Aarykah Navarro/ THE RIDER
The Vaqueros took a 7-4 victory in their season opener against the Jayhawks today at the UTRGV Baseball Stadium on the Edinburg campus.
UTRGV Baseball head coach Derek Matlock said he was a “little disappointed” the team did not put the ball in play as much, but “overall the offense was outstanding” against the University of Kansas Jayhawks.
Matlock added the crowd “deserves this win” as he believes they helped the team win.
Since the beginning of the game, fans erupted with cheers countless times for the Vaqueros during their offensive and defensive plays, while also putting just as much pressure on the Jayhawks.
Kansas started the game with a home run at the top of the first inning, followed by an RBI single during the second, both scored by Jordan Bach, graduate outfielder, putting the Jayhawks in a 0-2 lead.
Vaqueros’ offense responded promptly by taking lead 4-2 in the bottom of the second with four runs, after Jayhawks junior pitcher Dominic Voegele (3.0 IP, 5 ER) granted multiple walks to them.
The bottom of the third saw Vaquero redshirt senior infielder Thomas Williams score a home run, extending the Vaqueros’ lead 5-2.
The Jayhawks’ offense attempted to respond with two RBI doubles at the top of the fourth, bringing the score up 5-4.
The bottom half saw no scores from the Vaqueros, as well as the top of the fifth for the Jayhawks.
The Vaqueros then extended the lead to 7-4 at the bottom of the fifth after a flawless home run by Armani Raygoza, redshirt junior infielder, followed with an RBI double by Williams.
After five scoreless innings pitched by sophomore Harrison Thayer (5.0 IP), the Vaqueros ended their first game of the series 7-4.
The three-game series against Kansas continues at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at the UTRGV Baseball Stadium, following a basketball doubleheader at the Fieldhouse as part of UTRGV’s triple header event for #RallyTheValley Week.
Aarykah Navarro/ THE RIDER
