Defense a concern for UNLV coach as Rebels prepare for tournament

Tuesday, May 16, 2000 | 9:58 a.m.

TOURNAMENT TIME

Here's a look at the inaugural Mountain West Conference Baseball Tournament that runs Wednesday-Saturday at UNLV's Wilson Field:

On the surface, UNLV's first-round game in the Mountain West Conference Baseball Tournament might not seem like the ideal matchup.

The fifth-seeded Rebels will meet second-seed San Diego State Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Wilson Stadium; UNLV just concluded the regular season last weekend by taking two out of three from the Aztecs in San Diego.

But UNLV head coach Rod Soesbe said it really doesn't matter whom the Rebels face in the opening game of the double-elimination tournament.

"I think it's really going to be a tossup as you get into this tournament," Soesbe said. "Our deal is we've got to stay in it into the second day and then I think we match up pretty good with anybody.

"I don't think there are any gimmes, but the consistent team has been New Mexico all year long."

Perhaps, but UNLV has been one of the conference's hottest teams, winning 17 of its final 23 regular-season games to push its season record to 24-31.

Although the Rebels' offense and pitching have carried them during that stretch, Soesbe continues to have concerns about his defense, which has committed 106 errors in 55 games.

"Our pitching has been good and we're starting to swing the bats better ... if we can just make the plays behind our pitching, we'll be in a lot better shape," Soesbe said.

"We didn't play real well defensively (at San Diego State) so if we can keep them from making the mistakes and keep swinging the bat and keep getting the pitching like we have, we match up pretty good against every team (in the tournament)."

Soesbe said he would start sophomore left-hander Ryan Olson in the opener against San Diego State. Olson has been the Rebels' most effective starter, posting a 6-2 record with a 5.01 ERA in 12 starts.

The Aztecs, who earned the No. 2 seed in the tournament with a 30-29 overall record and 17-12 conference mark, will counter with either senior right-hander Jeremy Cook (6-5, 5.74) or freshman right-hander Chris Hartshorn (6-4, 3.61).

UNLV has won five of the six meetings between the teams this season, including a three-game sweep of the Aztecs at Wilson Stadium in early April.

"We beat them five out of six times and swept them at our place," Soesbe said of the Aztecs. "It makes it tough having just played them three times last weekend, but we match up pretty well with them.

"If we just keep playing like we have the past 20 or 25 games, I think we've got as good a chance as anybody else at (winning) this thing -- I really do."

Other opening-round games Wednesday will have No. 1 seed New Mexico meeting No. 6 Air Force at 11 a.m. and No. 3 BYU playing No. 4 Utah at 3 p.m.

The winner of the UNLV-San Diego State game will play either BYU or Utah Thursday at 7 p.m.; the loser will go into the consolation bracket and play at 11 a.m. Thursday.

Brian Hilderbrand is a Las Vegas Sun sports writer. Reach him at 259-4089 or by e-mail at bh@lasvegassun.com.