Utah - 1 (2009)

SERIES RECORD VS. UNLV
SDSU holds a 105-70 advantage in the all-time series, which dates back to 1978

The Aztecs are 54-27 vs. the Rebels in San Diego, 48-47 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 (123), Fresno State (114) and Utah (104).

The Aztecs are 10-11 against the Rebels in the Mountain West Championship, including a 14-5 triumph in the title game at Tony Gwynn Stadium in 2018. The two teams last met in the conference tournament in 2019, when UNLV claimed a 9-3 decision in the first round at Peccole Park in Reno, Nevada.

San Diego State split its six meetings with the Rebels this season, with each side posting a three-game sweep on their respective home fields.

The Aztecs defeated UNLV at Tony Gwynn Stadium in March by winning scores of 3-2, 5-3 and 3-1 to complete its first sweep of the Rebels since 2018.

SDSU pitchers limited UNLV to a .181 team batting average that weekend after the Rebels entered the series with a .299 clip, which ranked second in the conference at the time. The Aztec offense also came through in the clutch, posting six RBIs with two outs during the series.

In addition, the Scarlet and Black received a boost from Xavier Cardenas III, who saved all three games in the series.

However, the Aztecs were stymied on their excursion to Las Vegas last month, falling by scores of 8-5, 13-2 and 10-3.

In six games against the Rebels this season, Nevan Noonan leads the team with a .429 batting average (9-21), two homers and six RBIs, while Daniel Arambula hit .421 (8-19) with two doubles, three RBIs and five runs scored.

SERIES RECORD VS. NEVADA
San Diego State trails the Wolf Pack 30-46 in the all-time series dating back to 1986. SDSU is 15-19 vs. Nevada in San Diego, 11-24 in Reno and 4-3 at a neutral site.

The Aztecs are 2-3 against the Wolf Pack at the MW Championship, including a 6-4 setback in 2019 in an elimination game played at Peccole Park in Reno, which marked the last postseason meeting between the two squads.

This season, SDSU dropped two of three games at Nevada, May 9-11, posting a 7-4 victory in the opener before suffering a narrow 4-3 setback, followed by an 11-1 defeat.

In that series vs. the Wolf Pack, Nevan Noonan led the Scarlet and Black with a .600 batting average (6-10) and three runs scored, while CJ Moran hit .455 (5-11) with a team-high six RBIs.

Moran’s two-run triple sparked a four-run outburst with two outs in the ninth inning of the opener, as the Aztecs erased a 4-3 deficit to win. SDSU also received a career-high 10 strikeouts from starter Xavier Cardenas III, while Aidan Russell earned the victory after tossing 2 1/3 scoreless innings in relief.

SDSU IN MW RANKINGS
As of May 19, the Aztec staff leads the Mountain West innings pitched (479.0) and is slotted second in strikeouts (450) while ranking fifth in both ERA (6.95) and opposing batting average (.303).

Individually, Peyton Rodgers tops the conference with 30 appearances, while Xavier Cardenas III (25) and Evan Miranda (24) are slotted third and fourth in games pitched, respectively.

Cardenas occupies the sixth position in the league with five saves and ranks eighth with 59 strikeouts, while Rodgers is tied for fifth in batters struck out looking (24) and is slotted seventh with four saves.

Marko Sipila finds himself among the conference leaders in several categories, including ERA (4th, 4.34), opposing batting average (4th, .267), fewest hits allowed (T-4th, 67), and strikeouts (6th, 68).

In addition, Omar Serrano ranks fourth in the MW in innings pitched (81.0) and occupies the seventh spot in strikeouts (66) while sharing the 11th position in victories (4)

Offensively, SDSU is tied for second in the MW with 22 triples and ranks third with 117 doubles and fourth with 212 walks. In addition, the Scarlet and Black occupies the sixth position in hits (524), runs scored (317) and RBIs (289) and the seventh spot in batting average (.280).

Finley Bates leads the conference in walks (39), while Nevan Noonan (76) is slotted fourth in hits.

In addition, Jonathan Smith is tied for the MW lead with five triples, while Jake Jackson and Drew Rutter are tied for fifth in that category with four apiece.

Smith and Jackson have already tied the program record with two triples in a game this year. Jackson accomplished the feat in the season opener vs. Seton Hall on Feb. 14, followed by Smith’s performance at Air Force on April 7.

Elsewhere, Evan Sipe owns the top perch in the league with 11 sacrifice hits, while Smith ranks third in that statistic with seven, followed by Rutter, who is tied for fourth with six.

AZTEC NOTEBOOK
For the season, Nevan Noonan leads the Aztecs with multiple hits in 23 games, followed by Daniel Arambula (18), CJ Moran (17) and Jonathan Smith (16) and Finley Bates (15).  Noonan and Arambula are the only two players to start all 56 games for the Scarlet and Black this season.

In addition, Arambula is lone Aztec to start every contest at one position (third base), while Bates (leadoff) leads the team with 51 games played in the same spot in the batting order.

On March 18, Arambula garnered Mountain West Freshman of the Week accolades after leading the Scarlet and Black to a doubleheader sweep of San José State when he batted a combined .571 (4-for-7) with two homers, eight RBIs and four runs scored.

In SDSU’s 6-4 victory over Fresno State on April 12, Noonan belted his first two home runs in an Aztec uniform, including a two-run shot in the first inning before adding a solo blast in the fourth.

