By KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer
SAN BENITO — Our Lady of the Lake University is making its presence known when it comes to the baseball world in the Rio Grande Valley.
On Tuesday, San Benito’s Tristian Montemayor became the latest to join OLLU, making it official during a signing ceremony.
“ OLLU isn’t too far from home and at the same time it still allows me to be independent, while I will still have my family support,” Montemayor said. “The recruiting process was smooth and the campus was nice, and the people there were great.”
Montemayor was a three-year starter as a catcher and became the second Greyhounds player to sign at the college level. Pitcher Daniel Dial signed his letter of intent to play baseball at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley earlier this season.
As a senior Montemayor, batted .318, recorded nine outs and yielded just three past balls all season.
“ He was on the varsity for three years and he has very good feet, especially for a guy who plays catcher,” San Benito skipper Jimmy Young said. “He sees the whole field and he is the captain, he makes the call on where the defense lines up, and he was always active behind the plate.”
Montemayor was the second OLLU signing Tuesday, as Harlingen High’s John Ortega also signed. The two will join the Saints next fall along with Rio Hondo’s Cross Gonzalez.
On the current roster, there are six Rio Grande Valley athletes. Harlingen High’s Boedy Flores and Daniel Anciso, and Lyford’s Layne Klostermann are a few Lower Valley athletes on the roster.
Another Valley tie is current OLLU skipper Bryan Aughney. Aughney spent five seasons as coach at Harlingen High and has a strong grasp on the talent pool in the RGV.
“ Coach Aughney and I talked for sure,” Young said. “He knows what the Valley offers. What helps Tristian is his academics, and the school he is going to is a private institution and they predicate a lot on the academics. I have always been a San Antonio product but I feel the Valley has a lot of talent that hasn’t been tapped into yet, and it is just a matter of these young guys staying at where they get recruited.”