Vaqueros take two in doubleheader against Cardinals

UTRGV REPORT

GAME 2

SAN ANTONIO – 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, completed the doubleheader sweep of the Incarnate Word Cardinals by winning game two 13-10 on Saturday at Sullivan Field.

 The Vaqueros (32-15, 21-8 SLC), who are now on a 6-game winning streak, have won a program record 21 conference games, breaking the previous record of 20 set in 2021, when the Vaqueros went 20-15 in the Western Athletic Conference.

With the game tied at 10 in the ninth, junior Damien Whitfieldwas plunked with one out to end the night for Gus McKay (2-5). Jonah Posey came in and issued a four-pitch walk to graduate student Vela alum Isaac Lopez. Bruno Robles came in out of the bullpen and got the second out. He then walked graduate student PSJA alum Jacob Sanchez and sophomore Easton Moomau to force-in a run. Senior Steven Lancia capped the inning with a 2-run single to put the Vaqueros up 13-10.

That made a winner of junior Steven Oliva (1-2), who pitched 2.0 scoreless innings of relief.

Lancia led the Vaqueros offensively by going 3-for-5 with five with a triple, a season-high five RBI and two runs scored. Junior Thomas Williams went 2-for-3 with a home run, a double, three walks, three RBI and two runs scored. Moomau went 2-for-5 with a walk, a career-high tying three RBI and two runs scored. Junior Hank Warren finished 2-for-6 with a double and an RBI.

Williams hit his home run, his sixth of the season, to bring the Vaqueros within 3-1 in the second.

In the third, the Vaqueros put runners on the corners with one out, Moomau hit a chopper back to the mound. Hunter Hargettthrew home but couldn’t get the runner. Lancia followed with a 2-run triple and later scored on a passed ball to put the Vaqueros up 5-3.

With two outs in the fourth, the Vaqueros put two on to set up another Moomau RBI-single to make the score 6-3.

The Vaqueros saw their lead cut to 6-5 entering the sixth, but with runners on the corners and one out, Lancia hit an infield RBI-single, Williams hit a 2-run double, and Warren hit an RBI-single to make the score 10-5.

The Cardinals (17-29, 3-23 SLC) scored against freshman Harrison Thayer in the first, as after a one-out infield-single by Rob Liddington, Rey Mendoza hit an RBI-double and Ryan Scott homered to make the score 3-0.

Thayer retired the next nine batters he faced before TylerCowan homered with one out in the fourth to bring the Cardinals within 6-4.

Mendoza added a sacrifice fly in the fifth to make the score 6-5.

In the seventh, Liddington hit a 2-run triple to bring the Cardinals within 10-7.

In his first-career start, Thayer pitched 6.1 innings, striking out five.

In the eighth, Jake Weaver hit a 2-run double and Gray Banehit an RBI-single to tie the game at 10.

UTRGV and Incarnate Word close out this 3-game series Sunday at 1 p.m. on ESPN+.

GAME 1

SAN ANTONIO – Junior Hank Warren hit a go-ahead home run in the seventh to propel 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, past the Incarnate Word Cardinals 14-10 in game one of a doubleheader on Saturday at Sullivan Field.

The Vaqueros (31-15, 20-8 SLC) led 6-2 after three and a half innings, but the Cardinals (17-28, 3-22 SLC) scored four runs over the next three innings to tie the game.

Warren came up in the seventh with a runner on and nobody out and launched his first home run of the season against EJ Garcia (4-5) to give the Vaqueros an 8-6 lead.

The Vaqueros scored six more runs in the eighth, as with the bases loaded and one out, junior Thomas Williams hit a 2-run single and Warren hit an RBI-single. After a single by postbaccalaureate student Erick Martinez, a wild pitch scored Williams. Junior Damien Whitfield followed with a sacrifice fly and then graduate student vela alum Isaac Lopez hit an infield RBI-single to put the Vaqueros up 14-6.

Warren finished a career-best 4-for-6 with a career-high four RBI, two runs scored and a career-high two stolen bases. Sophomore Easton Moomau went 2-for-4 with a walk, two RBI and a run scored. Senior Steven Lancia finished 2-for-5 with a walk, a career-high tying two doubles an RBI, and a run scored. Martinez finished a season-best 2-for-5 with a walk and a run scored.

Junior Sharyland alum Kike Cienfuegos (2-0) earned the win with 3.1 innings of relief.

The Cardinals scored Cienfuegos came in the eighth on a 2-run home run by Daniel Calabrese and again in the ninth on a 2-run home run by Jake Weaver.

The Vaqueros didn’t allow Cardinals starter Carter Poole to record an out. Lopez started the game by getting hit by a pitch and then sophomore Armani Raygoza drew a four-pitch walk. Graduate student PSJA alum Jacob Sanchez followed with an RBI-single. A wild pitch scored Raygoza during a four-pitch walk to Moomau, ending the day for Poole. The Vaqueros didn’t let up, though, as Lancia hit an RBI-double, and one out later, Warren hit an RBI-single to put the Vaqueros up 4-0.

The Cardinals responded in the third when Rob Liddington and Ryan Scott hit RBI-singles to make the score 4-2.

In the fourth, the Vaqueros put two on with two out. Moomau singled to left to bring in a run. A misplay in left allowed the second run to score to put the Vaqueros up 6-2.

With two outs in the bottom of the inning, though, Gray Banehomered, Calabrese got plunked, and Thomas Lyssy hit an RBI-double to bring the Cardinals within 6-4.

The Cardinals added another run in the fifth on a Weaver groundout to make the score 6-5. 

The Cardinals tied the game at 6 in the sixth when, with two outs, Lyssy hit a liner to center that dropped in for a hit. Whitfield was unable to field the ball cleanly, allowing Lyssy to advance to third. Liddington followed with an RBI-single.

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