Friday, March 28
Santa Ana Star Field | Albuquerque, NM
6 pm MT
Air Force Academy
at
University of New Mexico
Air Force Faces New Mexico in Mountain West Series
3/27/2025 6:49:00 PM | Baseball
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M., - The Falcons (9-16, 2-4 MW) will round out their time on the road in a three-game Mountain West series at New Mexico (13-11, 4-2 MW).
Schedule
Fri: at New Mexico, 6 p.m. MT at Santa Ana Star Field in Albuquerque, N.M.
Sat: at New Mexico, 2 p.m. MT at Santa Ana Star Field in Albuquerque N.M.
Sun: at New Mexico, 12 p.m. MT at Santa Ana Star Field in Albuquerque, N.M.
Broadcast Information
Live Stream: Mountain West Network
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Twitter: @AF_Baseball
Series History
-The first official meeting between the two programs took place on March 2, 1957 and ended with an Air Force win, 8-7 at USAFA.
-Overall, the Lobos hold a winning 153-60 record over Air Force and have won 88-21 with home field advantage.
-Last season, the teams met for one Mountain West series which the Falcons took 2-1 (12-3, 5-6, 18-7 (7 Inn.))
-Over time, New Mexico has outscored Air Force, 2,304-1,360.
Pitching Probables (2025 Stats)
Fri: RHP Dylan Rogers (9.35 ERA, 0-2) vs. LHP Daxton Purser (6.46, 1-2)
Sat: RHP Gaines Estridge (7.40 ERA, 0-2) vs. RHP Ryan Castillo (6.11, 3-2)
Sun: TBD vs. RHP Dayne Pengelly (7.18, 1-0)
Projected Lineup (2025 OPS)
1. R/R, Chase Spencer, CF (.575 OPS)
2. R/R, Christian Taylor, LF (.742 OPS)
3. R/R, Walker Zapp, C (.991 OPS)
4. L/L, Tripp Garrish, DH (.925 OPS)
5. R/R, Zach Peters, RF (.947 OPS)
6. R/R, Alex Adams, SS (.649 OPS)
7. R/R, Luke Elmore, 1B (.737 OPS)
8. R/R, Ben Niednagel, 3B (.632 OPS)
9. R/R, T.J. Oster, 2B (.627 OPS)
A Look at the Lobos
-New Mexico holds an overall record of 13-11 with a Mountain West record of 4-2.
-At home, the Lobos have a winning record of 10-3 on the season.
-The team leads the Mountain West in multiple batting categories: batting average: .325, slugging percentage: 556, on-base percentage: .415, runs scored: 198, hits: 271, RBIs: 182, doubles: 62, triples: 10, home runs: 37, total bases: 464, and plate appearances: 997.
-New Mexico has been outscored by opponents, 205-198.
-The Lobos pitching staff has collected a combined ERA of 8.48 and 187 strikeouts across 203.2 innings and lead the MW in saves (7).
In the Mountain West
-The Falcons started Mountain West Conference play with a record of 2-4, following a pair of conference series.
-In their first MW series, Air Force took the three games, 2-1, over Washington State.
-Across the series, AF and WSU both scored 33 runs.
-The Birds notched 38 hits, 31 RBIs, seven doubles, eight homers, and six stolen bases against the Cougars.
-The pitchers struck out 28 Washington State batters.
-Game one was a 15-14, come from behind victory for Air Force where the Falcons tallied 16 hits, highlighted by Luke Elmore's five RBIs and two homers, in addition to Patrick Davidson's three up, three down save in the ninth inning.
-Air Force dropped their MW series against San Jose State, 3-0.
-The Falcons logged four total runs, 12 hits, four RBIs, and four doubles, while the pitchers struck out 18 Spartans.
-In conference play, the Birds are batting .272, slugging .462, and have marked an on-base percentage of .353.
-The pitching staff holds a MW ERA of 9.19 with 46 strikeouts and a batting average against of .362.
Back on Duty
-Dylan Rogers has assumed the Friday night spot, after serving as a weekend starter last season.
-Currently, Rogers holds an overall ERA of 9.35 across a Falcon high 26.2 innings with a B/AVG of .372.
-Rogers has struck out the most batters for Air Force, 23.
-The senior has taken five starts, tied for the team-high, and
marks a record of 0-2.
-In his latest appearance, the RHP threw five innings of relief in game one at San Jose State, where he struck out four Spartans but allowed a trio of earned runs off ten hits.
-Against MW opponent Washington State, Rogers took a start with three strikeouts and six earned runs allowed, but the Falcons still went on to win 15-14.
- At California Baptist, Rogers threw 4.2 innings and allow a
season-high eight runs off 10 hits, while striking out one Lancer.
-The walk-off 9-8 win against Army saw Rogers go four full innings with four strikeouts and four earned runs off two hits allowed.
-The righty went 1-2-3 in the first two frames against the Black Knights.
-He faced Navy in the first game of the Freedom Classic, where he threw 7.0 innings and allowed the only two unearned runs of the 3-2 win.
