UH was unable to complete its comeback against No. 1 Texas A&M Tuesday night. | Courtesy of UH Athletics

Houston Cougars baseball faced a top-ranked team for the first time since 2020 in a midweek road showdown against No. 1 Texas A&M. Despite a late game rally by the red and white, UH dropped the game 13-11.

The opening frame was all Houston as they jumped out to a 3-0 lead, plating the game’s first three runs on four hits. Senior Anthony Tulimero gave the Cougars the lead on an RBI single before senior Harold Coll pushed the advantage to 2-0 after a groundout and Tulimero scored after a double steal for the final run of the first inning.

The Aggies didn’t take long to respond, capitalizing on two wild pitches and a Cougar throwing error to put five on the board in the second and take the lead 5-3.

A&M added a home run in the third to extend the gap to 8-3, but Houston answered with a homer of its own by freshman Ace Reese. But the Cougars struggled to stop the bleeding as the Aggies scored in six straight innings. 

Houston looked to make a comeback in the final frames, five runs came in the eighth off a couple of home runs. Freshman Anthony Avalos recorded his first career homer and Coll followed with a three-run home run to bring the Cougars within two, but they couldn’t get any closer. 

With the 13-11 loss, Houston’s record drops to 20-21. Looking forward, UH will begin an eight-game homestand on April 26 with a series against UT Arlington. 

sports@thedailycougar.com 

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“UH unable to keep up with No. 1 Aggies, lose 13-11” was originally posted on The Cougar

After leading in all three weekend games Houston walks away with only one win. | Anh Le/The Cougar

The Houston baseball team walked away with one victory after a three-game road series versus Cincinnati over the weekend.

Game One 

A fourth-inning single by senior right fielder Cary Arbolida put the Cougars on top. Senior Justin Murray drove in senior outfielder Tre Jones and then stole home to put the Coogs on top.

Junior pitcher Cade Citelli got off to a great start, striking out five Bearcats over five while allowing only five base runners on two hits.

But Cincinnati refused to go away quietly, making noise in the following frames and eventually claiming the lead in a four-point seventh inning.

The Cougars went on to drop the series opener 6-4.

Game Two

The Cougars were off to a fiery start once again putting up the game’s first four runs. All Houston scoring came in the second inning, a Bearcat throwing error and a pair of singles by Jones and sophomore Coby DeJesus pocketed the lead. Cincinnati soon claimed the momentum, scoring in three consecutive innings to take a 5-4 victory.

Game Three

The finale saw a change of tempo the Bearcats picked up the first three runs of the game before Houston took over.

Arbolida hit a homer in the fourth inning to bring the Cougars within one before senior Jonathan French provided a spark off the bench in the sixth with a pinch-hit single to take the lead.

His entrance to the lineup was pivotal, with him hitting a solo home run in the eighth.

The Cougars added an exclamation mark in the ninth inning with a single to run away with the 8-5 win.

Their record moves to 20-20 on the year, 6-15 in the Big 12.

Houston will travel to College Station to take on No.1 Texas A&M on April 23. 

sports@thedailycougar.com

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“Cougar baseball takes one out of three in weekend contests with Cincinnati” was originally posted on The Cougar

UH softball dropped to 3-15 in Big 12 play after getting swept by UCF. | Oscar Herrera/The Cougar

The Cougars softball team extended its losing streak to six after being outscored 27-2 in a three-game series against UCF over the weekend. 

Game 1

Houston got off to a rocky start, picking up a 9-0 rule run loss in the series opener.

UCF’s pitching kept the Cougar’s offense quiet throughout the game, junior Turiya Coleman recorded one hit and Houston stole three bases, but never got on the board.

The Knights closed out the complete-game shutout in the sixth inning.

Game 2

Saturday’s match-up saw more of the same as UCF’s pitching kept the Cougars off-balance and unable to score in the five-frame loss.

Houston allowed nine points through the final two innings leaving the Knights to clinch its second rule-run victory of the series, 11-0. 

Game 3

Houston’s offense showed signs of life in the finale, but the Cougars struggled to keep UCF contained and fell 7-2. 

The Knights jumped out to an early 2-0 lead but a quick response in the bottom of the first on a single by Junior Lair Beautae cut the deficit to one. 

Coleman hit her third triple of the season in the fourth frame to tie up the game, but Houston was silenced soon after. 

