Anna 
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros baseball team, ranked in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association polls for the fourth consecutive week, lost to the Northwestern State Demons 8-5 in the second game of a doubleheader on Sunday at Brown-Stroud Field.
The Vaqueros (21-10, 13-5 SLC) were led by senior Steven Lancia, who went 2-for-5 with a double, an RBI, and a run scored. Freshman Cameron Carter also contributed offensively, finishing 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored.
Northwestern State (20-12, 12-6 SLC) struck first in the second inning, as Braden Benton led off with a home run to put the Demons up 1-0.
In the third inning, the Vaqueros responded, sending 10 batters to the plate and taking a 4-1 lead. Graduate student Jacob Sanchez, Carter, and graduate student Isaac Lopez started the rally with consecutive singles. A fielding error by the Demons allowed two runs to score, followed by wild pitches that enabled Lopez to score and Williams to advance to third. Lancia then capped the inning with an RBI-single.
The Demons answered with a run in the fifth inning, thanks to a walk to Benton that brought the score to 4-2. Junior Caden Wanless came in to pitch and struck out Daniel Burroway to end the inning.
Wanless pitched 1.1 scoreless innings, striking out two, after junior Víctor Loa struck out six in 4.2 innings.
In the seventh, the Demons added an unearned run on an RBI-fielder’s choice by Burroway, cutting the Vaqueros’ lead to 4-3.
The Vaqueros extended their lead to 5-3 in the eighth on a sacrifice fly by junior Rene Galván. However, the Demons rallied in the bottom half of the inning. After loading the bases, Benton hit a grand slam, giving Northwestern State an 8-5 lead.
The Vaqueros tried to mount a comeback in the ninth, with Lopez doubling and Raygoza walking to bring the tying run to the plate. However, Bryce Leonard recorded the final out, earning his first save.
The Vaqueros will close out their 10-game road trip with a game at Louisiana on Tuesday at 6 p.m.
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