RIO GRANDE VALLEY — The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros baseball team beat the alumni team 13-3 on Saturday in front of a crowd of 1,386 at UTRGV Baseball Stadium.

Senior Víctor Loa started and struck out seven across 3.2 perfect innings. Junior Edinburg alum Darren Barrera got the win by striking out three in 2.0 scoreless innings. Sophomore Harrison Thayer struck out four in 2.0 perfect innings to close out the game.

Angelo Cabral (2022-25) started for the alumni and struck out three in the first. Nico Rodriguez (2023-24) and Jon Barrera (2022) added 1-2-3 innings.

Senior Damien Whitfield led the Vaqueros offensively by going 3-for-3 with a triple and three RBI. Junior Armani Raygoza went 2-for-4 with two doubles, a walk, an RBI, and a run scored. Junior Easton Moomau went 2-for-5 with an RBI and scored a run. Senior Ethan Edinger went 2-for-2 with a double two runs scored.

With the Vaqueros up 2-0 in the second, Whitfield notched his first RBI with a single to make the score 3-0.

Whitfield then extended the Vaqueros' lead to 4-0 with an RBI-triple in the fourth.

The alumni put their first base runner on in the fifth. Damien Rodriguez (2023-24) stole second and third before Manny Loredo (2015-16) hit a screaming liner to third that was snared by a leaping Moomau to save a run.

In the bottom of the inning, the Vaqueros plated four runs, as with runners at second and third and nobody out, Moomau hit a RBI-single to left. Junior Julius Ramirez followed with a sacrifice fly to center. Junior Chayton Fischer then hit an RBI-triple before Whitfield recorded his third hit and RBI with an infield-single to make the score 8-0.

The alumni broke through with three runs in the seventh. Brandon Pimentel (2022-23) singled and Freddy Rojas Jr. (2020-22) hit an RBI-double. Steven Lancia (2022-25) walked, and after a double-steal, Issac Lopez (2021-25) hit a flair over the drawn-in infield to bring home a run. Martin Vazquez (2024) was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Rodriguez then singled to right to make the score 8-3.

Sophomore Sharyland Pioneer Andy Chapa singled and Edinger doubled to start the bottom of the inning. Chapa scored on a wild pitch and Edinger came home on a fielder's choice to stretch the lead to 10-3.

The Vaqueros added three runs in ninth inning to end the game.