With his effort, Noonan completed San Diego State’s first game with multiple home runs since Shaun Montoya hit a pair at Nevada on May 17, 2024.

After coming up empty in four plate appearances against Washington State on May 15, Moran had extended his streak of reaching base safely snapped at 26 consecutive games.

Since returning from an injury against UCSD on April 15, a span of 20 games, Moran tops the squad in batting average (.387) and on-base percentage (.466) while sharing the team lead in hits (29). He has also contributed seven doubles, one triple and 17 RBIs.

Moran has also taken over the team lead with a season batting average of .376 (56-149), which ranks fourth in the Mountain West. The Murrieta, California, native has contributed 15 doubles, 33 RBIs and 24 runs scored in 41 games. He is slotted second on the squad with multiple RBIs in 11 games, including three in the second game of a doubleheader vs. Northeastern on March 8.

Since March 28, a stretch of 31 games, Noonan is hitting .403 with team highs of 50 hits, eight homers and 32 RBIs, followed by Bates (.327), Smith (.320), Arambula (.314) and Jake Jackson (.312).

Smith has racked up seven doubles, five triples, 20 RBIs as well as one home run and eight stolen bases in that span, while Jackson has contributed three homers, 12 doubles, one triple and 17 RBIs.

In a doubleheader at Air Force on April 6, Jackson recorded eight consecutive hits across two contests and tied a single-game school record with four doubles in the opener, helping the Scarlet and Black to a big 16-4 victory.

On April 29, senior Evan Sipe was added to the midseason watch list for the Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year Award, as announced by the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission.

All 18 of San Diego State’s freshmen have seen action this season, including pitcher Aaron Kniffin, who returned from an injury to make his collegiate debut against California Baptist on April 8. The Scottsdale, Arizona, native allowed one unearned run vs. the Lancers on one walk in 1 2/3 innings. He also fanned a season-high three batters at USD on April 21.

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.

Escobar has started 28 of 34 games at shortstop, belting his first collegiate home run vs. Fresno State on April 12, 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. The SDSU left-hander earned his first collegiate victory on April 22 against Cal State Fullerton when he allowed one run on seven scattered hits and three walks in five innings of work.

In addition, catcher Xavier Farnum made his first career start at USC on April 1, finishing with one hit, one walk and a run scored, while Keynen Gomez earned his first collegiate start at second base vs. California Baptist on April 8.

Farnum has started 13 of his last 18 games played, collecting 14 hits in 44 at-bats (.318) with four doubles, one triple, 13 RBIs and 10 runs scored. In the regular-season finale vs. Washington State on May 17, the Alpine, California, native smacked an RBI double in the fourth inning before launching his first collegiate home run in the sixth, helping the Scarlet and Black to a thrilling 12-10 victory.

The Aztecs are 15-3 this season when leading after seven innings, suffering their first three losses in that category at UCR (April 29), vs. New Mexico (May 4) and at Nevada (May 10). SDSU is also 16-2 this year when limiting opponents to five runs or fewer and 16-3 when outhitting the opposition.

San Diego State has emerged victorious in 88 of its last 142 games dating back to 2019 when hitting a home run, including a 10-7 mark this year, a 14-13 ledger during the 2024 campaign and a 14-12 record in 2023.

Since 2019, the Aztecs are 77-65 in their last 143 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 182-74 over the last seven-plus seasons when scoring five or more runs, including a stellar 38-6 record during the 2017 campaign.

SERIES RECAP VS. WASHINGTON STATE
With its postseason fortunes hanging in the balance, San Diego State came through with a big series sweep of Washington State at home to wrap up its regular-season schedule, May 15-17.

The Aztecs prevailed in a pitcher’s duel by a 3-2 count in the opener, as Nevan Noonan’s solo home run in the seventh provided the winning margin.

Buoyed by its good fortune, the Scarlet and Black recorded a big 15-2 run-rule victory in seven innings in game two before posting a wild 12-10 comeback win in the finale to highlight Senior Day festivities.

Reliever Peyton Rodgers (2-2) picked up the victory in the opener and notched a save in the series finale to earn Mountain West Pitcher of the Week honors.

In addition, Xavier Cardenas III (1-5) notched his first win of the year for his efforts in game two when he yielded just one run on six hits without a walk while striking out eight batters in six innings.

Jake Jackson hit .700 for the series (7-10), contributing a crucial two-run homer and an RBI single in the finale to help the Aztecs keep pace with the Cougars, who built a 10-6 lead before the Scarlet and Black rallied to score the final six runs of the contest.

Elsewhere, Finley Bates hit .538 over the weekend (7-13), tying for the team lead with seven hits and five runs scored while contributing four RBIs.

Bates finished with multiple hits in all three games and totaled two RBIs in each of the final two contests. Last Friday, he smacked his first career triple, knocking in two runs, to spark a three-run outburst in the second inning, giving the Aztecs all the momentum.

The following day in the series finale, Bates ripped an RBI double and scored in SDSU's big four-run seventh inning that helped erase a 10-6 deficit and tie the score at 10-10. Then in the eighth, he added an RBI single to give the Aztecs an insurance run for a 12-10 lead they would not relinquish.

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).

UP NEXT
If San Diego State defeats UNLV in the first round, it will advance to the double-elimination bracket to face top-seeded Nevada on Thursday, May 22 at 1:05 p.m.