The UNM softball team aims to get back on the winning track when it plays host to the BYU Cougars for a doubleheader Thursday afternoon at Lobo Field.
UNM (16-26-1, 1-5 Mountain West Conference) is coming off a pair of losses to league rival Colorado State University, Saturday.
The Cougars (25-8, 3-1 MWC) on the other hand are coming off a 4-0 weekend after getting a pair of wins against Utah State and UNLV. The two MWC victories moved BYU into sole possession of second place in the conference.
The Cougars were rewarded for their outstanding play as junior outfielder Oli Keohohou and freshman pitcher Brooke Boyce were named MWC softball Player and Pitcher of the Week.
Boyce posted a perfect 3-0 record last week giving up only one earned run on nine hits in 12 innings. She also had nine strikeouts.
Keohohou had a monstrous weekend, belting four home runs, a double and a single in 10 at bats. She also had five RBIs and 10 runs scored in the four games. The two-time All-American is making a solid bid for her third such honor by hitting .449 on the year with 14 dingers, 37 RBIs and a 1.067 slugging percentage thus far.
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"They are a very good hitting team, very well coached and very offensive minded," Lobo head coach Kim Newbern said.
UNM played the Cougars earlier this season and dropped a close game 3-2 in the New Mexico State Tournament, March 22.
The Lobos will need to do several things better this time around if they want to win and move up the MWC ladder.
First and foremost, they must play solid defense, something they did not do in their 6-3 loss to CSU in the second game on Saturday. UNM comitted three crucial errors and allowed three unearned runs in that game, the margin by which it ultimately lost.
"Our defense has to be more solid," Newbern said.
Offensively, UNM is a good hitting ballclub but need to come up with clutch hits with runners on base. Against CSU, the Lobos had opportunities to score more runs but could not come up with the big two-out hit.
"We have to be able to execute at the plate and push runners across," Newbern said.
Newbern added that the key to producing runs is to get senior center fielder and leadoff hitter Kelly Glass on base. If Glass can get aboard, the Lobos have some pop in the middle of the lineup in designated player/pitcher Iraina Ogas and shortstop slugger Ashley VanBoxmeer. Ogas leads the team with 23 RBIs while VanBoxmeer is the team leader in several offensive categories including home runs (8), batting average (.357) and slugging percentage (.678).
Leading the way on the mound for UNM is junior hurler Amy Dumas. For the Lobos to have a shot at knocking off the Cougars, they will need a good outing from Dumas.
"She has to get ahead of each batter, hit her spots and stay focused," Newbern said.
Dumas (10-11) is leading UNM in just about every pitching category. She has 143 strikeouts in 152 innings while posting a measley 1.66 ERA. Dumas has been a workhorse this year pitching in 35 of the Lobos' 43 games so far.
With conference play heating up, UNM will try to make a run starting with the games against BYU.
Play gets underway at 1 p.m. at Lobo Field on Thursday.
