The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) announced UTRGV baseball senior Alex Verdugo is the WAC Baseball Pitcher of the Week on Tuesday.

Verdugo pitched a career-high 7.1 innings of scoreless relief, more than doubling his previous career high in innings pitched of 3.0, striking out a career-high 10, which more than triples his previous career high of three, while allowing just two singles without a walk in a 13-5 victory over Houston on Saturday.

Verdugo entered the game with a runner at first and two outs in the second after Houston had already scored four runs in the inning to take a 5-0 lead. Verdugo ended the threat and dominated Houston the rest of the game, allowing the offense to rally for the win.

It’s the second consecutive week a UTRGV pitcher was named WAC Pitcher of the Week after Angelo Cabral’s earned the honor last week.

UTRGV is back in action on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at Rice on CUSATV.

The No. 10-seeded UTRGV women’s basketball team fell to the No. 7 New Mexico State Aggies 65-49 in the opening round of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Tournament on Monday at Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas.

Sophomore Iyana Dorsey led the Vaqueros (12-18) with 18 points. Junior Tiffany McGarity scored 14 points with four rebounds. Sophomore KaCee Kyle scored seven points with three rebounds. Sophomore Arianna Sturdivant hit a pair of 3-pointers for six points.

Molly Kaiser led the Aggies (16-15) with 25 points and four rebounds. Teyelin Grays scored 13 points with seven rebounds and three assists. Sylena Peterson scored nine points with five rebounds and five assists. Taylor Donaldson scored nine points with six rebounds and four assists.

McGarity hit a pair of early layups, the first of which resulted in a three-point play, to give the Vaqueros a 5-4 lead. A Dorsey 3-pointer put the Vaqueros up 8-6 and then a pair of Kyle free throws made the score 10-8. The Aggies responded with a 14-4 run to go up 22-14 late in the first quarter.

Kyle made a layup and a 3-pointer early in the second quarter to bring the Vaqueros within 24-21. The Aggies followed with a 12-2 run to go up 36-23.

Dorsey opened the third quarter with two free throws and a long 3-pointer to bring the Vaqueros within 36-30. The Aggies answered with a 10-3 run before a Sturdivant three brought the Vaqueros within 46-36.

The Aggies extended their lead to 14 early in the fourth quarter and kept their lead in double-figures for the rest of the game.

The UTRGV baseball team earned a series victory over the Houston Cougars for the first time in 32 years by winning the rubber game 1-0 on Sunday at UTRGV Baseball Stadium in Edinburg.

The last series victory over Houston was March 2-3, 1991, when UTRGV swept a two-game series 2-0 and 3-2 at Jody Ramsey Stadium.

Senior Colten Davis (2-0) was dominant for the Vaqueros (8-3), racking up a career-high nine strikeouts in a career-high tying 7.0 scoreless innings of four-hit, walk-free ball. All the hits were singles.

The Cougars (4-7) threatened in the second, putting two on with one out, but Davis responded by retiring the next 14 batters he faced. The Cougars then put runners at second and third with one out in the seventh, but Davis responded with back-to-back strikeouts to end the threat and punctuate his outing.

Davis threw 64 of his 80 pitches for strikes (80%).

The Vaqueros scored their run in the third. Senior Zerek Saenz led off with a single and sophomore Vela alum Isaac Lopez followed with a walk. After a fielder’s choice put runners on the corners, graduate student Brandon Pimentel hit into a fielder’s choice to bring home Saenz.

That was it against Cougars starters Malachi Lott (0-2), who pitched 5.0 innings, allowing six hits and two walks while striking out one.

Reigning D1Baseball National Pitcher of the Week and junior Angelo Cabral came on in relief in the eighth striking out four in two hitless innings for his first career save.

UTRGV visits Rice at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday on CUSATV.

Down 5-0 after an inning and a half, the UTRGV baseball team scored 13 unanswered runs to beat the Houston Cougars 13-5 on Saturday at UTRGV Baseball Stadium in front of a crowd of 4,017.

After welcoming 3,144 fans on Friday, this is the first time UTRGV has drawn back-to-back crowds of over 3,000 since moving into UTRGV Baseball Stadium in 2002. This is just the second crowd of over 4,000, along with the program record attendance of 6,418 fans for a game against Texas on April 26, 2022.

