The 2025-26 athletic year at The University of Texas Permian Basin (UTPB) delivered another unforgettable chapter for Falcon Athletics. Historic wins, national rankings, postseason breakthroughs, and record-setting performances highlighted a year filled with milestones across multiple programs. From competition venues to the classroom, the Falcons continued building momentum while collecting conference, regional and national recognition along the way. 
 
August 

• UTPB football opened its 2025 season with a statement win, closing the game on a 21-0 run to defeat No. 5 Central Oklahoma 34-14 at Astound Broadband Stadium…read more 

September 

• Following its season-opening upset victory over Central Oklahoma, UTPB football climbed to No. 16 in the D2Football.com Top 25 Poll…read more
• Junior linebacker Tristan Exline earned D2Football.com National Defensive Player of the Week honors after his standout performance in the Falcons' season opener…read more
• Sophomore outside hitter Ashlee Macias was named to the Kathleen Brasfield Invitational All-Tournament Team after an impressive opening-day performance to start the season…read more
• After starting the season 2-0 for the first time since 2021, UTPB football moved into the top-10 of the D2Football.com Media Poll at No. 10…read more 
• UTPB women's soccer secured its first win under new head coach Garrett Kull during its second match of the 2025 season…read more 
• UTPB football achieved its highest national ranking in program history at the time, rising to No. 7 in the D2Football.com Media Poll despite not competing during the previous week…read more 
• The UTPB Champions Fund surpassed its $1 million fundraising goal for the 2024-25 fiscal year and announced a new goal of $1.25 million for 2025-26…read more 
• UTPB women's golf opened its 2025-26 season with a strong third-place finish at the Oklahoma Women's Intercollegiate…read more 
• UTPB women's soccer earned its first road and conference victory under head coach Garrett Kull with a 3-0 win over Eastern New Mexico…read more 
• UTPB football continued its rise in the national rankings, moving up to No. 9 in the AFCA Division II Coaches' Poll for Week 5…read more 

October 

• No. 9 UTPB football defeated No. 5 Angelo State 28-14 on the road in a top-10 showdown, scoring key touchdowns before halftime and sealing the win with a final touchdown drive…read more
• Following the upset win over rival Angelo State, UTPB football rose to No. 6 in the AFCA Poll and reached as high as No. 4 in the D2 poll, continuing its highest national ranking in program history…read more
• UTPB men's golf dominated The Hrnciar, winning by 17 strokes as Nizar Bourehim earned individual medalist honors by one stroke over teammate Ioan Rowe…read more 
• After its win at The Hrnciar, UTPB men's golf received votes in the Bushnell/Golfweek Division II Coaches Poll…read more 
• UTPB women's swimming fell 217-74 to Division I UTRGV but earned eight second-place finishes across 14 events in the dual meet…read more 
• UTPB men's golf shot 11-under in round two to finish as the top NCAA Division II team and place second overall at the Ryan Palmer Foundation Invitational…read more 
• UTPB men's golf debuted at No. 13 in the Clippd Scoreboard rankings, marking the second-highest ranking in program history at the time…read more
• UTPB women's soccer team set a program record for shots in a match and defeated Sul Ross State 2-0 to earn another conference win…read more 
• UTPB men's golf tied its highest-ever national ranking at No. 11 in the Clippd Scoreboard rankings…read more  
• No. 23 UTPB football kept its playoff hopes alive with a dominant 22-6 defensive win over West Texas A&M…read more 
• UTPB Athletics hosted its inaugural Hall of Fame ceremony, honoring six former Falcons....read more 
• Following the win over West Texas A&M, UTPB football rose to No. 17 in the D2Football.com poll and No. 20 in the AFCA rankings...read more
• UTPB men's golf climbed to No. 15 in the Bushnell/Golfweek Coaches Poll, its second-highest ranking in program history in the coaches poll...read more

