Texas Tech University Athletics
Texas Tech Athletics
1-3
UTRGV
1-3
Tech outslugs UTRGV 21-12 for first win
February 18, 2026 | Baseball
The Red Raiders scored at least a run in seven of the nine innings and got a pair of home runs and six RBIs from Freshman Linkin Garica
EDINBURG, Texas – True Freshman SS Linkin Garcia homered twice and drove in six, while third baseman Connor Shouse went 5-for-6 with four runs scored and three RBIs to power Texas Tech past UTRGV, 21-12 Tuesday night at the UTRGV Baseball Stadium.
The home runs for Garcia were his first two of his career and helped his Texas Tech (1-3) squad erase an 8-2 third inning deficit.
Entering the game 0-for-12, Shouse reached base six times and scored four runs and drove in three, raising his season average to .278. Shouse became the first Red Raider since Damian Bravo (Mar. 29, 2024 at UCF) to record five hits in a game.
In the win, Tech overcame eight first inning runs from UTRGV (1-3), outscoring the Vaqueros 19-4 over the final six innings of the contest.
In the win, every Red Raiders starting position player recorded at least one hit and every player, but one scored multiple runs.
Other strong performances at the plate included Tracer Lopez driving in three, scoring three times and reaching base five times, as well as catcher Matt Quintanar going 3-for-5 with a walk and two runs scored and two runs driven in.
Getting the ball for his first career start, sophomore Jorden Espinoza struggled with command, as the lefty allowed six earned runs on just two hits. He walked three and hit two batters.
Down 8-2 after 1.5 innings, the Red Raiders turned to Hawai'i transfer Kaysen Raineri, who in his first career appearance as a Red Raider settled the game down.
Raineri went 3.2 innings and allowed just three hits and two runs, both of which came in the bottom of the fifth on a pair of solo home runs. Raineri struck out a Tech season-high six batters and earned his first career collegiate win.
After the righty stranded first and second with one out in the bottom of the second, the Tech bats came alive in the third inning using a lead-off walk from Kyeler Thompson, a stolen base and an RBI double from Lopez to pull to within 8-3.
With Lopez on second, the next Red Raider batter, Shouse, deposited a single through the left side to place runners on the corners with nobody out.
After a passed ball cut the UTRGV lead to 8-4 and placed Shouse on second, Logan Hughes looped a hustle double into center for his first extra-base hit of the season.
With two runners in scoring position and nobody out, Garcia unloaded on the first pitch he saw from Vaquero's starter Kike Cienfuegos, ripping his first career home run and the first Red Raider long ball of the season.
The ball exploded off Garcia's bat at 111 MPH and traveled 447 feet. The three-run blast cut the Red Raider deficit to just 8-7.
Following a flyout for the first out of the inning, the Red Raiders saw Quintanar get on base via a hit-by-pitch.
With the tying run on, the next Red Raider batter, Villeneuve, ripped a game-tying RBI double into the right-center field gap.
Tech later took the lead at 9-8 when Jace Souza single Villeneuve to third, allowing the first baseman to score on an RBI ground out from Thompson.
Armed with the lead for the first time, Raineri stranded a two-out error ending the shutdown third with a strikeout looking.
Back to the dish for the fourth, the Red Raiders scored two more runs on a sac-fly from Caden Ferraro before his former Blinn College teammate (Quintanar) doubled home the innings final run.
The game remained 11-8 Tech until the bottom of the fifth when a pair of solo home runs from Armani Raygoza and Ethan Edinger pulled the Vaqueros to within one run at 11-10.
With the go-ahead run at second with two outs and another runner on first, Tech turned to reliever Jonny Lowe who struck out the next UTRGV batter on three pitches.
Lowe tossed two scoreless innings on Tuesday night and didn't allow a run. He scattered three hits, did not walk a batter and struck out three. Â
Needing a response, Tech got a lead-off single from Hughes, before Garcia hit his second home run of the night, a towering blast to left that clanged off the light pole. The ball came off the bat at 105 MPH and traveled 398-feet.
The blast gave Tech a 13-10 lead.
