No. 8 A&M-Victoria baseball hosts Jarvis Christian in RRAC First Round series
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 5 |
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The Texas A&M University-Victoria baseball team has set its sights on its next goal.
The No. 8-ranked Jaguars (33-13, 21-6) clinched the program's fourth conference title and first-ever regular season crown last week. Now, they're hunting more hardware.
A&M-Victoria, the top seed in the Red River Athletic Conference Tournament, hosts eight-seed Jarvis Christian this weekend in a best-of-three series to determine who advances to the final site in Sterlington, Louisiana, next week.
Game 1 of the series is slated for 6:45 p.m. on Friday. Game 2 will have a 6:30 p.m. first pitch on Saturday. Should the series go the distance, the if-necessary Game 3 is scheduled for 12 p.m. on Sunday.
Admission is free all weekend thanks to the Victoria Rosebuds youth baseball organization. Prior to Game 1, each of the Rosebuds' teams will be recognized on the field. A Rosebuds player will also get to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before Games 1 and 2.
This is the third time A&M-Victoria has hosted postseason baseball and first since the A.i.i. Conference Tournament in 2014.
Top Offense
A&M-Victoria's offense continues to be one of the best in the nation, ranking ninth in doubles (105), 20th in batting average (.326) and 23rd in runs scored (394).
Leading the charge at the plate has been Antonio Benitez, Garrett Smith and Beck Zimmerman.
Benitez, a junior from Carolina, Puerto Rico, ranks fifth in the conference in batting average (.401) and boasts a conference-leading and program single-season record 37 stolen bases this year.
Garrett Smith has hit the cover off the ball in 2026, ranking second in home runs (11) and RBIs (56). He's joined on the RBI leaderboard by Zimmerman, who has driven in 50 runs as a freshman.
They are three of seven qualifying Jaguars hitting above .300 this season. Ty Boozer, Roberto Olguin, Jackson Purcell and Connor Kaiser are all north of that line.
Dominant Pitching
The Jaguars rank 17th nationally in pitching with a staff ERA of 4.39.
Senior right-hander Blane Zeplin has led the A&M-Victoria starters all season, boasting 98 strikeouts, the second-most in the NAIA, and a 2.52 ERA, which is good for second in the RRAC.
Zeplin and Jonathan Jones are the top two in the nation in terms of wins, with Jones leading the way at 10 and Zeplin boasting nine. Jones is fifth in the RRAC with 79 strikeouts.
Matthew Mejia's five saves out of the bullpen this year ranks second in the conference. Andrew Rivera comes in with the fifth-most saves this season among RRAC relievers with three.
Home, sweet home
The Jaguars have been strong at home this season, compiling a 20-5 record in the cavernous confines of Riverside Stadium.
A&M-Victoria has outscored its opponents 213-108 at Riverside this year, including a 111-30 scoring edge in the last 10 games at home, which have all been wins for the Jaguars.
In the 25 home games this year, the Jaguars have scored in double figures 10 times.
Scouting the Bulldogs
Jarvis Christian (4-30, 4-23) picked up four crucial wins over the final three weeks of the season to earn the eighth and final spot in the RRAC tournament.
After taking the series from Xavier (La.) on April 4, the Bulldogs dropped the series opener against Texas College, 6-5 in 10 innings, on April 16 and had to win the final two games. Jarvis proceeded to claim wins of 7-6 and 17-7 to secure the playoff spot.
The two teams met at Riverside two months ago, with A&M-Victoria sweeping the series 17-4, 9-0 and 17-4.
Follow along
Fans who can't make it out to Riverside this weekend have two other options to keep up with the Jaguars. All games of the series will be streamed live on the A&M-Victoria Athletics YouTube channel. Live stats will also be provided on the A&M-Victoria Athletics website.