November 

• Ashlee Macias set a program record with 35 kills as UTPB volleyball won a five-set match at home over Eastern New Mexico…read more  
• UTPB football moved up to No. 16 in D2Football.com and No. 17 in the AFCA Poll after improving to 7-2 overall…read more 
• The NCAA regional rankings placed UTPB football ninth in Super Region Four…read more 
• UTPB football climbed to No. 13 in D2Football.com and No. 15 in the AFCA Poll after reaching 8-2…read more 
• Tristan Exline earned his second D2Football.com Defensive Player of the Week honor of the season…read more 
• UTPB football was ranked eighth in Super Region Four entering the final week of the regional rankings…read more
• Junior goalkeeper Valeria Delgado earned LSC All-Academic honors for women's soccer…read more  
• UTPB volleyball won on Senior Day, defeating Texas A&M-Kingsville 3-1 in its final match of the season…read more 
• Junior quarterback Kanon Gibson threw five touchdowns in a 74-10 win over Sul Ross State to close out the regular season for No. 15 UTPB football. Additionally, head coach Kris McCullough became the Falcons' all-time winningest coach (26 wins)…read more  
• UTPB football earned an NCAA playoff berth and was set to face Colorado State Pueblo in the first round…read more  
• The Falcons entered the playoffs ranked No. 10 in the AFCA Poll…read more 
• Women's soccer player Allyson Reed earned a call-up to the Honduras National Team for World Cup qualifiers…read more 
• Ashlee Macias earned Second-Team All-LSC honors for volleyball…read more 
• UTPB football set a program record with 27 All-LSC selections, led by the LSC Defensive Player of the Year, Tristan Exline…read more 
• No. 10 UTPB football earned its first-ever NCAA playoff win, defeating No. 4 Colorado State Pueblo 37-24 on the road…read more 
• The UTPB swimming teams both finished top-three at the Trinity Tiger Invitational with multiple records broken during their midseason meet…read more 
• Tristan Exline was named one of 36 finalists for the Harlon Hill Trophy…read more 
• UTPB men's basketball won a thrilling double-overtime game, 103-93, over MSU Denver in its final game of the CSU Pueblo Thanksgiving Classic…read more  
• No. 10 UTPB football advanced to the regional final for the first time in program history after a 21-15 second-round win at No. 15 Western Colorado …read more  

December 

• Women's soccer player Alexis Saucedo was selected for the DPL Perform International Squad after standout play in a national development event…read more  
• Tristan Exline earned First-Team All-Super Region Four honors…read more  
• UTPB women's basketball defeated Midwestern State 68-45 in a dominant first conference win…read more 
• No. 10 UTPB football's season ended in the NCAA quarterfinals with a 34-28 loss to No. 2 Harding in a competitive game…read more  
• Tristan Exline was named a First-Team All-American by the AFCA and also earned D2CCA All-American honors…read more 
• Jonesha Neal's layup in the final two seconds lifted UTPB women's basketball to a big regional win over the UCCS just before Christmas Break…read more 
• Tristan Exline and senior cornerback Jalani Jefferson earned All-Texas Non-FBS honors, with Exline named Defensive Player of the Year…read more  
• UTPB football finished the season ranked No. 3 nationally in the D2Football.com final poll…read more 
• Tristan Exline and Jalani Jefferson earned Don Hansen All-American honors…read more 
• Tristan Exline was named an Associated Press First-Team All-American after a record-breaking defensive season…read more 
• Tristan Exline and Kanon Gibson were named to the D2Football.com Elite 100 Team…read more 
• UTPB Athletics was ranked No. 86 in the Learfield Directors' Cup standings, a program-best fall ranking during the Fall season…read more 
• Chris Softley was named the new head football coach at UTPB…read more 

January 

• UTPB Athletics posted a 3.12 GPA for the fall semester, continuing its strong academic performance…read more  
• UTPB men's basketball earned a dramatic 82-80 overtime road win at Oklahoma Christian for its first conference victory…read more  
• UTPB men's basketball defeated Cameron 115-108 in double overtime behind a career-high performance from TJ McKenzie…read more 
• The UTPB swimming teams competed against TCU, earning a win on the men's side against the Division I program…read more 
• UTPB women's basketball defeated Angelo State 76-67 on the road after scoring a combined 45 points in the second half…read more 
• Tristan Exline was named a finalist for the Cliff Harris Award…read more 
• UTPB placed 172 student-athletes on the Fall 2025 LSC Commissioner's Honor Roll…read more 
• The UTPB swimming & diving teams earned CSCAA Scholar All-America recognition for academic success during the Fall 2025 semester…read more  
• UTPB men's basketball earned a 100-95 overtime win over Texas A&M International behind a herculean effort by Sharrod Taylor…read more 

