San Diego State's schedule this week takes the Aztecs from the desert to the mountains. And also to sea level.

SDSU has the toughest nonconference schedule in the nation. With yesterday's 13-4 loss at Arizona, the Aztecs (25-21 overall) fell to .500 (14-14) in out-of-conference contests.

Arizona (30-13) knocked out SDSU starter Shane Kaufman (1-3) with a six-run second inning that gave the Wildcats an 8-0 lead.

SDSU's Brandon Decker had two hits and two RBI and teammate Nick Romero had three hits and drove in a run, giving him a team-leading 50 RBI for the season.

The Aztecs return to Mountain West Conference play this weekend with a three-game series at Air Force. Third-place SDSU (11-7) trails New Mexico (11-4) and TCU (13-5) in the standings. Air Force (2-12) is in last place, but coming off wins last week against BYU.

– KIRK KENNEY