**NOTE: The series between Colorado Mesa and Regis is now a doubleheader on Saturday and Sunday beginning at 11am at Regis Baseball Field**

No. 12 Colorado Mesa will head over the mountains to take on the Regis Rangers this weekend to open up Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play. The Rangers took the season series from Colorado Mesa a year ago, taking the matchup in the first round of the RMAC Tournament as well. The Mavericks would later go on to win the tournament and earn the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA Regional Tournament.

The Rangers come into the weekend after taking two of three games from former Central Region foe Wayne State (the final game of the series was cancelled due to weather) at Regis Baseball Field. Regis went 3-7 against regional opponents in the non-conference portion of the season.

Connor Rochon is the potent bat in the Ranger lineup with a .455 batting average and a 1.197 OPS. He is tied for the team lead in home runs and second in RBIs. He had back-to-back three hit games against West Texas A&M in a doubleheader split.

Freshman Brayden Brooks combined on a shutout in his first collegiate start of his career. He allowed just two hits, walked one and struck out five in five shutout innings. 

WEEKEND RECAP
The Mavericks swept a mini two game series from rival Dixie State on Sunday winning by a combined margin of 17-6 in the two games. The Mavericks hit .347 with three doubles and two home runs while 11 pitchers threw at least one inning in the two games. The staff limited the Trailblazers to just 16 hits in 16 innings of action. No Mavericks threw more than two innings in the two games.

TWO BAGGERS 
Sophomore Caleb Farmer's bat is just starting to heat up but the San Jacinto, Calif. native leads the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference in doubles with eight. He has three games where he had two doubles in a game including last weekend in the doubleheader sweep of Dixie State on the road in St. George. 

CLOSER BY COMMITTEE
Despite the Mavericks scripting their innings through the non-conference schedule, Colorado Mesa may proceed with a closer by committee this season. The Mavericks lead the RMAC in saves with seven with six different pitchers earning at least one save. Senior Will Dixon has made four appearances this season with a 1.12 ERA with two saves. Senior lefty Jett Wodiuk has made four appearances and has a win and a save without giving up an earned run.

THREE HORSE RACE
Colorado Mesa's top three starters on the mound have been true horses. Everyone knew what staff ace JR McDermott was capable of as he currently is 2-0 with a 0.50 ERA with opponents batting .194 against him. Newcomers Garrett Hutson and Nathan Wilson have been outstanding with each allowing opponents to hit under .145.

YOUTH MOVEMENT
This week's youth movement note features freshman catcher first baseman Haydn McGeary. The Glendale, Ariz. native was 2-for-3 with a double and two runs driven in in his lone start this past weekend. For the season, he has played in seven games and made five starts. He is batting .318 with three doubles, a home run and eight runs drive in on the season.

THE STREAK OF 40
The Mavericks finished last season with a 43-16 overall record making it six straight seasons that Colorado Mesa has won 40 or more games. The last time the Mavericks didn't win 40 games was in 2012 when they went 39-16 and lost in the Central Regional in Mankato, Minn. The high mark during the streak came in the 2017 season where the team won 50 games and reached the NCAA Championship Final Four that included a win over No. 1 ranked Delta State. 

NATIONAL RANKINGS
Colorado Mesa moved up to No. 1 in the Perfect Game National Rankings, suplanting incumbent North Greenville. This is the first time the Mavericks have been ranked No. 1 in the Perfect Game poll and second time ever holding the top spot. They also moved up to No. 2 in the National Collegiate Baseball Writer's Association poll, up one spot from last week.Collegiate Baseball Newspaper coach's poll hasnt updated since the beginning of the season with the Mavericks at No. 12.

THE SKIPPER
Head coach Chris Hanks enters his 21st season guiding the Mavericks and has an impressive 843-346 record, the most wins from a coach in program history. He has led Colorado Mesa to three region championships, a feat that has earned him ABCA Region Coach of the year three times now. Last season, he earned his 10th RMAC Coach of the Year award while leading the Mavericks to the regular season and tournament titles.

UP NEXT
Colorado Mesa will return home for the first time in three weeks when they host the Colorado School of Mines Orediggers at Suplizio Field. It will be a matchup of last season's top two teams in the conference and a rematch of the RMAC Tournament final. The Orediggers are taking on New Mexico Highlands this weekend to open conference action.