UNM baseball outslugs Fresno State in regular-season finale

The UNM baseball team finished its regular-season with an 18-hit flourish on Saturday.

It proved to be just enough.

Jordy Oriach and Akili Carris collected three hits apiece, Josh McAlister belted his 16th home run of the season and the Lobos held on for a 12-10 Senior Day win over Fresno State at Santa Ana Star Field.

UNM (30-22, 17-13) took its first win in six tries against the Bulldogs (28-27, 18-12) this season, but not without some anxious moments. FSU scored four runs in the ninth inning (three on Murf Gray’s second homer of the game) and had the potential tying runs on base. Lobo center fielder Khalil Walker ended the threat with a highlight-reel diving catch of Cayden Munster’s line drive in right-center.

“That was a game-saving play,” UNM coach Tod Brown said in a postgame interview. “I’m not happy with the way we’re finishing ballgames, but Khalil picked us up.”

The win gives UNM a bit of momentum heading into the upcoming Mountain West tournament in Mesa, Arizona. The third-seeded Lobos will face No. 6 San Jose State in a first-round game Wednesday at 2 p.m. Mountain Time. The Spartans defeated regular-season champ Nevada on Saturday to secure the final spot in the six-team tournament field.

Wednesday’s first-round games are single elimination with the winners advancing into a double-elimination, four-team bracket. Nevada and Fresno State earned first-round byes. Wednesday’s UNM-SJSU winner will face No. 2 Fresno State on Thursday.

New Mexico took the lead for good with a three-run rally in the fourth inning Saturday. Oriach’s RBI double and run-scoring singles by Carris and Tye Wood gave the Lobos a 7-4 lead.

UNM increased it to 12-5 after seven innings, but FSU plated a run in the eighth and four in the ninth before the Lobos finally closed out the win. Dayne Pengelly (3-2) got the win in relief, allowing one run in 2 1/3 innings.