LAS VEGAS, N.M. – The New Mexico Highlands baseball team (28-17, 25-10 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) closes out regular season play Friday and Saturday (May 2-3) when it hosts Metro State (13-26, 11-23 RMAC).
Going into the weekend, Highlands has clinched the RMAC Plains Division and will be no worse than the second seed. If the Cowboys win out and Colorado Mesa loses out against Colorado School of Mines, Highlands will win the conference regular season crown and thus host the RMAC Tournament next week (May 8-10).
Metro State – along with Adams State, Regis and Colorado Christian – will not be in the RMAC Tournament. Colorado School of Mines and CSU-Pueblo are in a dead heat, just separated by a game, for the third and fourth seed.
You can watch all four games this weekend by clicking
here. The games will be brought to you by Sidearm, and you can watch with a 24-hour window for $5 or watch the entire weekend for $11. Live stats are also available by clicking
here.
13 Seniors to be Honored this Weekend The New Mexico Highlands baseball program will honor 13 seniors between games on Saturday.
"I would truly like to thank the 2014 seniors and their families for their hard work and dedication to the New Mexico Highlands Cowboy baseball program," head coach
Steve Jones stated. "I have no doubt in my mind that all of these young men will be successful in any path they choose in life as well as great family men."
Right-hand pitcher
Daniel Clark has been a pitcher for the Cowboys the last two seasons and has a career record of 5-1 with a 6.99 ERA in 55.1 innings of work. He has started the last three games he has made an appearance, also starting and picking up the win in the Cowboys first victory of the season Feb. 9 against Lubbock Christian. Despite give up six hits and two walks in five innings of work, Clark allowed no runs as Highlands picked up the 3-2 win against the Chaps.
"Daniel is a pleasure to be around," Jones said. "He is a free spirit that has shown significant improvement in his time at Highlands. He has been a huge part of our success down the stretch and he makes me laugh!"
Catcher
Cole Davis is the only graduating senior who has been with the Cowboys for four years. He is a lifetime .315 hitter with 53 hits, 35 RBI's and 26 runs scored. He also has a .982 fielding percentage. He hit his only home run of his career against Regis on May 9, 2013.
"Cole has been an outstanding student-athlete for Highlands," Jones explained. "He is a four-year player in our program. Cole has fought through some adversity with some injuries but he has been a solid player for us."
Outfielder
Jordan Goliat made a splash for the Cowboys in his first season in 2013, being named First Team All-Conference after finishing second on the team with a .375 average. He has hit .339 with 87 hits, 60 runs scored and 40 RBI's for his career. Earlier this season against Lubbock Christian, he picked a most beneficial time to hit his first home run ever, a blast over the right center wall with the bases loaded.
"Jordan has been a solid player for us for two years," Jones stated. "After an outstanding junior season he has fought back from a slow start to put together a solid senior year"
Right hander
Greg Hansen has started all 20 games he has appeared in as a Cowboy and holds an 11-6 record with a 4.52 ERA in 123.1 innings pitched. He is 7-3 this season with two complete games, including a win over Colorado Christian where he allowed only five hits and one earned run while striking out six. He has wins in his last four starts, including being named RMAC Pitcher of the Week on April 15 after his complete-game performance against Colorado Christian.
"Greg has been a solid starter for us for two seasons and has given us a chance to win every time he has taken the mound. He just takes the ball every time out and gives you his best," Jones said.
A Second Team All-Conference performer in 2013 after leading the team with a .410 average, infielder
Tyler Hayes has excelled in the classroom as well. In 2013, he won the NCAA Division II Academic Achievement Award and was named First Team All-Conference from the RMAC in 2014. With the Cowboys, Hayes is batting .339 with 58 hits.
According to Jones, "Tyler is another outstanding student-athlete that will be sorely missed. He is a 4.0 student and has been a solid performer in the middle for us for two years."
Right-hander
Braulio Hernandez was primarily a starter in 2013 but is a reliever for the 2014 season. He is 3-4, improving his career ERA to 8.41 this season. His lone win this season came when he threw 2.1 solid innings of work in Highlands series-concluding win over Adams State April 19.
"Braulio has been hampered by injuries this season but has shown progress here at the end and can really help us in the playoffs," Jones explained.
Infielder
Javier Ledford has a breakout power year for the Cowboys in 2014, bumping his slugging percentage above .500. He is batting .285 in 65 games in his career with the Cowboys with eight home runs, including three in four games earlier in April at home against Adams State. He also had 44 RBI's and 34 runs scored for his career.
"Javier struggled through a tough junior season but has made himself into a strong offensive player and has solidified our defense at first base. He is a pleasure to be around and always brings a smile to the ball park," Jones stated.
