ODESSA, Texas (June 2, 2026) – Cruz Garcia and Timmy LaChappa of The University of Texas Permian Basin baseball team were each named to the 2025-26 Academic All-District® Team, selected by College Sports Communicators.

Cruz Garcia is a junior from Kerrville, Texas, who holds a 3.87 cumulative grade point average majoring in finance. Garcia started in 35 of his 38 games this season. He started 17 games at second base, 10 at catcher, seven as designated hitter and one at third base. He hit .295 with 17 runs, 31 hits, seven doubles, one triple, one home run, 20 RBI's, 43 total bases, 11 walks and a .406 on-base percentage in 105 at bats. He also tied for the team lead with 10 hit by pitches. Academically, Garcia was named to the Fall 2025 and Spring 2026 Lone Star Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll in his first two semesters at UTPB. Previously, he was a member of the Dean's List at Abilene Christian University.

Timmy LaChappa is a sophomore right-handed pitcher from Hemet, California, who has a 3.66 GPA majoring in management. LaChappa came into the season being named to the 2026 LSC Preseason Players to Watch list for pitchers. He would then go 2-8 with 11 starts and 14 appearances. He allowed a 9.52 ERA, a 2.29 WHIP, 88 hits, 73 total runs, 61 earned runs, 44 walks, 48 strikeouts, and a .352 opponents' batting average in 57.2 innings pitched. He led the team in strikeouts, was second in innings pitched, and was tied for second in wins. In the LSC, he ranked 21st in innings pitched and was tied for 16th in strikeouts, including tying for second in batters struck out looking (16). He also ranked 30th in the LSC in ERA and was 31st in opposing batting average. In 2025, LaChappa was named the LSC Pitcher of the Week, the NCBWA South Central Region Pitcher of the Week, and UTPB's Edgardo Madrid & Associates Men's Student-Athlete of the Month for March after throwing a complete-game, one-hit shutout at home against No. 3 UT Tyler, just the fourth one-hitter in program history. Academically, LaChappa has been named to the Lone Star Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll in each of the last three semesters (Spring 2025, Fall 2025, Spring 2026), including a 4.0 GPA in Spring 2025 and Fall 2025.

The 2025-26 Academic All-District® Baseball Teams, selected by College Sports Communicators, recognize the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances on the diamond and in the classroom. To be eligible for CSC Academic All-District, a student-athlete must be at least a sophomore academically and athletically, hold a cumulative grade point average of 3.50 or higher and must be a standout in competition. Eligible nominees for baseball must compete in 90 percent of the institution's games played OR must start in at least 66 percent of the institution's games. For pitchers, a student-athlete must have made at least 17 appearances OR pitched 35 innings.