Down 5-0 in the bottom of the second, sophomore Steven Lancia and junior PSJA alum Jacob Sanchez led off with singles. An error brought home Lancia and gave the Vaqueros (7-3) runners on the corners. Junior Kade York hit an RBI-single. Then, after a sacrifice bunt, sophomore Vela alum Isaac Lopez hit a two-run single. Lopez moved to second on the throw to the plate and then to third on a wild pitch before scoring on a sacrifice fly by graduate student Montclair Cain to tie the game at 5.

Reliever Grayson Drezek (0-1) got out of the second inning for the Cougars (4-6). Drezek got the first two outs in the third before plunking Sanchez. Drezek got ahead of senior Roberto Gonzalez 0-2 before allowing an RBI-triple. York followed with a walk and then senior Zerek Saenz hit a two-run double to make the score 8-5.

Senior Alex Verdugo (2-0) made the runs stand up, pitching a career-high 7.1 innings of scoreless two-hit relief, racking up a career-high 10 strikeouts.

The Vaqueros added two more runs in the seventh on an RBI-groundout by Sanchez and an RBI-single by Gonzalez, and three in the eighth on RBI-singles by Cain, junior Adrian Torres, and Lancia.

Five Vaqueros had multi-hit games, led by Lopez, who posted his third-career three-hit game by going 3-for-3 with two walks, two RBI and two runs scored. It was Lopez’s eighth multi-hit game of the second in 10 games, matching hit total from 41 games last season. Graduate student Brandon Pimentel finished 3-for-4. Gonzalez went 2-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored. Saenz finished 2-for-4 with two RBI and one run scored. Lancia went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored.

The Cougars initially got on the board in the first on a two-out RBI-single by Cameron Nickens.

The Cougars added four runs in the second on a two-run home run by Drew Bianco and RBI-singles by Justin Murray and Zach Arnold.

UTRGV and Houston close out the series on Sunday at 12 p.m. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at GoUTRGV.com/Houston. It’s UTRGV faculty & staff appreciation weekend. Current UTRGV faculty & staff receive free admission with their employee ID. Current UTRGV students receive free general admission with their student ID. All fans need to follow the clear bag policy, details of which can be found at GoUTRGV.com/ClearBag. The box office opens at 10:30 a.m. and gates open at 11 a.m.

Fans unable to attend in person can watch domestically on ESPN+ or internationally via WAC International.

EDINBURG – The UTRGV baseball team tied the game in the 11th and brought the winning run to the plate in the 13th before falling to the Houston Cougars 7-5 on Friday at UTRGV Baseball Stadium in front of a crowd of 3,144.

This was UTRGV’s longest game since April 13, 2019, an 8-5 win at Grand Canyon.

It was also the first matchup between UTRGV and Houston in the Rio Grande Valley since Feb. 15, 1995, when they split a doubleheader at Jody Ramsey Stadium.

This is the third time UTRGV has drawn over 3,000 fans for a game at UTRGV Baseball Stadium since moving in for the 2002 season. The other two occurrences were a program record 6,418 fans for a game against Texas on April 26, 2022, and 3,604 fans for a game against Texas State on Feb. 1, 2003.

The Vaqueros (6-3) led 2-1 entering the ninth when the Cougars (4-5) tied the game on a double, a sac bunt and an error.

The Cougars took the lead in the 11th on an RBI-single by Malachi Lott. In the bottom of the inning, though, sophomore Vela alum Isaac Lopez launched his third home run of the season to tie the game.

The Cougars plated four runs in the 13th against junior Sebastian Mejia (0-2) on a two-run single by Lott, a suicide squeeze by Ian McMillan and an error.

Mejia finished with a career-high tying five strikeouts in a season-high 2.2 innings of relief.

With one out in the bottom of the inning, the Vaqueros put runners on the corners against Josh Ekness (1-0), setting up a Lopez RBI-single that led to two runs thanks to an error. Graduate student Montclair Cain followed with a four-pitch walk to bring the winning run to the plate, but Owen Woodward got a strikeout and a groundout to end the game.

Graduate student Jesus Aldaz started for the Vaqueros and pitched a career-high 8.0 innings, striking out six while allowing one run on six hits without a walk.

After allowing a run on three hits, including a two-out RBI-single by Anthony Tulimero, in the first, Aldaz settled down, allowing just four more base runners and never more than one at a time. Aldaz retired the final nine batters he faced.

