Will Nevada Leapfrog Into First Place This Weekend?

The MWC leader is New Mexico and they have the barest of margins to make that claim. Fresno could take over the top spot if things get weird anywhere this weekend. Will Nevada make a statement and climb over one of those two programs? We'll see.

New Mexico (16-5) at UNLV (10-11)
The Lobos ran into a bit of a buzz saw at Arizona State as they lost all three games but now they are back in more familiar and friendly territory. They are the best hitting team in the conference outside of Air Force and the pitching is pretty good as they have three decent starters. UNLV has a bit of both but not enough, I think.

San Diego State (5-14) at Fresno State (17-7)
The Aztecs are still suffering and trying to stay just ahead of San Jose State. Even if they trade positions at the bottom neither program has done much this year. Fresno State is still hoping they get a little help from Vegas or some other MWC team so they can sneak in as champs. They could certainly do it with their pitching, if nothing else. Jimmy Lambert could very well be the Pitcher of the Year in the Mountain West if he keeps winning (9-0 at this point).

San Jose State (6-18) at Nevada (13-8)
The Spartans are having problems winning more than one in a row. They had their chances against UNLV last weekend but lost two. Their hitting is coming around and a bit of power is showing itself in the younger players. Pitching is THE problem with the Spartans and I've seen little light at the end of the tunnel here. Josh Nashed has emerged as the team's ace and he gets hammered on occasion. They need more than his one arm.

SIUE (9-20) at Air Force (20-20)
So, tell me, can any of you out there tell me what SIUE stands for? Hmm? Don't worry, neither did I until I looked it up. It stands for Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Now we're all in the know. There are others that will go untouched as that's a subject for another article. I just remember the days of CSUSJ and very glad they didn't last long. Anyway, who are those guys (good movie)? They've had a tough year as their record attests. They started off the year losing three to Louisville and then eight more in a row; ouch. They're a member of the Ohio Valley Conference which means they are a D1 team. Now here's where the trouble starts. They don't hit much (.245) and their pitching also hurts (7.97). That's almost eight runs a game. How do you think that's going to work in Colorado Springs? It could get ugly. Then again, I hear the weather might get ugly also. It's been beautiful the last few days in Colorado but that can change minute to minute. Let's get back to the pitching. They do have two starters that are at least fair. P.J. Schuster (1-5 and 5.79 with 11 starts) and Jarrett Bednar (2-8 and 5.97 with 11 starts) have the most starts. Sunday could be anyone. Hitting is a problem as they have only one .300 hitter. The top two guys provide the only pop. Keaton Wright (.361 and 5) and Dustin Woodcock (.288 and 4) are the power. It's going to be hard for the Cougars to match up well against the Falcons; especially at home. They hit a ton and also have a few decent pitchers. The Falcons have fallen in conference standings in the last few weeks but they are still a power to be reckoned with.