Air Force Academy
University of Northern Colorado
Air Force Heads to Greeley for Third Game Against Northern Colorado
4/27/2026 3:54:00 PM | Baseball
GREELEY, Colo., - Falcon baseball (21-20) will head up I-25 to take on Northern Colorado (11-31) at Jackson Field on Tuesday April 28 at 3 p.m. MT.
MEDIA
Live Stream – Midco Sports Plus
Live Stats – SideArm
Twitter - @AF_Baseball
ALL-TIME VERSUS NORTHERN COLORADO
The Tuesday matchup marks the 189th game between the two programs, that Northern Colorado leads 107-82. After the Bears won all four games played during the 2025 season, Air Force took their first meetings of 2026 in dominant fashion. The Falcons delivered a season-best offensive performance, totaling 18 hits, six doubles, and eight stolen bases while the pitching staff combined for 10 strikeouts in the 18-6 run-rule victory on March 31. Game two on April 8 was another Falcon win, 10-4.
PITCHING MATCHUP (ERA)
LHP Josh Holst (7.05) vs. TBD
PROBABLE STARTERS (OPS)
- Kayden Bradshaw, CF (.947)
- Ben Niednagel, SS (.968)
- Wyatt Hanoian, 2B (1.163)
- Walker Zapp, C (.898)
- Tripp Garrish, RF (.994)
- Luke Elmore, 1B (.846)
- Garrett Hutchins, DH (1.441)
- Christian Taylor, LF (.582)
- Landon Boyd, 3B (1.084)
AIR FORCE RANKED NATIONALLY
Stolen Bases -11th (120)
Stolen Bases/Game - 9th (2.93)
Runs - 13th (381)
44th Tripp Garrish (47)
Scoring - 7th (9.3)
OB% - 22nd (.419)
5th Wyatt Hanoian (.538)
BA - 21st (.311)
Doubles - 7th (104)
Doubles/Game - 5th (2.54)
SWEPT THE SPARTANS
The Falcons completed their third Mountain West sweep, over San Jose State from April 24-26. In the three game set, Air Force scored 47 runs off 52 hits, 46 of which were extra bases. In game two, the batters broke the Air Force single game doubles record and tied the Mountain West's, with 13 doubles.
The pitching staff compiled a team ERA of 6.84 with 21 runs allowed and 20 strikeouts. Patrick Davidson, Marcus Downing, and Aiden Poe were the winning pitchers.
HUTCHINS STAYS HOT
Freshman Garrett Hutchins posted a stellar weekend at the plate and was named the Mountain West Player and Freshman of the Week for his efforts. On the season he is batting .500 with an OPS of 1.441.
The Allen, Texas native played a key role in helping Air Force remain atop the Mountain West standings and undefeated at home with a series sweep of SJSU. Hutchins hit an impressive .692 over the weekend, recording nine hits, three doubles, two home runs, 10 RBIs, and a 1.385 slugging percentage.
In Friday's 20-10 comeback victory, Hutchins delivered a perfect 4-for-4 performance at the plate, highlighted by the first home run of his career as a pinch-hit blast. He later added another homer and a double, finishing with six RBIs in the win.
The freshman also contributed to Air Force's program-record 13 doubles in Saturday's run-rule victory, adding another double and three RBIs to help the Falcons secure the series.
STARTING SLOT
Josh Holst (1-4) is slated to take the start against Northern Colorado on Tuesday, marking his ninth start of the season.
The freshman has totaled an ERA of 7.05 across 11 appearances. In his 37 innings of work, he has struck out 29 batters and allowed 29 earned runs. His standout performance of the season was against Iowa when he tossed 5.1 frames with one run and five strikeouts. Most recently, Holst threw a pair of Ks and gave up four runs in 2.1 innings at Grand Canyon.
A LOOK AT NORTHERN COLORADO
The Bears currently mark a record of 11-31 with a Summit League line of 9-10. They are coming off a split series against South Dakota State, losing game one 7-6 but taking the second 19-2 in seven innings.
Offensively, Northern Colorado is batting .271 with 390 hits and a slugging percentage of .380. They have been outscored by opponents 373-239.
On the mound, the Bears have totaled a team ERA of 8.62 with 373 runs allowed and 305 strikeouts in 349.2 innings.