Florida reclaimed the lead on back-to-back home runs in the fifth frame and added three runs in the sixth to put the game away.

The Cougars dropped to 22-20 and 3-15 in the Big 12.

Looking forward, Houston will close its eight-game homestand on April 16 at Cougar Softball Stadium against Lamar.

sports@thedailycougar.com

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“UH softball outscored 27-2 in three-game sweep vs. UCF” was originally posted on The Cougar

UH softball drops 3 more in conference play against No. 6 Oklahoma state. Photo from an earlier matchup with Indiana State. | Oscar Herrera/ The Cougar

The UH softball team welcomed the No. 6 Oklahoma State Cowgirls to Cougar Softball Stadium over the weekend for a three-game series. Hot-hitting from the Cowgirls proved costly for Houston, who was swept in the series.

Game One
Oklahoma State hit two home runs early in the match to take a 2-0 lead. Junior infielder Lair Beautae answered by hitting her seventh homer of the season to bring the Cougars back to within one, but the Cowgirls responded by adding, yet another long ball in the sixth frame to clinch the series opener 3-1.

Game Two
Houston suffered a painful 11-0 loss at the hands of the Cowgirls on Saturday, the Cougars allowed four runs in the first inning and were unable to get anything going offensively.
The run-ruled loss ended in five frames, the Cowgirls adding to its total in each inning.

Game Three

The series finale saw the Cougars take an early 1-0 lead, but they proved unable to handle Oklahoma’s response in the third frame. In what has been the case all series, Houston struggled to contain the Cowgirls hitters allowing ten runs. Graduate infielder Jazmyn Rollin posted two homers for Houston, bringing her season total to a team-high of nine. It wasn’t enough to keep the Cougars within striking distance, they went on to drop the game in six innings 11-2.

The Cougars drop to 22-17 on the season and 3-12 in conference play. Looking forward, the team moves on to a road matchup against Sam Houston on  April 9.

sports@thedailcougar.com

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“Houston soft swept by No.6 Oklahoma” was originally posted on The Cougar

Junior pitcher Jaxson Jelkin is photographed here at a home game 0-0 after seven appearances despite leading the Cougars in strikeouts with 46. | Oscar Herrera/The Cougar

The Houston Cougars baseball team dropped its second straight three-game series at Lupton Stadium over the weekend in a match-up against the TCU Horned Frogs.

Game One

Houston suffered a devastating 14-1 loss on Thursday. 

The Horned Frogs heated up in the fourth frame to take a 4-0 lead and never let up offensively putting an additional six on the board in the seventh inning. 

Houston allowed a season-high 21 hits and couldn’t find an answer for the high-powered offense.

A solo shot off the bat of redshirt senior Jonathan French gave the Coogs their only run in the game.

Game Two 

The Cougars couldn’t find a rhythm until its fate for the night was all but sealed in Friday’s 6-2 loss to the Frogs.

TCU scored two runs in the third inning to take the 2-0 lead and never let up.

Senior infielder Jake Rainess and catcher Anthony Tulimero put together some runs for the Cougars in the ninth with a solo homer and an RBI single, but it was too little, too late.

Game Three

The series finale seemed like a turning point for the Cougars. However, TCU swept the Coogs after their 6-4 Saturday loss. 

UH drummed up some offense. French doubled and just two batters later senior infielder Jacob Schoenvogel singled to claim the 3-2 lead in the fifth inning, the Cougar’s first of the series.

Junior pitcher Jaxon Jelkin added seven strikeouts in his career-best 6.1-inning appearance.

All was well until late-game errors gave away four runs to TCU allowing them to reclaim the lead 6-4 to end the night.    

Houston drops to 15-12 on the season and 4-8 in conference play. 

Next up the Cougars head home to take on Rice for the final game of the Silver Gloves Series on April 2.

sports@thdailycougar.com

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“Houston baseball outscored 26-7 in series with TCU” was originally posted on The Cougar

Pitcher José Torrealba lets one fly in UH’s game against UTSA on Feb 27. | Oscar Herrera/The Cougar

The Cougars baseball team dropped its weekend series against the Kansas State Wildcats at Schroeder Park, ending its five-game home winning streak.

Game 1

Houston started red-hot, jumping out to a 3-0 lead over Kansas State, but eventually fell 5-3.

