TAMIU Baseball Cracks Regional Rankings

LAREDO (February 18) – Following the best start in program history, TAMIU baseball has added another milestone to the list.

Monday afternoon the Dustdevils were ranked no.10 by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association of America in the South Central Regional Poll. It’s the first time in the history of the program that the baseball team has earned a regional ranking.

TAMIU opened the season with back-to-back series sweeps over UT-Permian Basin and Oklahoma Panhandle State, before taking two in a row from non-conference opponent Arlington Baptist. The Dustdevils then took the opening game of a three-game set in a 13-3 rout over the University of Arkansas Fort Smith to improve to 9-0.

The Lions took game two of the series in frustrating fashion, winning 1-0 despite a phenomenal performance by TAMIU starter Abdel Rivera.

Rivera went six full innings allowing only two hits with a strikeout and two walks, one of which proved to be the game winning run. The Lions only run of the game came on a wild pitch with two away in the bottom of the first. Rivera retired the next 12 straight batters and allowed only a single hit in the sixth before retiring the side.

Fernando Garza was thrown out at the plate in the top of the first and three more times TAMIU would put a runner on third without scoring a run.

TAMIU pitching struggled in the final game of the series as UAFS recorded a season high 18 hits and scored runs in each of the first five innings on their way to a 14-4 run-rule win.

The Dustdevils will play four more games this week starting with a 12 p.m. matchup versus Oklahoma Christian University on Tuesday. TAMIU will then host conference foe Newman University for a three game series at Jorge Haynes field starting on Friday. The Dustdevils and Jets will play a doubleheader starting at noon on Friday, before concluding the series Saturday afternoon with a single game at 12 noon.

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