Marks officially announced as UTPA coach
EDINBURG - Ryan Marks was officially announced as the new University of Texas-Pan American men's basketball coach Wednesday.
A news conference introducing him as the coach is planned for sometime next week, almost three months after the coaching search began March 6 after interim athletic director Ricky Vaughn decided against renewing former coach Tom Schuberth's contract.
Marks has spent the last five seasons as coach of Division-II St. Edwards University in Austin.
He has led the Hilltoppers to four consecutive winning seasons, three D-II NCAA tournament appearances and a 91-54 record.
Marks has also spent time as coach of Division-III Southern Vermont College in Vermont and had assistant stints at Central Missouri State University and Northern Illinois University.
Marks is taking over a program with an outstanding investigation into possible NCAA rules violations and will be challenged this summer to fill out a roster with only eight players.
Regional Bound
The University of Texas-Pan American track programs will have four athletes competing in the Midwest Regional on Friday and Saturday in Norman, Okla.
The top five finishers in each event qualify for the national outdoor championships in two weeks in Fayetteville, Ark.
UTPA track & field coach Dave Hartman said the Broncs athletes competing this week will have a tough task ahead of them.
"I think all four athletes have a shot at qualifying at the national championships," Hartman said. "Realistically, it is going to be extremely difficult. The Midwest Regional is extremely strong across the board. However, it's a good opportunity for these athletes to see the best competition they have seen all season."
Three of those four athletes are from the Rio Grande Valley. Former Edinburg North standout Wally Gonzalez will compete in the 800-meter run, former PSJA North athlete J.J. Hernandez will compete in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and Stephanie Perez, a Brownsville Pace product, will compete in the discus.
San Antonio native Amanda Ferris will compete in the hammer.
Looking Back
Hartman has had a busy five months as coach of the UTPA track & field programs. He replaced Dennis Darling in January, and it has admittedly been tough at times for the coach.
"I've had a good, if not an extremely busy, last few months," Hartman said. "Coming in midseason is always tough. Obviously, recruiting was a huge priority. It was a little hectic but overall I thought we got through very well, considering the circumstances. My hat goes off to the team. They were able to stay focused on the task at hand."
Positive Note
The UTPA baseball team ended the year on a season-high three-game winning streak. The Broncs' victory Friday against Houston Baptist was the first time they had won back-back-back games on consecutive days.
On Saturday, the Broncs finally beat Northern Colorado University, a team that had beat UTPA in five straight by scoring 97 runs.
Peter Rasmussen covers UTPA athletics for Valley Freedom Newspapers. You can reach him at (956) 683-4448.