Southpaw
Eric Martinez has appeared in nine games on the mound for the Cowboys and has an 0-1 record with a 15.43 ERA. He has thrown 4.2 innings each of his two seasons at Highlands.
"Eric is an outstanding young man that has made great contributions to this team in his 2 years at Highlands. Eric does anything you ask of him and has been an outstanding teammate," Jones said.
Outfielder
Jarred Middleton has played in 68 games for his Highlands career and is a .311 hitter with 66 hits, 50 RBI's and 37 runs scored. He has five home runs this season, two more than 2013 despite having played in less games.
"Jarred has been a solid performer for us for 2 years as well as an outstanding student and young man. He has been a very important part of our outfield rotation and has put up solid numbers over two years," Jones said.
Appearing in only 28 games last season, infielder
Justin Rodriguez has been a regular in the Cowboys line-up this season and is hitting above .300 in 2014. A career .297 hitter, Rodriguez has 38 RBI's and 37 runs scored. He has hit a pair of home runs this season.
"Justin exemplifies Cowboys' baseball: he is a blue collar guy that has just shown up to work every single day. An injury in 2012 kept him from being an integral part of that club that came close to going to the NCAA Division II World Series," Jones explained.
Starting four games from the mound early in the season, right-handed pitcher and infielder
Ben Ruff has become one of the best closers in the RMAC this season, leading the conference with seven saves. He has a 7.83 ERA in 33.1 innings pitched in his only season. From the plate, he has five hits and a .357 batting average with three runs scored and a walk.
"Ben is a one year guy for us but has been a very important part of our late success and has truly been a pleasure to have in our program," Jones stated.
First baseman
Greg Siqueiros has appeared in only one game in his career with an at-bat against Colorado Mesa on March 23 of this season.
"Greg is a fourth-year transfer student that I wish had been in the program longer. Although he has limited playing time, his work ethic and dedication to this program has never wavered. He is an outstanding young man," Jones explained.
Infielder
Jonathon Stavinoha has appeared in 51 games for the Cowboys in his two-year career and is batting .375 with 27 hits, 20 runs scored and 12 RBI's. Stavinoha was a critical component in Highlands 10-7 win over Metro State on March 15, finishing the day 3-for-5 with an RBI single and double. He also excels in the classroom as in 2014, he was named Academic All-Conference Honorable Mention.
"Jon has been a true pleasure to be around. He is an outstanding student and has worked as hard as anyone in this program to become a better player. Jon, like so many of our players, will move on to graduate school next year," Jones added.
A Look at the Postseason Sitting seventh in the South Central Region before last weekend's series, the New Mexico Highlands baseball team took 3-of-4 at CSU-Pueblo (who was sitting eighth at the time). Released on Wednesday (April 30), the Cowboys find themselves sitting fourth in hopes of making their first NCAA appearance after a one year hiatus. The top six teams in the region will receive bids.
Scouting New Mexico Highlands The Cowboys continue to be one of the best hitting teams in the nation as they sit 15th in the nation with a .326 batting average. Highlands continues to sixth in the nation with 20 triples, despite the rare weekend at Pueblo where it did not hit a three-bagger. The Cowboys sit 10th in the nation with a .492 slugging percentage.
Individually, redshirt junior
Matthew Chavez continues to pace the Cowboys as he is sixth in the nation and second in the RMAC with a .450 batting average thanks to a weekend that saw him go five-for-six with five walks and hit-by-pitches. In fact, all of his hits came after getting out in his first official at-bat against CSU-Pueblo. Chavez is also in a tight battle for the best on-base percentage in the nation, sitting fifth with a .543 mark.
Junior
Nick Gonzales is one of the toughest players in the nation to strikeout, with a strikeout for every 23 plate appearances. Senior
Ben Ruff leads the conference and is 40th in the nation with seven saves.
Scouting Metro State While the Cowboys swept the Roadrunners when the teams met in Denver earlier this season, one must look beyond the boxscore. The Cowboys claimed a one, two, three and four run win – including its only extra-inning game of the season.
To read about the first two games of the series in Denver on March 14, click
here. To read about the final two games of the series in Denver on March 15, click
here. Despite being in the top 100 in the nation in very few categories, Metro State leads NCAA Division II with 1.15 double plays turned per game.
Darryl Baca is the Roadrunners heavy hitter, ranking 192nd in the nation with a .365 batting average. He also has nine home runs for the season, ranking 26th in the nation with just less than a quarter of a home run per game. Kevin Hand easily leads the pitching staff on the mound, ranking 38th in the nation with a 1.8 ERA and has a 3-5 record with a pair of saves.
Next Up The New Mexico Highlands baseball team will return to action next Thursday (May 8) either in Grand Junction, Colo., or in Las Vegas, N.M., for the 2014 RMAC Baseball Tournament.
