EDINBURG — The UTRGV baseball team is back home after a four-game nonconference road trip against the Washington Huskies.
Although the Vaqueros (3-4) dropped three of four games in the series, they ended their road swing on a positive note, building a little momentum in the process. Three different Vaqueros combined to pitch a two-hit shutout against the Huskies in a 2-0 victory in the series finale. JC Ariza started for UTRGV and struck out eight batters in six innings, allowing just one hit and one walk. Colten Davis earned the win after two innings of perfect relief and three strikeouts. Deryk Serbantez picked up his first save of the season.
Head coach Derek Matlock said the early games have provided valuable reps as UTRGV continues gearing up for Western Athletic Conference competition.
“It was a great learning experience for us to find out we have to do a better job holding the running game and we got to make better pitches. If you don’t throw good pitches against these teams, they punish you,” Matlock said during a news conference. “We had guys in all morning coaching, trying to get some things changed. Overall, I’m excited. I think it’s in there, I think we have the pieces, we just have to get guys to get a little bit better.”
Next for the Vaqueros is their final nonconference tune-up before beginning WAC play against Grand Canyon on March 12.
UTRGV will welcome Northern Illinois (1-2) for a four-game series today through Sunday.
“Northern Illinois is a great ball club. They’ve got some veterans guys, great starting pitching and a really scrappy right-handed hitting lineup that if you don’t make good pitches, they’re going to get you,” Matlock said. “They do a great job. They’re very well coached. They’re going to be fired up just to be in the good weather. They’re going to be amped up to come get some wins, so we’re going to have to play really well on all parts.”
First pitch of the four-game series is slated for noon today at UTRGV Baseball Stadium in Edinburg. Game 2 is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday, with a doubleheader beginning at noon Sunday.
UTRGV Athletics is capping capacity at UTRGV Baseball Stadium at about 1,000 fans. Single-game tickets can be purchased online at UTRGVTickets.com. Visit GoUTRGV.com/game-day for more information. Fans can also watch for free online at WACDigitalNetwork.com.
