SERIES HISTORY WITH UCCS
The Mavericks and Mountain Lions split the season series in Colorado Springs back on April 11-13. The Mountain Lions won the two nine inning games and the Mavericks took the seven inning doubleheaders. It was the lone conference series the Mavericks did not win this season

Colorado Mesa owns a 28-11 record all-time with the Mountain Lions. Six of those games occured in the postseason with the Mavericks posting a 5-1 record in those contests.

The Mavericks have enjoyed success when those games occur in Grand Junction as they are 14-3 all-time in either Suplizio Field or The Diamond.

SCOUTING THE MOUNTAIN LIONS
The Mountain Lions hit a rough patch late in their schedule this year where they have dropped seven of their last eight. They still managed to find their way into the tournament after a one-year hiatus.

Bryce Peterson is the top batter for UCCS as he finished the regular season batting .403 with 19 doubles and nine home runs. He had seven hits in the series with the Mavericks earlier.

On the mound, the Mountain Lions will likely start former Palisade High School product Ryder Mancuso. The junior will enter the tournament with a 5-2 record and a 6.89 ERA. He didnt factor into the decision in his start against Colorado Mesa back on April 13.

IT NEVER GETS OLD
With two wins against MSU Denver, Colorado Mesa won their 13th straight Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Regular Season title. The Mavericks finished the conference schedule with a 26-4 record. They have won more than 20 games in the conference every year since 2005.

During Coach Chris Hanks' tenure, the Mavericks have finished first or second in his 27 years at the helm. In 18 of the last 20 years, the Mavericks have come out on top as regular season champions. 

If the Mavericks make it to Saturday, they will have won 40 games this season which would mark 11 of the past 12 years they would have reached the 40 win plateau. Colorado Mesa won a program best 53 games during the 2019 season. 

5-6-7
The Maverick outfielders have been nothing short of outstanding this season. The trio combined to bat .424 (195-for-460) with 50 doubles, four triples, 24 home runs and 148 runs driven in.

No. 5 Kolby Felix has played in 42 games with 41 starts and has the lowest batting average of the trio at .404 and is second on the team in nearly every category including doubles, home runs, on-base percentage and slugging.

No. 6 Paul Schoenfeld has played in and started all 47 games and is currently riding a 26-game hitting streak. He has his batting average up to .435 with 20 doubles and leads the country in runs per game at 1.66.

No. 7 Cameron Cartwright came out of nowhere midway through the month of March to carry the team. He is batting .433 with 11 doubles and a team-leading 15 home runs.

The outfield trio may have some hardware coming their way in the next couple days.

LOCKING IN
Junior righthander Liam Hohenstein appears to be poised for another strong postseason run as a starter on the mound for the Mavericks. As a starter, Hohenstein is 4-3 with a 4.50 ERA in 38 innings pitched. He has 45 strikeouts against 18 walks with opponents hitting .272 off of him.

He has pitched two and a third innings as a reliever in three appearances and has a 15.43 ERA and has allowed just one hit.

In his last start, he faced the top hitting MSU Denver Roadrunners and limited them to three hits in five innings of work. He struck out seven and allowed just two runs.

MAVERICKS IN MILB
The Colorado Mesa baseball team currently has six players competing at some level of professional baseball. All eight finished in the minors but two of them saw action in Major League Baseball during the 2024 season. Check out the full list of Colorado Mesa Baseball Alums and ways to follow along on their professional journey:

Bligh Madris (2015-18) // Detroit Tigers
Kyle Leahy (2016-18) // St. Louis Cardinals
Haydn McGeary (2019-22) // Chicago Cubs
Spencer Bramwell (2018-22) // Miami Marlins
Caleb Farmer (2018-22) // Washington Nationals
Andrew Morris (2019-21)  // Minnesota Twins

RMAC DOMINATION
Colorado Mesa won its 13th straight Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference title in 2025.

Since 2009, Colorado Mesa has won 82 percent of their games against RMAC competition as they have a 499-109 record in that span prior to the season.

THE BEST AROUND
Two seasons ago, head coach Chris Hanks eclipsed the 1,000 win mark in his career. He is one of just 21 head coaches across NCAA Baseball that is over the 1,000 win mark and is fifth in wins in NCAA Division II of active head coaches.

Top-10 Division II Active Head Coaches by wins
1. John Schaly (Ashland) - 1,349-736 (38 seasons)
2. Greg Guilliams (Flagler) - 1,208-600 (35 seasons)
3. Jeff Messer (Slippery Rock) - 1,154-759 (40 seasons)
4. Bob Fornelli (Pittsburg State) - 1,117-492 (29 seasons)
5. Chris Hanks (Colorado Mesa) - 1,105-425 (27 seasons)
6. Joe Urso (Tampa) - 1,048-293 (25 seasons)
7. Jim Gantt (Catawba) - 1,030-513 (29 seasons)
8. Greg Appleton (Columbus State) - 997-521 (28 seasons)
9. Tim Mead (Walsh) - 959-968 (42 seasons)
10. Brad Hill (Emporia State) - 930-535 (26 seasons)

NCAA Active Head Coaches with 1,000 wins
1. Paul Mainieri (South Carolina) - 1,531
2. Danny Hall (Georgia Tech) - 1,444
3. John Schaly (Ashland) - 1,349
4. Bob Babb (Johns Hopkins) - 1,341
5. Tom Austin (Methodist) - 1,314
6. Dave Van Horn (Arkansas) - 1,294
7. Elliott Avent (NC State) - 1,290
8. Greg Guilliams (Flagler) - 1,208
9. Rich Hill (Hawaii) - 1,202
10. Jeff Messer (Slippery Rock) - 1,154
11. Bob Fornelli (Pittsburg State) - 1,117
12. Chris Hanks (Colorado Mesa) - 1,105
13. Rick Heller (Iowa) - 1,073
14. Steve Owens (Rutgers) - 1,070
15. Tim Corbin (Vanderbilt) - 1,061
16. Joe Urso (Tampa) - 1,048
17. Mike Bianco (Ole Miss) - 1,039
18. Augie Schmidt (Carthage) - 1,030
19. Jim Gantt (Catawba) - 1,030
20. Yogi Lutz (Alvernia) - 1,021
21. Rich Maloney (Ball State) - 1,020