UHV’s Garcia takes home RRAC Pitcher of the Week honors

WACO – UHV's Julian Garcia delivered a masterful performance last week.

The 6-foot-4 right-hander dealt a complete-game shutout, striking out a season-high nine batters while allowing just four hits and a walk in a 7-0 win over University of the Southwest on Saturday to complete a Red River Athletic Conference-opening sweep of the Mustangs.

On Tuesday, the RRAC named Garcia its Pitcher of the Week for the week of Feb. 10-16. This is the fourth consecutive week for a UHV player to be recognized. Garcia joins Brady Parker and Jonathan Jones as Jaguar pitchers to receive the weekly honor.

"It always feels great to be recognized," Garcia said. "But the coolest thing to me is how we've pitched as a staff. It's a very special group to be part of. I felt really good Saturday; I felt confident and Hal Perez worked hard behind the plate like he always does. That combination always allows me to execute my pitches better and we were able to do that Saturday."

The Jaguars have won each of Garcia's three starts this season with the Houston native boasting a 3-0 record and one save.

Garcia holds a 1.73 ERA, which is fifth in the RRAC, and leads the team in innings pitched with 26.0 this season. He and Jones are tied for fourth in the conference with 27 strikeouts.

UHV's pitching staff ranks second in the RRAC with a 3.06 ERA so far this season, thanks in part to Garcia's efforts.

"I'm excited for Julian," said head coach Jonathan Stavinoha. "He's proving why he's one of the best arms in the country and there's nobody more deserving of this recognition. His baseball IQ is extremely high and he uses that on the mound to attack hitters, and help put us in the best position possible to win games."

The Jaguars are on the road Saturday and Sunday to face Texas College in RRAC Play.