PUEBLO, Colo. – Colorado State University Pueblo Baseball will return to the diamond for the first time in nearly two here this weekend as they open Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference in Grand Junction, Colo., with a four-game series against preseason league favorite Colorado Mesa University.

The two teams will open the four-game series with a single game at the Diamond on Saturday, March 15 at 2 p.m., before playing a doubleheader on Sunday, March 16 beginning at 1 p.m. and concluding the weekend series with a single nine inning game on Monday, March 17 beginning at 12 p.m.

CSU Pueblo, who is 10-8 overall on the season, hasn't played since splitting a two-game series at home on Feb. 28 and March 1 at home against Lubbock Christian as the Pack won the series opener 4-2 and then fell in the second game of the series, 13-7 to cap a 14-game home stand for the Pack.

The two RMAC rivals have met 141 times previously on the diamond in a series that began in 2000. Colorado Mesa holds 101-40 all-time lead in the series, but the Pack split the four-game series last season in Grand Junction and it marked the first time since 2019 that the Pack had won at least two games in a season series against the Mavericks. In addition, it marked the first since 2022 that CMU had failed to win a series in RMAC play. CMU leads 49-13 at home and is 46-22 in the series at Pueblo. The Mavs are also 73-22 in RMAC games against the Pack.

Following this weekend's four game RMAC series at Colorado Mesa, the Pack will return home for a four-game RMAC series next weekend (March 21-23) against Regis.

ABOUT CSU PUEBLO
The Pack enters this weekend's action first RMAC series of the 2025 season sporting a 10-8 overall record and they have won three of its last four games with the lone setback being that 13-7 loss in the series finale on March 1 against Lubbock Christian, who took three out of four games last weekend at then No. 2 ranked Angelo State. In fact, since going 1-3 in its home opening series against MSU Billings, the Pack has posted a 6-4 overall record.

Coming into this weekend's action, the Pack is third in the league in hitting with a .331 batting average as they recorded 186 hits, scored 162 runs, hit 49 doubles, an RMAC-leading nine triples and 15 home runs. The Pack is averaging 9.0 runs per game, which is second-best in the RMAC and has scored double-digit runs in seven games, including two games of scoring 20 or more runs in the series against Northwest Nazarene. While the Pack leads the RMAC in triples with nine, they are fourth in the league in doubles with 49.

Fifth-year senior first baseman Christian Castaneda (El Paso, Texas/Otero JC) currently leads the Pack and is fourth in the RMAC in batting average at .429 (27-for-63) and is midst of an 18-game hitting streak. Castaneda leads the team in hits (27), home runs (5), RBI (26), slugging percentage (.794) and on-base percentage (.520) and has a 1.314 OPS. In addition, he is tied for the team lead in runs scored (21) and doubles (8). He ranks in the Top 10 in the RMAC in batting average, hits, runs scored, doubles, home runs, RBI, total bases, slugging percentage and on-base percentage.  

Castaneda is one of six Pack players this season to have scored 10 or more runs and is one of three players with 20 or more hits. The Pack have three players, including Castaneda, ranked in the Top 10 in the RMAC in on-base percentage as along with Castaneda's .520, senior third baseman Kysen Howard is ninth in the league with a .500 on-base percentage and senior shortstop Rob Mansour (La Verne, Calif./Cuesta College) is 10th in the league with a .494 on-base percentage.

The Pack's 15 home runs are eighth-most in the RMAC as along with Castaneda's five, Howard is next on the team with four dingers, while senior rightfielder Elijah Borjas (Denver, Colo./Lakewood) and freshman centerfielder Noah Williams (Carson, Calif./Redondo Union) have each hit two home runs. Williams and Borjas as first and second in the RMAC in triples with three and two respectively.

Castaneda and Howard are first and second in RBI with 26 and 20 respectively, while Borjas is third with 17 and senior leftfielder Wyatt Reginato (Cottonwood, Calif./Folsom Lake) is fourth with 16 RBI and is second in hits with 24 and second in doubles with six.

Thirteen Pack players have recorded two or more doubles this season as along with Castaneda's and Howard's eight doubles and Reginato's six, Williams, Mansour and senior infielder Brad Stone (Las Vegas, Nev./Southern Nevada) have each hit three doubles and seven players hae

Five regulars in the Pack line-up are hitting over .400 on the season as along with Castaneda's .429 average, sophomore outfielder Logan Kelly (San Juan Capistrano, Calif./Capistrano Valley Christian) is hitting .409, while Howard is hitting .404 and Reginato is hitting .400 on the season.

The Pack is third in the league in stolen bases with 35 as they are 35-for-47 on the season. Williams is third in the RMAC with 10 stolen bases as he is 10-for-12 on the season. Reginato is second with five steals as he is 5-for-6 on the season.

On the mound, the Pack has the third-best ERA in the league at 7.22. The Pack's pitchers lead the league in strikeouts per nine innings (9.0) and are third in the league in WHIP (1.81). The Pack's pitchers have struck out 147 batters in 144.2 innings of work and opposing hitters are batting .319 on the season. In addition, the Pack's pitchers have walked just 74 batters and have hit 25 batters.

The top starter for the Pack is senior Travis Farrell (Las Vegas, Nev./Otero JC). Farrell enters the week leading the RMAC in ERA (2.08) and wins (4) and is second in strikeouts (29) and WHIP (1.15) and third in strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.14). Farrell has tossed four straight quality starts as he is 4-0 this season and has allowed two or fewer runs in four of his five starts and has recorded five or more strikeouts in all five of his outings. He is also second in the RMAC in innings pitched at 30.1 and has walked just seven on the year.