The Vaqueros tied the game in the bottom of the first on a wild pitch that scored senior Zerek Saenz.

The Vaqueros took the lead in the second on a two-out bases loaded walk by Cain.

Lopez finished 3-for-5 with two RBI and one run scored. Freshman Steven Lancia went 2-for-6 with a run scored. Senior Roberto Gonzalez also went 2-for-6. Saenz finished 1-for-3 with a season-high three walks and two runs scored.

UTRGV and Houston play the middle game of this three-game series on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at GoUTRGV.com/Houston. This game is Community Heroes Night, meaning community heroes, including frontline workers, first responders, and teachers, receive free admission. It’s also UTRGV faculty & staff appreciation weekend. Current UTRGV faculty & staff receive free admission with their employee ID. Current UTRGV students receive free general admission with their student ID. All fans need to follow the clear bag policy, details of which can be found at GoUTRGV.com/ClearBag. The box office opens at 1 p.m. and gates open at 5:30 p.m.

The UTRGV women’s basketball team fell short in overtime 81-76 against the California Baptist (CBU) Lancers to close out the regular season on Thursday at the CBU Events Center in Riverside, California.

Junior Tiffany McGarity led UTRGV (12-17, 6-12 WAC) with 25 points on 7-of-17 shooting while making three three-pointers and going 10-of-11 from the charity stripe. Freshman Charlotte O’Keefe recorded her third double-double of the season with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Junior Mele Kailahi scored 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting with seven rebounds.

CBU (17-12, 13-5 WAC) got 20 points and 11 rebounds from Chloe Webb. Trinity San Antonio scored 16 points with seven rebounds and seven assists. Lesila Finau added 12 points with seven rebounds.

Tied at 70-70 heading into overtime, the Lancers came out and scored the first eight points of the extra period to take the 78-70 before UTRGV got on the board with three free throws. Sophomore KaCee Kyle hit a three-pointer to get within 81-76 with 24 seconds left to put the finishing touches on the scoring.

UTRGV got it going from three-point range early in the first half as McGarity knocked down a three to give UTRGV the 5-2 lead. Later in the first, the Lancers tied the game at 11-11 but a three-pointer from junior Jena’ Williams kicked off a 6-0 for UTRGV as McGarity hit three free throws to push the lead to 17-11.

In the second, graduate student Ashton McCorry got the scoring started with a three of her own before Dorsey hit another three to make it 25-13 in favor of the Vaqueros. The Lancers answered with a 10-2 run to get within 27-23 but the Vaqueros got a layup from Williams and back-to-back threes from McGarity and freshman Charlotte O’Keefe to regain momentum with the 35-28 lead.

The Lancers got things rolling in the third quarter as they put together a 7-1 run. McGarity answered with back-to-back buckets that gave UTRGV thee 44-37 lead. CBU got back-to-back three-pointers, but UTRGV answered with three straight threes of their own as Kailahi hit back-to-back and O’Keefe knocked in the third to make it 53-43.

After the Lancers cut UTRGV’s lead to 56-53 to close out the third but the Vaqueros used a 9-4 run at the start of the fourth, which was capped by a three-pointer by junior Halie Jones that made it 65-57 UTRGV with five minutes left to play in regulation.

The Lancers cut the score to 65-64 with a 7-0 run of their own and then after a couple of free throws from McGarity, CBU got buckets from Webb to tie and one from San Antonio to take the lead 7-68. O’Keefe hit a layup at the buzzer to tie the game sending it into overtime.

The Vaqueros will next head to Las Vegas for the Western Athletic Conference Tournament, which begins on Monday at Michelob ULTRA Arena.

The UTRGV women’s basketball team made a season-high 13 3-pointers to defeat the Utah Valley Wolverines 69-59 for their third straight victory Tuesday at the UCCU Center in Orem, Utah.

Junior Tiffany McGarity led UTRGV (12-16, 6-11 WAC) with 13 points on 5-of-11 shooting, making three 3-pointers. Sophomore Iyana Dorsey finished with 12 points on 3-of-6 from 3-point range and 3-of-4 from the charity stripe. Junior Mele Kailahi scored 10 points with a couple of 3s and a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe.

Utah Valley (6-22, 3-14 WAC) was led by Kaylee Byon, who scored 18 points with four assists. Shay Fano and Tessa Chaney each added 13 points.

