Head Coach Manny Mantrana-UT-Pan American

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES

The Monitor out of McAllen, Texas is reporting that Manuel Mantrana will be announced as the new head coach of the University of Texas at Pan Am. Coach Mantrana has spent the last 12 years as the head coach at St. Thomas University in Miami.

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Gene Salazar- Assistant Coach-UT-Pan Am

The University of Texas at Pan American has narrowed their coaching search to four candidates. The most logical choice would be for Gene Salazar. Gene is currently the assistant coach at UT-Pan Am and has ties in South Texas. Salazar was a 4 year Letterman at St. Edwards University and was also the head Coach there from 1998-2002. St Edwards University is a DIV II school that is located in Austin, Texas. Coach Salazar served as the interim head coach of the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi baseball program this past season where he served as the recruiting coordinator in his first three seasons and assisted in all aspects of the day-to-day operation of the Islander program.

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Willie Gawlik

When the Interim AD Ricky Vaughn  at UT- Pan American elected to not renew Coach Gawlik’s contract it will be interesting to see which direction UT-Pan Am goes. The baseball team at UT-Pan Am plays in a very nice stadium that they share with a minor league team in Edinburg, Texas. Also with the announcement that they will be joining the Great West Conference starting this school year. It would seemed to be a intriguing situation for a coach to step in and put his stamp on a Division 1 school. Read the rest of this entry »

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES

SAN MARCOS – Ben Theriot blasted a solo home run to open the game for the Texas State Bobcats, aiding an 11-7 victory over Texas-Pan American Tuesday night at Bobcat Field. The team improves to 19-14 with the win and will look to sweep the series tomorrow at 6 p.m.

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We continue to get schedules in from around the country almost daily as many schools are finalizing the 2008 slate. We have linked below the schools that have put out their 2008 schedule recently.

Samford
UMass
George Washington
Marist
Texas Pan-American

Photo is the courtesy of Samford University

The Fighting Illini have announced their 2008 schedule which is highlighted by trips to Texas Tech, Baylor, and University of Texas-Pan American. The team will take part in tournaments at Baylor and UTPA while playing a three game set against the Red Raiders of Texas Tech. The team will make their annual spring break trip to Florida from March 14th-21st where they will play six games against Northern schools. The Illini will play conference home series against Michigan, Penn State, Northwestern, and Purdue. They will head on the road to play Michigan State, Indiana, Minnesota, and Ohio State for conference series. The conference tournament will take place from May 21st-24th at the regular season champs field. The full schedule is available here.

The question is would you rather hit for the cycle or hit a two-run home run in the first inning for three consecutive games?

Some baseball players don’t have to choose. Texas right fielder Kyle Russell accomplished both feats Tuesday night.

Russell’s first-inning two-run homer against UT-Pan American was the beginning of his hitting for the cycle in the Longhorns’ 11-1 victory, which was called in the seventh inning at UFCU Disch-Falk Field. The game ended early because UT-Pan American wanted to try to avoid the severe weather sweeping across the state.

Russell, who leads the nation with 24 home runs, tripled in the fifth, doubled in the sixth and singled in Jordan Danks in the seventh to end the game.

“It’s the first cycle I’ve ever hit,” said Russell, who was 4 for 5 with a career-high five RBIs. “To do it at home in front of the burnt orange nation is really special.”

And the first-inning home runs are becoming routine. It’s the same runner on base, in the same inning, ending with the same result.

First Chance Wheeless, the Longhorns’ No. 2 hitter, gets on base, as he did Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday. Then Russell hits a home run.

Not only that, but Russell has hit each of the home runs to the same spot in left-center field.

“We were talking about it in the dugout. It’s been amazing. Kyle told me before we went up there that if I got on base, he would knock me in,” Wheeless said.

“I didn’t want to break my promise,” Russell responded.

He didn’t. In fact, Russell drove Wheeless in three times Tuesday, and both players scored in the first, fifth and sixth innings.

“I think he got tired of running today,” Russell joked.

Both the cycle and the home runs have impressed Texas coach Augie Garrido.

“It’s the many miracles of baseball,” Garrido said. “They pop up all the time, like Boston hitting four home runs in a row (against the Yankees on Sunday).”

Russell and Wheeless got Texas (34-12) going, and Austin Wood and reliever Josh Prince shut down UT-Pan American (15-34). Wood gave up a run on four hits in six innings.

Texas Recap

Texas.scout.com

Texas set a single-game school record for doubles and four Longhorns combined for an eight-hit shutout in 19-0 win over UT Pan American in collegiate baseball action at The Dell Diamond on Tuesday afternoon.

The Longhorns hit 11 doubles, breaking the 44-year-old record of nine set in 1946 and equaled in 1963. Nick Peoples, Jordan Danks and Bradley Suttle logged two doubles apiece while Jeff Boes, Todd Gilfillan, Brett Lewis, Kyle Russell and Chance Wheeless.

Austin Wood (1-0) earned the victory in his longest career outing. Making his first start of the season, Wood scattered four hits and three walks while striking out five in five scoreless innings. Juston Street and Alex Posey both made their first appearances of the season and they each weaved one shutout inning. Hunter Harris closed out the game with two innings of work, allowing one hit and one walk with two strikeouts.

Suttle paced Texas’ offense going 5-for-6 with two doubles, two runs scored and four RBI. It marked his sixth multi-hit game of the season and extended his hitting streak to seven games. Danks went 3-for-5 with two doubles, three runs scored and one RBI. Peoples went 2-for-4 with two doubles, two runs and three RBI. Russell went 2-for-3 with one double, two runs scored and three RBI.

The Longhorns did most of their damage in the eighth innings with 11 runs on eight hits, including five doubles. Suttle and Russell each had two hits in the rally.

Josh Wymer (0-1) was saddled with the loss for UT Pan American. He pitched three innings, allowing three runs, none earned on three hits and two walks, while striking out one.

Texas returns to action on Feb. 16 with the first of a three-game series against Stanford University at The Dell Diamond with first pitch slated for 2:30 p.m. UT-Pan American will be back in action on Friday with a trio of games with Texas A&M.

Texas Recap

UT-Pan American Recap