HOBBS, N.M. — The University of the Southwest closed out its three‑game series against New Mexico Highlands on Monday afternoon, dropping the finale 6–0 at Jake Williams Field after a hard-fought doubleheader the previous day.
Despite competitive pitching across the board, the Mustangs were unable to break through offensively, finishing with five hits while stranding nine runners.
New Mexico Highlands struck early with a run in the first and added two more in the fourth, capitalizing on a pair of Southwest defensive miscues. The Mustangs' bullpen kept the game within reach through the middle innings, highlighted by four shutout frames from reliever Kobe Carpio, who struck out eight and allowed no runs on six hits.
Southwest's best scoring opportunities came in the seventh and eighth innings. Alesandro Morrison and Vyncent Chavez opened the seventh with back‑to‑back singles, but a baserunning out and timely Cowboys pitching halted the threat. In the eighth, Santiago Garcia singled and Jackson Anderson added another knock off the bench, yet the Mustangs again left runners aboard.
New Mexico Highlands put the game out of reach in the ninth with a three‑run homer. Southwest mounted one final push in the bottom half, placing runners on second and third after a wild pitch, but could not convert.
Chavez led the Southwest offense with a pair of hits, while Morrison, Garcia, and Anderson each added one.
Head Coach Steve Appel
"Although the scoreboard does not reflect it, I thought we hit the ball hard at times, it just wasn't a hitter-friendly day today. When we had opportunities, we just gave them away. We are still learning a lot about how this team is and what we need to do in order to get them rolling. We continue to see if we can throw strikes and pitch to weak contact, our team goes. If our rhythm and tempo is bad and we can't command the zone with either of our pitches, it just makes for a very long day. I did think, however, we had a very good relief appearance that kept us in the game, but it was just too late.
We will continue to learn from mistakes and now we have to grow from those mistakes as we get ready for conference play. The next couple of weeks will be pivotal to our season."
Southwest will return home on Friday to face its first conference opponent, Texas College, at noon.
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