February  

• UTPB baseball earned a 2-0 shutout win over No. 12 Angelo State behind a strong pitching from Damian Robles…read more 
• UTPB women's basketball earned a 69-57 road win at St. Edward's, giving head coach Rae Boothe her 100th win at UTPB.…read more  
• UTPB swimming & diving completed the 2026 RMAC Championships with school multiple records and all-conference honors…read more 
• UTPB women's basketball earned an 83-66 must-win home victory over Midwestern State…read more 
• UTPB men's basketball won a double-overtime thriller, 105-99, against Midwestern State…read more 
• UTPB softball earned a 2-0 shutout win by Jessica Cantrell at Midwestern State for its first LSC road win since 2023…read more 
• UTPB softball defeated Texas A&M-Kingsville 2-1 in 10 innings to snap an 18-game losing streak against the Javelinas.…read more 

March 

• UTPB women's basketball prepared for a second straight LSC quarterfinal matchup against top-ranked Texas Woman's…read more
• Junior Ioan Rowe shot back-to-back eagles at the Shadow Valley Invitational…read more 
• Kenadi Rising and Madison Walters earned All-LSC honors in women's basketball.…read more 
• Tash Lunday and Sharrod Taylor earned All-LSC honors for men's basketball…read more 
• Women's soccer player Allyson Reed scored her first two international goals for Honduras in CONCACAF qualifiers…read more 
• UTPB women's tennis started off its Spring Break trip on a high note, earning its first win of the season with a 4-1 victory…read more 
• UTPB women's tennis kept the good vibes going with a 4-0 win over Colorado State University Pueblo during its second match of its Spring Break trip…read more 
• UTPB women's tennis won its third match in a row and defeated NCAA Division III Hardin-Simmons…read more 
• UTPB men's tennis was tied 3-3 against NCAA Division III Hardin-Simmons University before Christian Lopez delivered a comeback win…read more 
• UTPB men's golf won the Midwestern State Invitational, with / while Will Tate successfully defended his individual title…read more 
• Melissa Avila was named the new head coach of UTPB volleyball.…read more
• Men's golf was ranked fifth in the NCAA regional rankings…read more 
• UTPB women's tennis defeated Texas Wesleyan to extend its win streak to four straight matches…read more 

April  

• A dominant first starting-pitching performance by Isaac Rodriguez and a walk-off single by Gael Bernal got UTPB baseball off to a good start against Sul Ross State…read more  
• UTPB softball earned a nationally-ranked road win at No. 12 Angelo State…read more  
• UTPB baseball swept Sul Ross State to earn its first series win of the season.…read more 
• UTPB football had two seniors Tyler Ball and Ben Patterson – named to the Hampshire Honor Society for academic excellence…read more 
• UTPB swimming earned multiple All-RMAC awards and academic honors…read more 
• UTPB men's golf was ranked fifth in its region and was well-positioned for NCAA postseason qualification…read more 
• UTPB women's tennis earned its first conference win of the season at Western New Mexico thanks to the match-clinching win by freshman Paige Sitanggang…read more 
• UTPB men's tennis also earned a road conference comeback win at Western New Mexico thanks to winning the final two matches by freshmen Kabir Chothani at No. 4 singles and Joao D'Amorim at No. 1 singles…read more 
• UTPB baseball defeated No. 17 St. Mary's behind a three-home-run performance from freshman Daylon Jefcoats…read more 
• UTPB men's golf set a program record with three All-LSC selections and added the / a Newcomer of the Year award as well…read more 
• UTPB men's golf finished in sixth place at the LSC Championship… read more 
• A one-hit shutout by Jessica Cantrell and a five-RBI game for Kaylee Moses helped the UTPB softball win game one vs. Midwestern State and tie the program record for most LSC wins in a single season…read more 
• UTPB men's golf qualified for the NCAA Regional.…read more 
• Former UTPB football player Ben Patterson signed an NFL contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent.…read more 
• UTPB Athletics launched its first Chi Alpha Sigma honor society chapter and inducted its first / inaugural class…read more 
• Nehal Naidoo earned LSC Freshman of the Year honors in men's tennis…read more 

May  

• Daylon Jefcoats was named LSC Freshman of the Year in baseball along with multiple other All-LSC selections…read more 
• UTPB men's golf ended its NCAA Regional run tied for 18th place, and was led by Will Tate in the top-10…read more  
• Nehal Naidoo was named ITA South Central Rookie of the Year in men's tennis…read more 
• Gael Bernal and Dayon Jefcoats earned All-Region honors in baseball…read more 
• Will Tate earned All-Region honors in golf…read more 
• UTPB Athletics recorded a school-record 3.22 GPA for the Spring semester…read more  

