RENO, Nev. - This last month of play for the Nevada baseball team, and specifically this weekend series against UNLV, has become hugely important with just 10 conference games remaining.

The Wolf Pack and Rebels, and also with some help from San Jose State against San Diego State this weekend, are battling for the top spot in the Mountain West standings.

As it stands right now, the Rebels own the No. 1 spot in the league standings with an 11-7 record in league play. San Diego State is right behind UNLV in second with a 14-10 conference mark, and the Wolf Pack is sitting at 12-9 and in third place. The Aztecs will host San Jose State this weekend, and help from the Spartans would greatly benefit both the Wolf Pack and the Rebels. Aside from what the Aztecs may do this weekend, a series sweep or a series win (winning two out of the three games) by the Wolf Pack would push the team ahead of UNLV in the conference standings.

It's shaping up to be a photo finish to determine the Mountain West's automatic qualifier to NCAA Regionals this season. After this weekend, Nevada has nine games remaining overall, seven of which are conference contests. For its two remaining non-conference games the Wolf Pack will play a single game on Tuesday as it hosts Arizona State at 12 p.m., and then will head to UCLA for a single game against the Bruins on May 18. Nevada has two Mountain West series' left on its schedule after this weekend as it will head to Fresno State next weekend and conclude the 2021 regular season with a four-game series at home against San Jose State on May 28-30.

Nevada is on fire lately winning five games in a row, including a series sweep of San Diego State last weekend. The Wolf Pack won big too, outscoring the Aztecs by a 42-13 margin and won two of the three games by a mercy rule. During that series against SDSU the Pack blasted 12 home runs, including six in the series finale on Saturday. The last time Nevada hit six long balls in a single game was 2001.

UNLV has won eight of its last nine games, but have also had seven games canceled during that stretch. In total the Rebels have only played three games since April 10.

ON THE AIR
John Ramey will have the call in Northern Nevada on CBS Sports Radio 94.1 FM and 1450 AM with a 20 minute pregame show prior to first pitch for all three games. Fans can also tune in to listen to Ramey's broadcast online at TuneIn.com or via the TuneIn app.

POP-FLYS
-The winner of this weekend series has the potential to grab the No. 1 spot in the MW standings
-Nevada hit six home runs its last time out, the most in a single game since 2001
-The Wolf Pack has hit 20 home runs in its last six games, compared to 17 in its first 25 games
-Nevada outscored the then MW-leading Aztecs 42-13 last weekend
-Dario Gomez's team-leading batting average of .394 ranks in the top 35 nationally
-The Pack is currently first in the conference with a team fielding percentage of .978

GOING, GOING, GONE...A LOT
The long ball has been the best friend to the Wolf Pack in its last six games. Over that stretch Nevada has collected 20 home runs as a team, compared to hitting 17 home runs in its first 25 games. Of those 20 long balls in the last six games, Tyler Bosetti and Joshua Zamora have combined for 11 of the 20, with Bosetti leading the way with six. Both Bosetti and Zamora now have seven home runs this season, which ties them for third-most in the Mountain West. In the Wolf Pack's last game alone, the 15-7 series sweep victory over San Diego State, Nevada blasted six home runs, which was the most by the Pack in a single game since it also hit six against Stanford in 2001.

BOSETTI NAMED MW PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Playing a huge role in the weekend sweep of first place San Diego State, Tyler Bosetti earned Mountain West Player of the Week honors for the first time in his career. Bosetti batted .571 (8-for-14) and slugged an incredible 1.571 over the series, leading the Wolf Pack in hits, runs (nine), and RBIs (eight), and sharing the weekend lead in home runs (four) and triples (one). His performance paced a Nevada series in which the Wolf Pack scored in double digits in each contest, and outscored the Aztecs, 42-13, for the weekend.

The Vacaville, Calif., native posted three multi-hit games, with three-hit efforts in the series opener and finale. After coming up just a double shy of the cycle in Nevada's 14-4 win in Friday's series opener, Bosetti capped the doubleheader with a 2-for-3 showing and his second home run of the series, a three-run shot which highlighted the Pack's 10-run fifth inning in the 13-2 victory.

The following day, Bosetti helped the Pack finish its first sweep of the campaign, going 3-for-5 with two homers and four RBIs in the 15-7 win. Once again, he came up with the clutch long ball, pounding a three-run shot in Nevada's five-run seventh which broke open a one -run game.

GOMEZ REMAINS A CONSISTENT FORCE FOR NEVADA
Newcomer Dario Gomez, a redshirt sophomore transfer from San Joaquin Delta Junior College, has been one of the Wolf Pack's most consistent producers on offense all season long. Gomez has started in center field for the Wolf Pack in all 31 games this season and leads the team in a number of offensive categories. Not only does Gomez rank highly on the team, but he ranks highly in the Mountain West in each as well.

LEAGUE PLAY HEATING UP
As it stands right now, UNLV owns the No. 1 spot in the league standings with an 11-7 record in league play. San Diego State is right behind UNLV in second with a 14-10 conference mark, and the Wolf Pack is sitting at 12-9 and in third place. The Aztecs will host San Jose State this weekend, and help from the Spartans would greatly benefit both the Wolf Pack and the Rebels. Aside from what the Aztecs may do this weekend, a series sweep or a series win (winning two out of the three games) by the Wolf Pack would push the team ahead of UNLV in the conference standings.

It's shaping up to be a photo finish to determine the Mountain West's automatic qualifier to NCAA Regionals this season. After this weekend, Nevada has nine games remaining overall, seven of which are conference contests. For its two remaining non-conference games the Wolf Pack will play a single game on Tuesday as it hosts Arizona State at 12 p.m., and then will head to UCLA for a single game against the Bruins on May 18. Nevada has two Mountain West series' left on its schedule after this weekend as it will head to Fresno State next weekend and conclude the 2021 regular season with a four-game series at home against San Jose State on May 28-30.

IMPRESSIVE SWEEP
Nevada's three-game sweep of then league-leading San Diego State last weekend was dominant. Not only did the Pack win all three games but the team put on a clinic, outscoring the MW's No. 1 offense by a 42-13 margin and winning two of the three games by a mercy rule. Nevada totaled 47 hits to SDSU's 25, and batted an incredible .420 as a team.
 
UP NEXT
Nevada will host Arizona State for a non-conference contest this Tuesday, May 11 at 12 p.m. at Don Weir Field at Peccole Park.