In addition to Farrell, the No. 2 starter this season for the Pack is junior Luke Ruby (Fort Collins, Colo./Resurrection Christian) as he is 0-1 with a 5.17 ERA. In 15.2 innings, he has struck out 17 and walked just four and has allowed just 17 hits and 11 runs (9 earned runs), while fifth-year senior Nick Perry (Denton, Texas/Richland) is the No. 3 starter and he is 1-2 with an 8.80 ERA. In 15.1 innings, he has recorded 20 strikeouts and walked just three.

Leading the way for the Pack bullpen this season has been sophomore Jack Novak (Highlands Ranch, Colo./Thunder Ridge), who is 1-0 with a 2.53 ERA in a team-leading seven appearances and has earned one save. In 10.2 innings, he has allowed seven hits and five runs (three earned), while striking out seven and walking a team-high 12. Along with Novak, junior Alex Oliver (Grove, Okla./Coffeyville CC) has the team's other save as he is 0-1 with a 4.68 ERA in six appearances. In 9.2 innings, he has allowed 11 hits, eight runs (five earned), while walking three and fanning seven.

Defensively, the Pack is third in the RMAC in fielding percentage at .970 as they have committed just 19 errors in 613 fielding chances and have turned 16 double plays. The 19 errors are third fewest in the league.

Leading the Pack this season is Bobby Applegate, who is in his fourth season as the program's head coach. Applegate, who was the Colorado Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year in 1995 playing for at the time University of Southern Colorado, has compiled an 88-88 overall record at his alma mater and is 51-45 in RMAC games.

SCOUTING COLORADO MESA MAVERICKS
Colorado Mesa, who received votes in this week's ABCA Division II Coaches' Poll, comes into its second RMAC series of the 2025 season sporting an 11-7 overall record and a 4-0 mark in the RMAC after opening league play last weekend with a four-game sweep at home over New Mexico Highlands. In the series, the Mavericks outscored the Cowboys, 64-8, including winning the series finale 31-0. Prior to the series sweep over New Mexico Highlands, the Mavs had gone 5-3 in its previous eight games as they took three of four game at home against MSU Billings and split a four game series at Northwest Nazarene.

The Mavs took home its 12th straight RMAC title last season and was a unanimous selection in this year's preseason RMAC Coaches' Poll to win their 13th title in a row. Since 2009, the Mavs have posted a 481-105 record in RMAC play and have won nearly 82 percent of its league games.

Statistically, the Mavericks are hitting .317 as a team (191-for-603) as they have scored 143 runs, hit 35 doubles, three triples and 21 home runs. CMU is fifth in the league in scoring as they are averaging 7.9 runs per game.

Leading the way offensively for the Mavs is junior outfielder Kolby Felix, who is hitting .424 with 28 hits, 23 runs scored, seven doubles, one triple and a team-leading seven home runs. In addition, he has tallied 18 RBI and has an .879 slugging percentage, which is second-best in the RMAC and a .493 on-base percentage.

Three Mavs have scored 12 or more runs this season as senior outfielder Paul Schoenfeld leads the way with 24, while Felix is next with 23 and redshirt senior infielder Stevenson Reynolds has 12. In addition, four Mavs have rapped out 20 or more hits and four players have hit five or more doubles.

Four CMU batters are hitting over .400 on the season as along with Felix's .424, sophomore infielder Joey Blank is hitting .410, while senior catcher Christos Stefanos is hitting .407 and Schoenfeld is hitting .400.
On the mound, CMU leads the league in ERA at 3.31 and also leads the RMAC in WHIP (1.27), and hits allowed per nine innings (7.81). The Mavs pitchers have struck out 129 and walked just 59 opposing hitters in 144 innings. The team's 2.22 strikeout-to-walk ratio is second-best in the league.

The Mavericks' top starters this season have been junior Gauge Lockhart and junior Liam Hohenstein. Lockhart is 3-0 with a 1.13 ERA as he has had made four appearances and two starts and in 16.0 innings, he has struck out 16 and walked nine, while Hohenstein is 2-2 with a 2.66 ERA and in 23.2 innings, he has recorded 27 strikeouts and walked 11.

In addition to Lockhart and Hohenstein, the No. 3 starter for the Mavs is senior Ethan Voss, who is 4-1 with a 3.55 ERA. In a team-best 25.1 innings of work, he has struck out 12 and walked six.

The top arms out of the bullpen for the Mavs in the early going this season have been seniors Jordan Ellison, Tyler Glowacki and Jordan Pace. Those three have combined to make 13 appearances in relief and have combined for a 1.35 ERA in 35 innings of work. Ellison has made four appearances, tossed 5.1 innings and has an 0.00 ERA, while Glowacki has made five appearances and in 5.2 innings has an 0.00 ERA and Pace has made four relief appearances and in 15.0 innings he has a 2.40 ERA. Those three have combined for 25 strikeouts and three walks.

Junior Cayden Clark is the Mavs closer as he has made seven appearances and is 0-1 with two saves and a 2.79 ERA. In 9.2 innings of work, he has had eight strikeouts and two walks.

Defensively, CMU is the top defensive team in the league as they lead the RMAC in both fielding percentage (.976) and double plays (26). The Mavs are averaging 1.44 double plays per game, which is not only tops in the RMAC, but tops in Division II baseball. The Mavs have committed just 15 errors in 617 fielding chances this season.

The Mavericks are coached by Chris Hanks, who is in his 26th season at his alma mater and has compiled a 1,080-421 career record, including a 635-187 mark in RMAC games and had led the program to 19 RMAC regular season titles, 21 NCAA Tournament appearances, four Division II World Series berths and two NCAA Division II National Runner-up finishes. In addition, he has won 12 RMAC Coach of the Year awards, earned five ABCA Regional Coach of the Year honors and was a two-time National Coach of the Year in 2019 and 2021 by NCBWA.