Senior Justin Murray hit a home run early in the first inning to put the Cougars ahead. Freshmen Ace Reese added another in the third frame to extend the lead. Things turned sour after two errors in the sixth inning proved costly allowing the Wildcats to capitalize and eventually seize the lead.

Game 2

Again, the Cougars allowed a Wildcat comeback after holding a 5-2 lead seven frames into the second game of the series but couldn’t maintain its composure down the stretch and lost 6-5.

Houston fell behind 2-0 early on, but a hot fifth inning was enough to claim the lead. Murray and senior Harold Coll singled down the middle to put Houston up 4-2, but an error in the eighth frame allowed Kansas to reclaim the lead 6-5 ending the game. 

Game 3

Kansas completed the series sweep on Sunday with a 9-3 victory.

Houston was first on the board taking a 1-0 lead but couldn’t get anything going offensively for the majority of the game. 

The Wildcat’s energetic offense overpowered the Cougars. Seven runs throughout two frames including a five-run eighth inning was enough to put the game away for good. 

Houston dropped to 14-9 on the year and 4-5 in conference play. UH will now look ahead to a midweek matchup against Lamar at Schroeder Park on Tuesday. 

sports@thedailycougar.com

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“UH snaps home winning streak in series loss to Kansas State” was originally posted on The Cougar

UH’s hitting gave the Cougars the road win over McNeese. | Oscar Herrera/The Cougar

The Cougars softball team closed out a long road trip with a win on Wednesday night over McNeese. Every starter recorded a hit to soar past the Cowgirls to secure the 9-5 win.  

The game opened with a walk, a single and an error to put Junior infielder Lair Beautae and graduate catcher Kennedy Thomas in scoring position, eventually giving the team an early 2-0 lead. 

McNeese cut its deficit down to one by the third inning, but Houston quickly responded with a single and score by Thomas to bring the lead back to two.  

Junior Turiya Coleman put up her fourth home run of the season to widen the gap 5-1.

The team remained hot in the fourth inning, seeing a double from Sophomore Mandy Esman, a single from Amanda Carden and three runs to further the distance between the teams, going up 7-3. 

Looking forward, the Cougars will begin its Big 12 Conference slate with a three-game series at home against Texas.  Game one will take place on March 8.

sports@thedailycougar.com

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“Hot hitting guides UH softball past McNeese” was originally posted on The Cougar

L.J. Cryer scored a game-high 22 points in Tuesday’s win over Cincinnati. | Anh Le/The Cougar

The No. 1 Cougars beat the Cincinnati Bearcats 67-59 on Tuesday inside the Fertitta Center to earn their sixth straight win.

Houston got off to a nearly perfect start in the first half, sticking to its bread and butter. A suffocating defense held Cincinnati to 26% from the field and only 10% from behind the three-point line, the defensive pressure gave way to six steals by the squad — one of which led to a fast-break dunk by senior forward J’wan Roberts that sent Fertitta Center into a frenzy.   

Senior guard L.J. Cryer led the way in scoring with eight early points including a long three that helped the Cougars jump out to a 16-4 lead holding the Bearcats to an abysmal 4-18 from the field midway through the half.

The Cougars entered a scoring drought near the end of the half going scoreless for nearly five minutes but wouldn’t allow Cincinnati to capitalize on the offensive struggles, Junior forward Ja’Vier Francis was a force on the visitor’s end pulling down for rebounds and back-to-back blocks to maintain the UH lead. 

Sophomore guard Emanuel Sharp ended the dry spell with a buzzer-beating three to send the game into halftime with UH leading 26-17.

Things got chippy to start the second half when Bearcat forward Aziz Bandaogo was called for a flagrant foul on senior guard Jamal Shead. After nailing both free throws, Shead dished back-to-back assists to Sharp on three-pointers to widen the gap to 17 points.

Though he struggled to score going 2-10 from the field, Shead made his presence known as a playmaker dishing out 11 assists. 

Cryer kept up the scoring for Houston putting up 202 points to lead the game, while Roberts added 15 points on an efficient 4-6 from the field and pulled down five rebounds to help seal the win.

On the defensive end, the Cougars grabbed 15 steals and forced 19 turnovers while only giving up 10 for the game.

UH improved to 25-3 on the year and 12-3 in Big 12 play. Up next, the team will head on the road to face the Oklahoma Sooners on March 2.

sports@thedailycougar.com

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“No. 1 Houston downs Cincinnati for sixth straight win” was originally posted on The Cougar

UH track & field put together an impressive showing in its first-ever appearance at the Big 12 Conference Indoor Championship. | Oscar Herrera/The Cougar

The Houston track & field team went for gold this past weekend in its Big 12 Conference Indoor Championship debut at the Sports Performance Center in Lubbock.