-He went three up, three down in three frames.
-The RHP tied his career-high nine strikeouts in a single game.
-His efforts on the mound against Navy earned him
Mountain West Pitcher of the Week honors (02/24/25) for the first time in his career.
-Rogers not only serves as the Friday night guy, but also as one of the team captains.
-As the starting pitcher in the first game of 2025 at No. 10 Florida, Rogers went 4.0 innings and faced 21 batters.
Workin' on the Gaines
-Gaines Estridge is set for the start on Saturday at New Mexico, as he shifts between starter and reliever spots.
-The righty has recorded 17 strikeouts on the season with 20.2 total innings under his belt for an overall ERA of 7.40.
-His last start was at TCU where he went just one inning and surrendered four earned runs.
-Since then, Estridge has made four appearances in relief.
-In Air Force's latest MW series at San Jose State, Estridge took an appearance in game two, throwing a trio of Ks and surrendering a single run.
-Against MW opponent Washington State, he threw four innings in the Falcons 14-9 victory, logging three Ks and three earned runs allowed.
-Estridge started game two of the Army series going 2.2 innings with three Ks and allowed six runs off four hits.
-In game two against Navy, Estridge totaled a season high 4.2 innings on the mound with three Ks, and two runs off two hits allowed.
- Last season, the RHP made 23 appearances out of the bullpen.
- Estridge logged 26.2 innings pitched with 15 Ks, 11 walks, and an ERA of 8.10.
C.T.
-Christian Taylor is proving to be a force for the Falcons.
-Batting .299, Taylor accounts for the second-most RBIs on the team, with 19.
-Taylor has embarked on a eight-game hit streak, the longest current streak for the Falcons, with six multiple hit games.
-The sophomore also holds the longest current reached-base streak at ten games.
-In Mountain West play, Taylor is hitting .435 and is tied for a team-high eight RBIs off ten hits.
-Across the series at San Jose State, Taylor marked four hits and an RBI in game one.
-He notched six hits, seven RBIs, and scored three runs against MW opponent, Washington State.
-In the game three 14-9 win over the Cougars, Taylor batted 3-for-5 and recorded five RBIs.
-From 2/23-3/5, the outfielder saw a six-game RBI streak.
-In the Air Force 14-7 victory over Army, Taylor went 3-for-4 with a pair of RBIs and three runs scored.
-Defensively, he holds a fielding percentage of .889, with 25 put outs and seven assists.
On Deck
Air Force will return home to host San Diego State from Friday April 4-Sunday April 6 at Erdle Field.
Schedule
Fri: at New Mexico, 6 p.m. MT at Santa Ana Star Field in Albuquerque, N.M.
Sat: at New Mexico, 2 p.m. MT at Santa Ana Star Field in Albuquerque N.M.
Sun: at New Mexico, 12 p.m. MT at Santa Ana Star Field in Albuquerque, N.M.
Broadcast Information
Live Stream: Mountain West Network
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Twitter: @AF_Baseball
Series History
-The first official meeting between the two programs took place on March 2, 1957 and ended with an Air Force win, 8-7 at USAFA.
-Overall, the Lobos hold a winning 153-60 record over Air Force and have won 88-21 with home field advantage.
-Last season, the teams met for one Mountain West series which the Falcons took 2-1 (12-3, 5-6, 18-7 (7 Inn.))
-Over time, New Mexico has outscored Air Force, 2,304-1,360.
Pitching Probables (2025 Stats)
Fri: RHP Dylan Rogers (9.35 ERA, 0-2) vs. LHP Daxton Purser (6.46, 1-2)
Sat: RHP Gaines Estridge (7.40 ERA, 0-2) vs. RHP Ryan Castillo (6.11, 3-2)
Sun: TBD vs. RHP Dayne Pengelly (7.18, 1-0)
Projected Lineup (2025 OPS)
1. R/R, Chase Spencer, CF (.575 OPS)
2. R/R, Christian Taylor, LF (.742 OPS)
3. R/R, Walker Zapp, C (.991 OPS)
4. L/L, Tripp Garrish, DH (.925 OPS)
5. R/R, Zach Peters, RF (.947 OPS)
6. R/R, Alex Adams, SS (.649 OPS)
7. R/R, Luke Elmore, 1B (.737 OPS)
8. R/R, Ben Niednagel, 3B (.632 OPS)
9. R/R, T.J. Oster, 2B (.627 OPS)
A Look at the Lobos
-New Mexico holds an overall record of 13-11 with a Mountain West record of 4-2.
-At home, the Lobos have a winning record of 10-3 on the season.
-The team leads the Mountain West in multiple batting categories: batting average: .325, slugging percentage: 556, on-base percentage: .415, runs scored: 198, hits: 271, RBIs: 182, doubles: 62, triples: 10, home runs: 37, total bases: 464, and plate appearances: 997.
-New Mexico has been outscored by opponents, 205-198.
-The Lobos pitching staff has collected a combined ERA of 8.48 and 187 strikeouts across 203.2 innings and lead the MW in saves (7).
