By Marco Villano, Staff Writer

It’s time to saddle up for Utah.

The Utah baseball team will be up against its toughest defensive test of the year as it opens up a three-game set against New Mexico.

This series comes at a bad time for Utah (13-15, 3-6 Mountain West Conference), as it is currently on a three-game skid.

Another reason that a three-day matchup against the Lobos might not bode well for the Utes is because New Mexico (25-8, 5-4 MWC) is coming off of three straight losses to perennial baseball powerhouse TCU and will be looking for redemption against a conference opponent.

The Lobos have dropped out of the national spotlight after the three tough losses to the Horned Frogs in Fort Worth, Texas.

They were No. 18 in the country before faltering and are now just another team among the pool of teams receiving Top 25 votes.

Utah, on the other hand, hasn’t really been able to hit a comfortable stride all season.

Head coach Bill Kinneberg’s bunch has struggled with some offensive injuries that have pushed the team back a bit, and with a tough schedule still ahead of it, it could be a while till it hits the next gear.

The Lobos know that the Utes’ pitching staff doesn’t offer as much firepower as TCU’s does, and with a starting lineup up that is hitting a combined .396 on the season, they could have a heyday Thursday through Saturday.

Utah’s starting rotation has been solid up to this point in the season.

The three pitchers who see action in conference games8212;Brian Budrow, Andrew Wilding and Jordan Whatcott8212;have a combined ERA of 4.82, which puts them around the top of the MWC in that category.

It’s the bullpen that has been the Achilles’ heel. The six pitchers who have pitched more than 10 innings out of the bullpen are averaging seven earned runs per game.

It will be a tough battle for whoever is on the mound against the Lobo lineup.

The Lobos’ batting average is the best in the country. They have five batters hitting over .400, with Ryan Honeycutt leading the way at .505, which ranks No. 3 in the NCAA. Mike Brownstein leads the country in hits with 62, and two other New Mexico batters follow him with 57, tying for second. The accolades go on and on for this lineup.

It will be up to the starting pitchers for each game to set the tone for the Utes. If they get off to a bad start, the Lobos, who average 10.7 runs per game, will be hard to stop.

If New Mexico does go on a run, it’ll be up to Utah’s offense8212;which is the second to last in the MWC in runs per game with six8212;to carry the load.

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Tyler Cobb

After enduring a three-game losing streak the Ute baseball team is looking to regain confidence against a tough New Mexico team that was ranked No. 18 a few weeks ago.