The Vaqueros came out on fire during the first quarter and took an 11-2 lead after a layup from McGarity. After the Wolverines got a bucket, Dorsey knocked down a 3-pointer and then Kailahi knocked down a pair of free throws before sophomore Arianna Sturdivant hit a 3-pointer to make it 19-4, which was one of four made by UTRGV in the first.

During the second quarter, the Vaqueros got more 3-pointers to extend their lead. Sophomore KaCee Kyle opened the scoring with a 3-pointer and then Sturdivant knocked down another before graduate student Ashton McCorry made it 33-15 with a 3 of her own. McGarity hit a 3 with 4:34 left in the half to push the score to 38-16, and Dorsey made UTRGV’s eighth 3-pointer of the half to make it 44-26.

It was more of the same for UTRGV at the start of the second half as back-to-back 3-pointers from McGarity and Kailahi extended its lead to 51-30. The Wolverines put together an 11-2 run to get within 53-43, but UTRGV answered with a 7-0 run to close out the third after a layup from McCorry, a 3-pointer from junior Halie Jones and a layup from freshman Charlotte O’Keefe.

The Vaqueros will be back in action at 8 p.m. Thursday to close out the regular season against California Baptist.

D1Baseball.com and the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) announced on Monday that UTRGV junior right-hander Angelo Cabral is both the National and WAC Baseball Pitcher of the Week.

The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) announced on Monday that junior Angelo Cabral of The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) is the WAC Baseball Pitcher of the Week.

Cabral struck out a career-high 15 batters in a career-high 6.1 scoreless innings of two-hit, two-walk ball to beat No. 27 Central Michigan 9-2 in the second game of a doubleheader on Friday.

The 15 strikeouts are the most by a UTRGV pitcher since prior to 2010.

UTRGV finished with 19 strikeouts in the game, the team’s highest total since May 5, 2012 at NJIT, when two pitchers combined for 19 strikeouts in 17.2 innings.

Cabral now has 17 strikeouts in 8.2 innings across two appearances, tied for the 23rd highest total of strikeouts in the NCAA. Cabral ranks 10th in the NCAA in strikeouts per nine innings at 17.65.

UTRGV won three out of five games against Central Michigan and is now 6-2 this season. UTRGV hosts Houston for three games this weekend as part of the Al Ogletree Classic, beginning at 6:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and noon Sunday at UTRGV Baseball Stadium in Edinburg.

The UTRGV baseball team fell 9-5 to the Central Michigan (CMU) Chippewas on Saturday at UTRGV Baseball Stadium.

UTRGV (5-2) graduate student designated hitter and Edinburg Vela alum RJ Ochoa went 3-for-4 with a double. Redshirt sophomore second baseman and Edinburg Vela alum Isaac Lopez hit a solo homerun and a double to drive in one run. Sophomore catcher Steven Lancia threw out three baserunners and recorded two hits with one RBI. Junior shortstop Kade York extended his hitting streak to seven games.

Redshirt sophomore LHP Randy Garza got the start for UTRGV and tossed 4.2 innings, allowing three runs on two hits and three walks while striking out four. Junior RHP Sebastian Mejia took the loss.

CMU (4-3) was led offensively by Danny Wuestenfeld, who went 3-for-5 with a game-high three RBI. Michael Conte earned the win, tossing 2.2 innings and allowing one run on four hits with two strikeouts. Nate Ross picked up a save after 1.1 innings of scoreless, hitless work with two strikeouts.

Lancia showed off his strong arm to catch a Chippewa trying to steal second to end the top of the first.

UTRGV tallied four knocks to take a 2-0 in the first inning, keeping the offensive momentum from Friday’s doubleheader sweep rolling. Lopez doubled down the right field line then came around to score on a wild pitch. Graduate student first basean Brandon Pimentel, Ochoa and senior left fielder Roberto Gonzalez hit three consecutive singles. Gonzalez’s shot zoomed past CMU’s diving third baseman and drove in Pimentel.

Lancia’s quick pop-up behind the plate resulted in a strike ‘em out, throw ‘em out double play, then a second-straight swinging K from Garza ended a clean third inning. UTRGV turned another double play in the top of the fourth as Lopez hauled in a liner to second and made a quick throw to first to get an overeager Chippewas baserunner.

Lancia produced on the offensive side in the home half of the fourth, sending an RBI single up the middle for the 3-0 lead.

