Reigning RRAC Tournament champs UHV to open practice Thursday
UHV baseball coach Jonathan Stavinoha is hoping for an encore to his debut year as the Jaguars' skipper.
In 2023, UHV went on a historic run which saw the Jaguars win the Red River Athletic Conference Tournament for the first time in program history and advanced to the semifinals of the Hattiesburg Bracket in the NAIA Opening Round. It was also the first winning season for UHV baseball in eight years.
The Jaguars (28-27 in 2023) will begin their quest for a first-ever RRAC Regular Season crown and to defend their RRAC Tournament title on Thursday when the team opens preseason practice.
"Our goal right now is to not only win the tournament," said the second-year head coach. "We've got bigger goals than just winning the tournament.
"We want to win the regular season title. We want to be in the Top 25, Top 10 rankings. We want to have success early and carry it all the way through. Then we want to win the tournament, get into the national tournament and go to the World Series. That's what any good team should strive for and that's what we want."
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UHV returns all but five starters from last year's roster, including its primary starting pitchers of Mason Longoria, Julian Garcia and Brady Parker.
The trio combined for 17 wins last year with Parker, a Victoria East product, leading the way with seven, which was the third-most in the RRAC. Garcia and Longoria were both third in the conference with 79 strikeouts last year.
Relief pitcher Justin Mireles tied for the conference lead in saves last year with three.
Stavinoha is also excited about the additions to the pitching staff this offseason, such as former Cuero All-State pitcher Jacob Baker.
"Last year, the pitching staff, as a whole, was younger and a little more inexperienced," Stavinoha said. "Our three starters, it was their first time being a full-time starter. Their growth was seen at the end. I've seen it and the whole squad has seen it throughout the fall, they've only gotten better.
"Not just our starters, but our bullpen guys. We had a lot of young guys in the bullpen that got first-time experience last year. Mireles, Wyatt Lambert, Carson McKenna coming back, you've got multiple guys who are rock solid. Then you add Baker, Samuel Ibarra Jr. and Ryan Rodriguez. Those are three freshmen I expect to contribute right away with what they've done in the fall."
While the Jaguars return three of their top five hitters from last year in Hayden Leopold (65 H), Raul Lopez (61 H) and Hal Perez (9 HR), Stavinoha feels the returning defense will be more impressive.
Perez was a first team All-RRAC selection last year after leading the conference with 21 runners caught stealing. Lopez was an All-RRAC Gold Glove honoree in center field after recording 119 putouts and 5 assists in 124 attempts.
"We talk about the offensive side and it's great," Stavinoha said, "but I think what's going to win us the most games is our defense. We've got good guys behind the plate, good guys up the middle. Our outfield, I'm very confident in them. The consistency on the defensive side is what's really going to win us these games."
UHV opens its season at Riverside Stadium with a 3 p.m. doubleheader on Friday, Jan. 26, to kick off a four-game series with Wayland Baptist.