LUBBOCK – 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 eighth week in a row, beat the Texas Tech Red Raiders 7-4 on Wednesday at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park to complete the two-game sweep.
The Vaqueros (30-15), now on a four-game winning streak, entered the game ranked No. 33 in the NCAA RPI while the Red Raiders (15-26) entered at No. 61.
This is the first time UTRGV has swept Texas Tech since sweeping a three-game home series March 13-14, 2000.
This is the second time UTRGV has ever won multiple road games against Texas Tech in the same season after previously taking three out of four May 10-12, 1980.
After a 30-minute lightning delay, graduate student Vela alum
Isaac Lopez and sophomore
Armani Raygoza drew walks from
Zach Crotchfelt (2-3) to start the game. Two batters later, with runners on the corners and two outs, senior
Steven Lancia hit an RBI-single to put the Vaqueros up 2-0.
Junior
Hank Warren opened the second with an infield-single and then postbaccalaureate student
Erick Martinez, a former Red Raider, hit an RBI-double to knock out Crotchfelt. Two outs later, Raygoza hit an RBI-double. The next three Vaqueros walked, including Lancia to drive-in a run and put the Vaqueros up 5-0.
In the fifth, junior
Thomas Williams hit a one-out single and scored on a Warren RBI-triple. Martinez followed with a sacrifice fly to make the score 7-0.
Warren finished 2-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and two runs scored. Raygoza went 2-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and two runs scored.
In his first-career start, senior
Anthony Tejada pitched a career-high tying 2.2 scoreless innings, striking out one.
Graduate student
Jack Lopez (1-1) earned the win with two strikeouts in a career-high 5.1 innings of relief.
The lone blemish against Lopez came in the ninth when
Antonelli Savattere doubled and
Robin Villeneuve followed with an RBI-triple to knock out Lopez. After a walk,
Kyeler Thompson homered to bring the Red Raiders within 7-4.
Freshman
Harrison Thayer recorded the final three outs for his fourth save.
UTRGV closes out Southland Conference play with a three-game series at Incarnate Word starting Friday at 2 p.m. Fans can watch domestically on
ESPN+ or internationally via
Southland International.
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