Colorado Mesa will play their first series at home of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference season this weekend when they host the UCCS Mountain Lions in their second season as a program. The Mountain Lions qualified for the RMAC Tournament in their first season of eligibility and went 0-2 in the tournament dropping a pair of extra inning contests.

The UCCS lineup features a pair of quality hitters in first baseman Zach Hall and outfielder Cody Norton. Hall is hitting .316 with an RMAC leading six homeruns on the season. Norton has played in and started all 16 games for UCCS and has a .328 average with nine extra base hits.

Mountain Lion No. 4 starter Bailey Hansen has the top ERA for the pitching staff. Hansen is 3-1 on the year with a 3.00 ERA in 24 innings pitched. Colin Cicere is projected to be the Friday afternoon starter this weekend. The junior is on a two-game winning streak having defeated New Mexico Highlands in a non-conference matchup and Regis during the RMAC opening weekend.

LAST WEEKEND
Colorado Mesa opened the RMAC season by taking three-of-four games from Colorado Christian. The Mavericks batted an astounding .417 in the series with 24 extra base hits. The pitching staff had a rough weekend, finishing with a 9.00 ERA. They did strikeout 33 Cougars on the weekend.
 
SCOUTING THE MOUNTAIN LIONS
UCCS is one of the top up and coming teams in the RMAC as they rank fourth in the conference in batting average and fourth in team ERA. They rank second in the league in triples. The Mountain Lion lineup features one of the top power hitters in the RMAC in lefthanded hitting first baseman Zach Hall. Hall leads the RMAC in home runs with five. 

RMAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Colorado Mesa's Caleb Farmer was named the RMAC Player of the Week after his play against Colorado Christian. The freshman earned the nod by going 6-for-9 (.667) in the series with the Cougars. He hit his first two collegiate home runs with five of his six hits going for extra bases. He scored 10 runs and drove in seven as well. It is the fourth time this season a Maverick has earned a player of the week award.

800
With the next Maverick win, head coach Chris Hanks will have won his 800th game as the skipper for Colorado Mesa. The three-time ABCA Regional Coach of the Year is 799-333 in his 20th season and has led the Mavericks to three NCAA College World Series. 

STUBBS
Another freshman is making some noise at the plate. Jordan Stubbings batted .533 (8-for-15) in the series with Colorado Christian. The Parker native hit four doubles in the series and now leads the team in doubles with five. He has a slugging percentage of .800 and an OPS of 1.333.

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME
Colorado Mesa enjoys playing in front of their fans and in the friendly confinds of Suplzio Field. How much do they enjoy it? They are 346-82 in the last 14 years at home, winning over 80 percent of those games. They also havent been shutout in 428 games dating back to the 2004 season.

50
The Mavericks set a program record a year ago by going 50-12 during the 2017 campaign. The 50 wins was a program first and ending up leading the nation in wins. The 50th win may not have come against a grander opponent in top ranked Delta State in the NCAA Division II World Series.

NATIONAL RANKINGS
The Mavericks fell to No. 8 in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper coaches poll, down from No. 5. They maintained their No. 5 ranking in the Perfect Game poll while dropping to No. 11 in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association poll. 

THE SKIPPER
Head coach Chris Hanks enters his 20th season guiding the Mavericks and has an impressive 799-333 record, most in program history. In 2017, he guided the Mavericks to their third NCAA Division II World Series and their ninth straight NCAA Tournament. The feat earned him ABCA South Central Region Coach of the year, an honor he has earned three times now.

UP NEXT
Colorado Mesa will be on their bye week next weekend during spring break but will head back out on the road. They will play rival CSU-Pueblo for four games in the Steel City. The ThunderWolves are currently 9-8 on the year and 1-3 in the RMAC.