RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros baseball team, which is receiving votes in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association polls for the seventh week in a row, used a six-run fifth to come from behind and beat the McNeese Cowboys 9-5 on Saturday at UTRGV Baseball Stadium in front of a Bark in the Park crowd of 4,589 humans and a program record 367 dogs to break the single-season program attendance record for the third year in a row.
UTRGV has now drawn 65,842 human fans across 21 dates this season, surpassing the previous program record of 62,132 set across 28 dates last season.
Saturday's crowd was the program's seventh-largest crowd since moving into UTRGV Baseball Stadium in 2002 and fourth largest of the season.
Two Vaqueros (27-15, 18-8 SLC) had two RBI, as junior
Thomas Williams went 1-for-3 with a home run, two walks, two RBI and two runs scored, and postbaccalaureate student
Erick Martinez went 1-for-3 with two RBI and a run scored. Graduate student Vela alum
Isaac Lopez finished a season-high tying 3-for-4. Senior
Steven Lancia went 2-for-4 with a double, a walk, and two runs scored.
The Vaqueros trailed 5-3 entering the bottom of the fifth but started the inning with three-straight singles against
Parker Primeaux (2-1) to load the bases. Williams walked to force-in a run and Martinez hit a 2-run single. Williams then scored on a wild pitch. One out later, junior
Damien Whitfield hit an infield RBI-single. After a Lopez single, a double steal put runners at second and third. Graduate student PSJA alum
Jacob Sanchez hit a grounder to third that
Davis Mesh couldn't handle, allowing Whitfield to score to put the Vaqueros up 9-5.
That made a winner of junior
Nick Nolan (1-1), who pitched 2.2 innings, allowing one run on two hits and a walk while striking out one.
Junior
Caden Wanless followed with 2.1 hitless innings, striking out four, to close out the game.
The Cowboys (30-9, 17-6 SLC) took a 1-0 lead in the first on an RBI-groundout by
Marcus Heusohn.
The Vaqueros tied the game in the second on Williams' fifth home run of the season before taking a 2-1 lead in the third on sophomore
Armani Raygoza's 12
th home run of the season. Raygoza now has 18 career home runs, tied for the ninth most in program history.
The Cowboys responded with two in the fourth, with both runs scoring on an error. The Vaqueros then tied the game in the bottom of the inning on an RBI-single by junior
Hank Warren.
In the fifth, the Cowboys scored twice more on a fielder's choice by
Larry Edwards Jr. and a bunt single by
Bryce Fontenot to take a 5-3 lead.
UTRGV and McNeese complete the series on Sunday at 12 p.m. in a game presented by Main Event. Fans will receive all you can play wristbands, courtesy of Main Event, good from Sunday through Thursday. It's Public Employee Appreciation Day. All city, county, state, and federal employees receive free general admission tickets by showing their employee ID. Additionally, all Sunday home games feature the Family Fun Day: 4 for $44 promotion which includes four general admission tickets, four drinks, and four hot dogs for $44.
Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased at
UTRGVTickets.com. 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. Fans can find a full list of game day information at
RallyTheValley.com. Gates open at 11 a.m.
Fans can watch domestically on
ESPN+ or internationally via
Southland International.
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