COLLEGE SPORTS BRIEFS: Lady Buffs Curtabbi, Uwajeneza rise up national rankings

The Buffs and Lady Buffs brought home improving marks in multiple events at the Last Chance Qualifier at BU in Boston, Massachusetts.  Eleonora Curtabbi, Lady Buff senior, shattered the NCAA Division ll record in the 3,000m with a time of 9:08:10. The previous record was set in 2021 by Celine Ritter, of Lee University, with a time of 9:11:41.  Following the performance in the 3,000m was Florance Uwajeneza, who also etched her name in the NCAA Division ll record books with a time of 9:14:36, placing her in the top three nationally. Florance, also a Lady Buff senior, had previously run a 9:23:44 as her personal best at last year's NCAA Division ll Indoor National Championship. Jordanae' Scott and DeOndra Green made waves in the 200m, respectively. Green improved her time by 0.22 of a second while Scott improved by 0.13 from their times at the Lonestar Conference Championships just last weekend.

The Buffs ran competitively in three events including the 60m, 400m and 4X400. Brien Pittman had a come from behind win in the 400m, while Jalen Purcell continued to work through his 60m heat times.  Representing in the 1,600 were Isaac Botsio, Ohdel James, Malick Diop and Brien Pittman. They ran a 1:13:00 flat to improve their 1,600 times from their Lonestar Conference Championships time of 1:13:10 last weekend.   Up next for the Buffs and Lady Buffs are the Indoor NCAA Division ll National Championships set for March 10-11 and held in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

WT baseball

PUEBLO, Colo. —The Buffaloes of West Texas A&M trailed by six runs in the fourth inning before exploding for 15 runs over the final six frames to pick up an 18-12 South Central Regional victory over the Colorado State-Pueblo ThunderWolves at Rawlings Field.

The Buffs wasted little time getting on the board as Mike Manetta would score from third on a double-play grounder by Will Fuenning for the 1-0 lead. The ThunderWolves answered in the home half of the inning as Trey Vasquez singled home Reggie Williams followed by a two-run double by Elias Borjas to make it 3-1.

WT responded in the top of the third as Adam Becker doubled down the right field line to start the frame followed later in the inning by a Pueblo error and a Patrick Donovan RBI single to right, Eddy Savoie kept the inning alive with an RBI double to the gap in right center to plate Dylan Fesperman to tie it up at 3-3.

CSUP retook the lead in the third as Noah Hennings scored from third on a wild pitch with no outs followed later in the inning by a Brady Prewitt two-run single, the ThunderWolves weren't done yet a Kolton Miller doubled to left center to drive in a pair followed by a Williams RBI single for the 9-3 lead.  The Buffs used the long ball to cut into the lead in the top of the fourth as Fuenning lifted a three-run shot to straight away center field with one out to make it 9-6.  WT continued to chip away in the sixth as Evan Leible singled to right with two outs to drive in Fuenning and Patrick Donovan, Manetta would single to left to drive in a pair followed by a Ryan Johnson double and a wild pitch to plate Manetta for the 11-9 lead. Savoie continued his hot day at the plate in the top of the seventh with a two-run single up the middle with one out to make it 13-9. Pueblo would respond in the home half of the seventh with a Joseph Quintana RBI single with one out followed by a Williams RBI single to right to make it 13-11 on the way to the victory.

The Buffs (9-5, 7-5) jump back into Lone Star Conference action next weekend as they host the Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds in a four-game series starting on Friday night at Wilder Park in Canyon.

WT softball

CANYON — On Sunday, West Texas A&M senior Kyra Lair stole the show at Schaeffer Park.

The former Canyon High school standout tossed the Lady Buffs' fourth perfect game in program history, while throwing a program-record 18 strikeouts, in a 5-0 victory over UT Permian Basin.

With the win, WT improved to 15-0 on the season and 6-0 in the Lone Star Conference.

The accomplishment is Lair's first solo perfect game and third no-hitter in Maroon & White. Previously, the senior threw her first no-hitter on April 6, 2019 at Eastern New Mexico and combined with Emilee Wilson for a perfect game on May 1, 2021 against Eastern New Mexico.

Lair started the afternoon with a pair of strikeouts before forcing a pop out to Diana Murtha at third base. In the top of the second, the senior recorded a groundout on a full count before starting a streak of seven consecutive strikeouts. Lair's streak ended in the top of the fourth as she sat down the final batter of the inning on another pop fly.  The Canyon, Texas native matched and later broke her career-high in strikeouts in the fifth inning when Lair struck out the side. Lair's three strikeouts in the fifth allowed her to end the game with nine consecutive punchouts. On offense, the Lady Buffs used the long ball to score their runs. In the third, Brittni Rufus walked with one out to set up Ruby Salzman's first home run of the day with two outs. WT added to its lead in the bottom of the sixth as Madison Johnson sent a solo shot out to center on the first pitch she saw. Salzman followed up Johnson's home run with one of her own just two pitches later. After a flyout, Murtha sent the third home run of the inning over the left-center fence, bringing the Lady Buffs' advantage to 5-0. WT hits the road for a three-game series with No. 2-ranked UT Tyler at Suddenlink Field. The Lady Buffs and Patriots start the series with a doubleheader at 3 p.m. Friday.

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: COLLEGE SPORTS BRIEFS: Lady Buffs Curtabbi, Uwajeneza rise up national rankings