June 

• Ryan Van Amburgwas named the new head coach of UTPB baseball…read more
• UTPB men's golfer Will Tate earned Third-Team NCAA Division II PING All-American honors, becoming one of only three South Central Region players to receive Third-Team recognition or higher...read more 
• UTPB Athletics finished No. 188 nationally in the 2025-26 Division II Learfield Directors' Cup standings with 75 points, marking the program's second-best finish and second-highest point total in school history...read more  
• Will Tate (Men's Golf) and Jessica Cantrell (Softball) were named UTPB's 2025-26 Edgardo Madrid & Associates Student-Athletes of the Year...read more  
• The Lone Star Conference recognized 2,794 student-athletes on the Spring 2026 Commissioner's Honor Roll, including 921 who earned a perfect 4.0 GPA...read more  
• Natalia Salas (Women's Soccer) and Ben Patterson (Football) received the 2026 Lone Star Conference Scholar-Athlete Award for their achievements in academics and athletics...read more  
• Will Tate (Men's Golf) and Valeria Delgado (Women's Soccer) were selected as UTPB's nominees for the 2026 Lone Star Conference Athlete of the Year award...read more  

The accomplishments of the past year helped shape another important step in the evolution of Falcon Athletics. Whether through postseason success, individual recognition, academic achievement or program-defining moments, UTPB continued to build on its foundation. With that progress carrying forward, the Falcons now set their sights on creating the next chapter of success. 

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2025-26 LSC & RMAC Players of the week  
September  

• Football: Tristan Exline (Defensive), Angel Diaz (Special Teams), Kanon Gibson (Offensive) 

October  

• Football: Kanon Gibson (Offensive) 
• Men's Golf: Ioan Rowe  

November  

• Volleyball: Ashlee Macias (Offensive) 
• Football: Tristan Exline (Defensive) 

January  

• Men's Basketball: Sharrod Taylor (Offensive) 

February  

• Men's Tennis: Lucas Nakasato & Andrew Hunsley (Doubles Team) 

March  

• Men's Tennis: Philipp Gaurieder & Joao D'Amorim (Doubles Team) 
• Men's Golf: Will Tate 

April  

• Men's Tennis: Joao D'Amorim & Nehal Naidoo (Doubles Team) 
• Men's Tennis: Nehal Naidoo (Singles) 

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2025-26 CSC Academic All-District 
Fall  

• Women's Soccer 
  • Valeria Delgado, Natalia Salas 
• Volleyball 
  • Isabel Rodriguez, Lauren Demuth 
• Football 
  • Tyler Ball, Torbyn Eakins, Girevis Bobey, David Walker 

Winter 

• Men's Basketball 
  • Kyle McElroy, Tash Lunday 
• Women's Basketball 
  • Kenadi Rising, Jonesha Neal, Crystal Jones 
• Swimming and Diving 
  • (Men): Colin Doyle, Niklas Heelein, Owen Putnam, Chase Alderman 
  • (Women): Rowan McWhorter 

Spring 

• Tennis 
  • (Men): Lucas Nakasato,  
  • (Women): Sophia Rashid, Dinethya Dharmaratne, Mattea Bowe 
• Softball 
  • Jessica Cantrell, Carlee Quintero 
• Baseball 
  • Cruz Garcia, Timmy LaChappa 
• Golf 
  • (Men): Nizar Bourehim, Ioan Rowe 
  • (Women): Lorena Etxeberria, Nat Armenta 

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2025-26 Edgardo Madrid & Associates Student-Athletes of the Month  
September  

• Valeria Delgado (Women's Soccer) and Will Tate (Men's Golf) 

October  

• Ashlee Macias (Volleyball) and Ioan Rowe (Men's Golf) 

November  

• Kierra Freeman (Volleyball) and Kanon Gibson (Football) 

December  

• Kenadi Rising (Women's Basketball) and Tash Lunday (Men's Basketball) 

January  

• Madison Walters (Women's Basketball), Sharrod Taylor (Men's Basketball) and Owen Putnam (Men's Swimming & Diving) 

February  

• Jessica Cantrell (Softball) and Nico Turner (Men's Swimming & Diving) 

March  

• Paige Sitanggang (Women's Tennis), Will Tate (Men's Golf) and Gael Bernal (Baseball) 

April  

• Jessica Cantrell (Softball), Will Tate (Men's Golf) and Nehal Naidoo (Men's Tennis)