In the Mountain West
-The Falcons started Mountain West Conference play with a record of 2-4, following a pair of conference series.
-In their first MW series, Air Force took the three games, 2-1, over Washington State.
-Across the series, AF and WSU both scored 33 runs.
-The Birds notched 38 hits, 31 RBIs, seven doubles, eight homers, and six stolen bases against the Cougars.
-The pitchers struck out 28 Washington State batters.
-Game one was a 15-14, come from behind victory for Air Force where the Falcons tallied 16 hits, highlighted by Luke Elmore's five RBIs and two homers, in addition to Patrick Davidson's three up, three down save in the ninth inning.
-Air Force dropped their MW series against San Jose State, 3-0.
-The Falcons logged four total runs, 12 hits, four RBIs, and four doubles, while the pitchers struck out 18 Spartans.
-In conference play, the Birds are batting .272, slugging .462, and have marked an on-base percentage of .353.
-The pitching staff holds a MW ERA of 9.19 with 46 strikeouts and a batting average against of .362.
Back on Duty
-Dylan Rogers has assumed the Friday night spot, after serving as a weekend starter last season.
-Currently, Rogers holds an overall ERA of 9.35 across a Falcon high 26.2 innings with a B/AVG of .372.
-Rogers has struck out the most batters for Air Force, 23.
-The senior has taken five starts, tied for the team-high, and
marks a record of 0-2.
-In his latest appearance, the RHP threw five innings of relief in game one at San Jose State, where he struck out four Spartans but allowed a trio of earned runs off ten hits.
-Against MW opponent Washington State, Rogers took a start with three strikeouts and six earned runs allowed, but the Falcons still went on to win 15-14.
- At California Baptist, Rogers threw 4.2 innings and allow a
season-high eight runs off 10 hits, while striking out one Lancer.
-The walk-off 9-8 win against Army saw Rogers go four full innings with four strikeouts and four earned runs off two hits allowed.
-The righty went 1-2-3 in the first two frames against the Black Knights.
-He faced Navy in the first game of the Freedom Classic, where he threw 7.0 innings and allowed the only two unearned runs of the 3-2 win.
-He went three up, three down in three frames.
-The RHP tied his career-high nine strikeouts in a single game.
-His efforts on the mound against Navy earned him
Mountain West Pitcher of the Week honors (02/24/25) for the first time in his career.
-Rogers not only serves as the Friday night guy, but also as one of the team captains.
-As the starting pitcher in the first game of 2025 at No. 10 Florida, Rogers went 4.0 innings and faced 21 batters.
Workin' on the Gaines
-Gaines Estridge is set for the start on Saturday at New Mexico, as he shifts between starter and reliever spots.
-The righty has recorded 17 strikeouts on the season with 20.2 total innings under his belt for an overall ERA of 7.40.
-His last start was at TCU where he went just one inning and surrendered four earned runs.
-Since then, Estridge has made four appearances in relief.
-In Air Force's latest MW series at San Jose State, Estridge took an appearance in game two, throwing a trio of Ks and surrendering a single run.
-Against MW opponent Washington State, he threw four innings in the Falcons 14-9 victory, logging three Ks and three earned runs allowed.
-Estridge started game two of the Army series going 2.2 innings with three Ks and allowed six runs off four hits.
-In game two against Navy, Estridge totaled a season high 4.2 innings on the mound with three Ks, and two runs off two hits allowed.
- Last season, the RHP made 23 appearances out of the bullpen.
- Estridge logged 26.2 innings pitched with 15 Ks, 11 walks, and an ERA of 8.10.
C.T.
-Christian Taylor is proving to be a force for the Falcons.
-Batting .299, Taylor accounts for the second-most RBIs on the team, with 19.
-Taylor has embarked on a eight-game hit streak, the longest current streak for the Falcons, with six multiple hit games.
-The sophomore also holds the longest current reached-base streak at ten games.
-In Mountain West play, Taylor is hitting .435 and is tied for a team-high eight RBIs off ten hits.
-Across the series at San Jose State, Taylor marked four hits and an RBI in game one.
-He notched six hits, seven RBIs, and scored three runs against MW opponent, Washington State.
-In the game three 14-9 win over the Cougars, Taylor batted 3-for-5 and recorded five RBIs.
-From 2/23-3/5, the outfielder saw a six-game RBI streak.
-In the Air Force 14-7 victory over Army, Taylor went 3-for-4 with a pair of RBIs and three runs scored.
-Defensively, he holds a fielding percentage of .889, with 25 put outs and seven assists.
On Deck
Air Force will return home to host San Diego State from Friday April 4-Sunday April 6 at Erdle Field.
Players Mentioned
IF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
IF
/ Baseball
IF
/ Baseball
UT/RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
OF/RHP
/ Baseball
UT
/ Baseball
C
/ BaseballFalcons win on senior day over New Mexico
Sunday, May 11
Lobos top Falcons to even series
Saturday, May 10
Falcons big 8th inning leads to win over Lobos
Friday, May 09
Falcons fall in series finale to Nevada
Sunday, April 27