Houston’s winning weekend began on Friday when senior Christyan Sampy cleared 5.53 meters in the men’s pole vault to earn second place on the podium, bringing UH its first Big 12 finals silver medal in school history.

Junior Grant Leveque was a force in the heptathlon, putting up four new personal bests to grab the lead with 3,313 points going into Saturday’s activities.

Leveque snatched first place finishes in the 60-meter running a 6.70, the long jump putting up a best of 7.03 meters and secured top honors in the shot put with a final attempt of 14.08 meters. Senior Ayomide Ogunbunmi was not far behind in the shot put, finishing second in the contest with his last attempt of 14.07 and fourth in the overall men’s heptathlon standings for the day.

Senior De’Vion Wilson sprinted to a indoor school record of 7.59 in the 60-meter hurdles qualifier, good for first place.

Senior Shaun Maswanganyi set new personal bests in the 60-meter and the 200-meter dash earning himself a spot in the finals. Maswanganyi’s 200-meter time of 20.62 moved him to No. 2 in school indoor history.

Freshman Cayden Broadnax claimed a spot in the 200-meter finals with a time of 20.78, breaking a personal record and moving to the fifth spot in school indoor history.

In all, Houston ended Friday having secured spots in the men’s 60-meter hurdles, men’s 60-meter dash, women’s 600-yards, women’s 400-meter, women’s 800-meter and men’s 200-meter final competitions.

Saturday began with the conclusion of the men’s heptathlon, where Leveque swept the competition taking the top spot in the remaining contests to secure UH’s first gold medal of the day.

Wilson broke his own school record set set the previous night, this time recording 7.55 to run away with the gold in the 60-meter hurdles.

Maswangnyi finished in second place in the 60-meter with a time of 6.62. He also took silver in the 200-meter dash running a 20.41, the fastest mark in South African 200-meter short track history.

Senior Kelly-Ann Beckford added another first place finish to Houston’s tally putting on a personal-best performance time of 2:00.99 in the 800-meter breaking her previous school record.

A women’s team composed of Beckford, seniors Sydni Townsend, Iman Babineaux and freshman Michaela Mouton won the 4×400 with a final time of 3:29.42.

Townsend and Mouton saw action in the 400-meter as well, respectively taking fourth and fifth place.

Next up for Houston is the NCAA Indoor Championships scheduled to take place on March 8 in Boston, Massachusetts.

sports@thedailycougar.com

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“Cougars set records at Big 12 Track and Field Championship” was originally posted on The Cougar

Houston Track and Field secures multiple podium finishes in LSU Twilight and Air Force Last Chance. | Oscar Herrera/The Cougar

The University of Houston track and field team split into different time zones to compete in the Air Force Last Chance and LSU Twilight meets on Friday. 

Over in Colorado at the Air Force Last Chance meet, the Cougars showed up in the men’s 60-meter dash sprinting away with three of the top-5 placements. 

Senior Shaun Maswanganyi earned first place, putting up a time of 6.57, nearly matching his best performance. 

Sophomore Louie Hinchliffe grabbed his first podium placement for the Cougars, coming in second with a personal record time of 6.656 just edging out Air Force’s Javin Bostic’s time of 6.658 

Freshman Cayden Broadnax placed fourth, with a collegiate personal best of 6.70 in the contest.

In Lousianna, the Cougars walked away with three podium placements.

Freshman thrower Paris Kimble earned her second top-2 finish of her collegiate career in the women’s shot put with a 13.80 (45’-3.5) meter throw.

Sophomore Zaeda Houff finished in third place and set a new personal best in the women’s weight throw with a 16.95 (55-07.50) meter throw. Graduate Ethan Marshall placed third in the men’s division with a 19.39 (63-07.50) meter throw.

In the men’s 60-meter hurdles, Freshman Logan Lyght competed recording a time of 7.94 and snagging a fourth-place finish.

Next up the Coogs will head to Lubbock on Feb. 23 and 24 to compete in the Big 12 Indoor Championships. 

sports@thedailycougar.com

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“Houston track and field places across time zones in LSU Twilight and Air Force Last Chance” was originally posted on The Cougar