Texas Border Business
HOUSTON – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros baseball team turned a 5-2-5-6-4 triple play during the 11th inning of a 6-5, 12-inning victory over the University of Houston Cougars on Tuesday at Schroeder Park.
The Cougars (2-5) loaded the bases with nobody out against Darian Luper (1-1) in the 11th. Johnathon Thomas came up and hit a ground ball to third. Freshman Preston King threw home to get the force at the plate. Senior Conrado Diaz returned the ball to King, who flipped it to senior Christian Sepulveda to get the force at third. Sepulveda then fired to graduate student Andy Atwood for the force at second to record the final out.
This is the second-straight year in which the Vaqueros (3-5) have turned a triple play after doing so at Kansas State on March 17, 2019.
UTRGV is the third team in the nation to turn a triple play this season, joining Sam Houston State and Albany.
The Vaqueros loaded the bases with one out in the 12th against Isaiah Blaylock (0-1) and took advantage as Sepulveda hit a sacrifice fly to deep left to score the winning run.
The fireworks started with two outs in the eighth, as with the game tied at one, junior Freddy Rojas Jr. hit his first home run, a grand slam, giving the Vaqueros a 5-1 lead.
Rojas doubled as well, finishing 2-for-5.
The Cougars scored three runs in the bottom of eighth on a two-run single by Rey Mendoza and an RBI-single by Tyler Bielamowicz, who finished 2-for-3 with two walks.
Steven Rivas tied the game with a home run in the ninth.
The Cougars took a 1-0 lead in the second on a squeeze by Ian McMillan.
The Vaqueros tied the game in the sixth on an infield RBI-single by Taylor.
UTRGV wraps up this five-game road trip at Baylor on Wednesday at 3 p.m. The contest marks UTRGV’s eighth against Big 12 competition in nine games.