CMU loaded the bases with two away in the top of the fifth. A wild pitch followed by a throwing error scored two Chippewas, then Jacob Donahue tied the game at 3-3 with an RBI single to left. Lancia’s third caught stealing of the game ended the threat.

Lopez blasted a solo homerun to left for the second day in a row to regain the lead, 4-3, for the Vaqueros in the bottom of the fifth.

Central Michigan loaded the bases with one out following a single by Wuestenfeld in the top of the sixth. Mejia worked out of the jam and ended the threat with back-to-back looking strikeouts, earning a loud cheer from the crowd.

The Chippewas put a four-spot on the board, scoring all runs with two outs, in the top of the seventh. Justin Simpson delivered a two-RBI single to left to give CMU its first lead of the game. A throwing error at third scored another run, then Wuestenfeld sent an RBI single to center to make it 7-4 in favor of CMU before a groundout to shortstop ended the frame.

Redshirt sophomore RHP Bobby Loya took the mound in the eighth and promptly struck out the side. Ochoa sparked the Vaqueros offensively in the home half of the frame with a loud double to deep center field. Redshirt sophomore Erick Martinez roped a two-out, RBI double up the middle to cut the deficit to 7-5.

CMU came back in the ninth and extended the lead to 9-5 after a two-out, two-RBI single to center by Wuestenfeld.

The series between the Vaqueros and Chippewas wraps up Sunday at 11 a.m. at UTRGV Baseball Stadium.

In the top of the seventh, the seats at UTRGV Baseball Stadium emptied as the 1,417 fans of The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley’s (UTRGV) baseball team in attendance of Friday’s game against Central Michigan got on their feet to give junior RHP Angelo Cabral a standing ovation.

Cabral dazzled in his first start of the season and turned in a career performance to lead the Vaqueros (5-1) to a 9-2 victory over the CMU Chippewas (3-3). He struck out a whopping 15 batters – the most of any UTRGV or legacy institution pitcher since 2013.

In 6.1 innings of work, he gave up no runs and allowed just two hits and two walks to earn the win. Cabral’s dominant outing capped a good Friday at the ballpark as UTRGV won both games of a doubleheader with CMU.

Graduate student Edinburg Vela alum RJ Ochoa went 2-for-4 with a two-run homerun and a two-run triple for a game-high four RBI. Junior shortstop Kade York was 2-for-3 with three runs scored and two stolen bases. Graduate student right fielder Montclair Cain tallied two RBI and a double.

CMU’s Keegan Batka took the loss, allowing eight runs on seven hits and two walks in 3.2 innings pitched. Nick Dardas was 2-for-4 with a double.

Cabral recorded two strikeouts and picked off a runner at first base in the first inning. He struck out the side in the second, freezing two batters and getting the third swinging. Cabral increased his strikeout streak to six in a row in the third, putting two backward cardboard Ks on the right-centerfield wall.

Ochoa gave UTRGV the early 2-0 advantage with a laser two-run homerun into the visitor’s bullpen in left field in the bottom of the second. The Vaqueros kept the bats hot to extend the lead to 7-0 in the third. York hit a leadoff single to center. Redshirt sophomore second baseman and Edinburg Vela alum Isaac Lopez drove York in with an RBI single to left. Cain notched an RBI groundout. Junior PSJA High alum Jacob Sanchez reached on an RBI fielder’s choice. Then, Ochoa sent a loud two-RBI standup triple to deep center field.

Cabral continued to dominate on the hill, aided by the solid offensive performance from his teammates. He recorded back-to-back strikeouts to start the fourth, then ended the frame with his 10th strikeout of the night. In the home half of the fourth, Cain put the Vaqueros up 8-0 with an RBI double to right-center. York scored on a wild pitch in the sixth for the 9-0 lead.

Cabral struck out two batters in both the fifth and sixth innings, then recorded strikeout No. 15 to start the seventh. He mowed down Chippewas throughout the night and was greeted by appreciative teammates in the dugout when his night was done.

CMU cut its deficit to 9-2 in the eighth on RBI singles from Justin Simpson and Garrett Navarra.

Junior RHP Sebastian Mejia worked a three up, three down top of the ninth to cap the win.

The series between UTRGV and CMU continues at 11 a.m. Saturday at UTRGV Baseball Stadium in Edinburg.