The UTRGV baseball team lost to the Texas Tech Red Raiders, a team receiving votes in the latest USA Today coaches and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association polls, 11-6 on Tuesday at Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park in Lubbock.
Junior Sharyland High alumnus Martin Vazquez hit his 15th home run of the season, taking over sole possession of fourth place in single-season program history. Vazquez trails only Jesse Gutierrez (21, 2000), Hall of Famer Mitchell Moran (20, 1983), and Brandon Pimentel (19, 2023). Vazquez finished a career-high tying 3-for-5, a triple short of the cycle, with a career-high tying four RBI.
Graduate student CJ Valdez finished 3-for-5 with a home run. Freshman Easton Moomau went a career-high tying 2-for-3 with a double, a career-high tying two walks, and a career-high three runs scored.
The first three Vaqueros (21-19) batters recorded hits in the first, as senior Kade York doubled, Moomau singled, and Vazquez hit an RBI-single. Junior Steven Lancia followed by grounding into a double play to bring home Moomau, making the score 2-0.
The Red Raiders (30-17) got one back in the bottom of the first on a Gavin Kash home run before tying the game in the second on a Davis Rivers home run.
The Vaqueros regained the lead in the third when Moomau and Vazquez hit back-to-back doubles to make the score 3-2.
Kash homered again in the bottom of the third to tie the game before Valdez hit a go-ahead home run in the top of the fourth, making the score 4-3.
Cade McGee hit a 2-run home run to put the Red Raiders up 5-4 in the bottom of the fourth.
In the top of the fifth, Moomau drew a leadoff walk and then Vazquez hit a go-ahead home run to put the Vaqueros up 6-5.
The Red Raiders tied the game in the bottom of the inning on a Kevin Bazzell sacrifice fly.
In the sixth, Gage Harrelson hit a 1-out RBI-double against junior Tyler Davis (0-1). Then, after a walk, Kash reached on an error to bring in a run and Damian Bravo lifted a sacrifice fly to make the score 9-6 Red Raiders.
The Red Raiders loaded the bases with nobody out in the seventh. A wild pitch brought home Rivers to make the score 10-6.
The Red Raiders loaded the bases with two outs in the eighth, setting up an RBI-walk by McGee to make the score 11-6.
That made a winner of Josh Sanders (4-1), who pitched 2.1 scoreless innings of relief.
Next for UTRGV is a Western Athletic Conference series on the road against Abilene Christian beginning at 6 p.m. Friday in Abilene. Fans can watch domestically on ESPN+ or internationally via WAC International.