REBELS FACE UTAH STATE AT HOME
UNLV and Utah State will play a three-game Mountain West series beginning on Thursday, March 28
- Game Notes vs. Utah State(PDF) | 2024 Schedule
- 2024 Statistics (PDF) | 2024 Statistics (Web)
- @UNLVAthletics | @UNLVSoftball
- Buy Tickets
The UNLV softball team gears up for the third weekend of Mountain West play hosting Utah State in a three-game series beginning on Thursday, March 28 and concludes on Saturday, March 30.
SCHEDULE:
Thursday, March 28 – Utah State at UNLV at 6 p.m. PT
Friday, March 29 – Utah State at UNLV at 3 p.m. PT
Saturday, March 30 – Utah State at UNLV at 12 p.m. PT
UNLV vs. UTAH STATE
All-time vs. Utah State: 37-30
Streak: Loss 1
Last meeting: The Aggies took the series 2-1 last season in Logan, Utah on April 28-30.
SCOUTING UTAH STATE: The Aggies head into the series with a 19-12 overall record and are 3-3 in Mountain West play. In last weekend’s MW series, Utah State took the three-game series 2-1 against Boise State. The Aggies and Broncos played a doubleheader on Friday, March 22, when Utah State earned a victory in both games. In the series finale, Boise State collected a 13-1 win over Utah State. Ariel Fifita leads the Aggies with a .388 batting average and in hits (35) and is second on the squad in slugging percentage with a .518. Alex Bunton is not too far behind with a .338 batting average and leads the team in RBI (20) and slugging percentage (.600). In the circle for Utah State, Jessica Stewart leads the way with a 1.77 ERA through 47.1 IP. Stewart has a 5-2 overall record in her 19 appearances and has a team-high five saves.
SERIES PROMOTIONS: Fans in attendance will receive a 2024 UNLV softball schedule poster all weekend. Additionally, the concession stand will offer $2 hot dogs on Friday and $6 for a hot dog, chips and water bottle or canned soda on Saturday. The Rebels will have post game autographs after every game.
TICKETS: Tickets are on sale now for the 2024 UNLV softball season. Season tickets are $50 for adults, $40 for seniors, faculty and staff, and alumni. Single-game tickets are $6 in advance and at the game $10 for adults and $8 for seniors, faculty and staff.Kids under 12, Nevada High School students with their high school ID, UNLV students are free at all home contests.
BROADCAST INFO: All Mountain West series will be streamed on theMW.com/watch. Links to the stream and live stats links can be found on UNLVrebels.com
NEXT UP: The Rebels will hit the road to play a doubleheader against Boise State on Wednesday, April 3.
LAST TIME ON THE FIELD: In the second week of MW play, the Rebels took the series 2-1 against New Mexico. UNLV is now 3-2 in league play.
On opening day of the series, UNLV collected a 7-5 win over New Mexico. The Rebels shutout the Lobos through five innings before New Mexico put up two runs in the bottom of the fifth although UNLV was already ahead 2-0. The Scarlet & Gray scored seven runs on 10 hits. Alanna Thiede picked up her 11th win of the season and moved to an 11-2 overall record and Jessie Fontes earned the first Rebels’ save of the season. Jesse Farrell had a career day at the plate, as she went 3-for-3 including a solo home run. Her three hits tied her career-high and she scored two runs, which also tied her career-high. Janyssa Martin was 2-for-3 at the plate including a triple, an RBI and a walk. Rylei Trujillo had a career-high two RBI, which were the insurance runs for UNLV.
The series closed out with a split between the Rebels and Lobos as squads played a doubleheader to beat the rain that was ahead in the forecast for day three. In game one, UNLV and New Mexico were 1-1 the entirety of the game as each team put up a run in the first inning.The Rebels and Lobos headed into the extra inning, but UNLV was able to get anything going. New Mexico walked it off in the bottom of the eighth on a solo blast. UNLV was ready to bounce back, and that’s just what the Rebels did in game two. The Scarlet & Gray brought in eight runs on 11 hits to secure a 8-2 victory over the Lobos. UNLV’s bats were hot as five different Rebels went yard including Farrell, Ariana Martinez, Alyssa Trejo and Martin.
UNLV MILESTONE APPROACHING: UNLV head coach Kristie Fox is one win away from 200 victories at the helm of the Rebels program. Fox has 199 victories with the Rebels and 333 career wins. Fox will become the second head coach in UNLV softball history to reach the 200 win mark at the helm of the program. Shan McDonald (1987-03 with 511 wins) was the only head coach to reach 200 or more wins as the Rebels coach.
REBELS’ SQUAD: UNLV returns 16 letterwinners, including six position starters and three pitchers. All-Mountain West selections in Ariana Martinez, Maddie Schmidt and Skyler Shaw return to the Rebels this season. UNLV welcomes six newcomers to the squad including Charelle Aki, Jesse Farrell, Mackenzie Huntington, Malia Jones, Kailani Olivas and Rylei Trujillo.
On the pitching side, senior Ellie Zellien led the team last season with seven wins and 69 strikeouts. Zellien made 30 appearances and 19 starts for the Rebels. Fifth year senior Alanna Thiede also returns and was second on the squad in ERA (5.21), struck out 61 hitters and had two saves. Senior Jessie Fontes is also back for the Rebels this season. Last season, Fontes made 20 appearances and 11 starts and had an ERA of 7.05.
The Rebels bring back the top-five hitters from last season which include juniors Ariana Martinez and Sofia Morales, seniors Janyssa Martin and Skyler Shaw and fifth year senior Maddie Schmidt. Martinez was second on the squad with a .370 batting average, she posted team-highs in doubles (16), home runs (12) and slugging percentage (.708). Morales hit .299 with four doubles and 14 RBI. Martin started all 50 games last season and batted .305 with eight doubles, six home runs and a triple. Shaw led the squad and conference in batting with a .411 average. Shaw had a double, a triple and 11 RBI. Schmidt posted a .331 batting average with two doubles and two triples. Schmidt led the squad in stolen bases and was a perfect 21-for-21.