By Marissa Scott
San Jose State baseball looks to take third place in the Mountain West standings when it takes on UNLV in a three-game series.
SJSU is currently tied for fourth and sits half a game behind the Rebels.
The Spartans (19-23, 9-11 MW) won the two series they played against the Rebels (29-17, 10-11 MW) last season. The two teams are a splitting 6-6 over the last two years versus one another.
The Rebels finished dead last in the MW last season with a 10-20 conference record, but this season they are a completely different team.
The team ranks No. 1 in the nation in doubles with 117, No. 2 in the nation with 516 hits and No. 4 in the nation with a .312 batting average.
UNLV sophomore shortstop Bryson Stott has been one of the major contributors to the team’s offense. In the nation, he ranks No. 1 with 25 doubles, No. 2 with 80 hits and No. 9 with 52 runs.
Although the Rebels have been a well-hitting team, they are coming off of their first three-game losing streak this season after being swept by SDSU last weekend. They have also lost five of their last six games.
While UNLV is going through a small slump, the Spartans have been red hot. The team has won nine of their last 13 games and have scored 83 runs over that span.
Junior left hander Andrew Mitchel, who will take the mound on Saturday, has been lights out for the Spartans. He is second in the conference with 72 strikeouts and remains undefeated with a 5-0 record.
Consistent hitting aided the Spartans’ season-high five game win streak that ended in their last game when they lost 10-5 to the University of the Pacific.
Sophomore center fielder Kellen Strahm rides a 16 game hitting streak and leads the team in doubles, triples, walks and stolen bases.
The three-game series starts Friday night at 6:05 p.m. Saturday’s game is slated for 2:05 p.m. and the final game of the series is Sunday at 1:05 p.m.
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