With the bases clear and nobody out, the Red Raiders loaded the bases with nobody out on a pair of walks and a single, before UTRGVs Caden Wanless struck out Souza and Thompson back-to-back. The second strikeout was especially frustrating as it came after Thompson was ahead in the count 3-0 and took back-to-back close pitches that were called strikes before being rung up on a pitch clock violation. The automatic strike was strike three.
Looking to not strand the bases loaded, the Red Raiders got a two-RBI single from Lopez and another RBI single from Shouse to pull ahead 16-10.
Returning for the sixth, Lowe worked around a lead-off UTRGV double, to fire a zero and send the game to the seventh where Tech added its 17th-run of the game on double from Ferraro and an RBI base knock from Quintanar.
In the eighth, Tech added two more runs to go up 19-10 on an RBI single from Shouse and a wild pitch.
Down by nine, UTRGV turned to pitch hitter Andrew Taylor who launched an 0-1 offering from freshman Jesse Rusinek for a two-run home run that cut the Tech advantage to 19-12.
In the ninth, Tech added two more runs on an RBI grounder that was scored an error off the bat of Hughes and a 3-1 putout off the bat of Ferraro. Entering the contest with just one hit and one RBI, Hughes scored four times, walked twice and had two hits.
Up by nine once again, the Red Raiders closed the game down, when redshirt freshman Logan Addison coaxed a slicing fly ball that Hughes was able to make a sliding catch in left for the game's 27th out.
Entering the game with no home runs, just 17 hits and one extra-base hit, the Red Raiders banged out 20 total hits, seven doubles and the two Garcia home runs.
The Red Raiders also walked 11 times in the four hour and 32 minute contest that featured 495 total pitches, 33 runs and 31 hits by the two teams combined.
After needing 67 pitches and allowing eight runs five free passes (three via the walk) in the game's opening frame, the Red Raiders relievers (Raineri, Lowe, Rusinek and Addison) allowed just nine hits and six runs in the final eight innings.
UP NEXT:
The Red Raiders after a long 600+ mile journey home on Wednesday will open a 15-game homestand on Friday afternoon when the Great Danes of Albany come to town. First pitch for Friday's home opener is set for 2 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Raineri, Kaysen (1-0)
L: Vercoe, Colton (0-1)
Batting:
2B: Hughes, Logan 1 ; Ferraro, Caden 1 ; Quintanar, Matt 1 ; Villeneuve, Robin 1 ; Lopez, Tracer 2 ; Shouse, Connor 1
HR: Garcia, Linkin 2
RBI: Hughes, Logan 1 ; Ferraro, Caden 2 ; Thompson, Kyeler 1 ; Quintanar, Matt 2 ; Villeneuve, Robin 1 ; Lopez, Tracer 3 ; Garcia, Linkin 6 ; Shouse, Connor 3
SF: Ferraro, Caden 1 ; Garcia, Linkin 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Hughes, Logan 4 ; Ferraro, Caden 2 ; Thompson, Kyeler 2 ; Quintanar, Matt 2 ; Villeneuve, Robin 2 ; Lopez, Tracer 3 ; Garcia, Linkin 2 ; Shouse, Connor 4
SB: Thompson, Kyeler 3 ; Souza, Jace 1
HBP: Ferraro, Caden 1 ; Quintanar, Matt 1
Batting:
2B: Fischer, Chayton 1
HR: Raygoza, Armani 1 ; Taylor, Andrew 1 ; Edinger, Ethan 1
RBI: Raygoza, Armani 2 ; Taylor, Andrew 2 ; Fischer, Chayton 1 ; Moomau, Easton 1 ; Ramirez, Julius 2 ; Villescas, Diego 1 ; Edinger, Ethan 2 ; Garza Gongora, Rocco 1
SF: Villescas, Diego 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Raygoza, Armani 2 ; Taylor, Andrew 1 ; Fischer, Chayton 1 ; Moomau, Easton 1 ; Carter, Cameron 1 ; Ramirez, Julius 1 ; Edinger, Ethan 3 ; Garza Gongora, Rocco 2
HBP: Fischer, Chayton 1 ; Garza Gongora, Rocco 1
