Apr. 7—Thanks to the generosity and support of Edgardo Madrid & Associates, UTPB Athletics Department has announced Dinethya Dharmaratne (Women's Tennis), Timmy LaChappa (Baseball) and Will Tate (Men's Golf) as the March Student-Athletes of the Month.
It is the first time co-winners have been awarded for either gender for the student-athlete of the month award.
Thanks to the sponsorship by Edgardo Madrid & Associates, UTPB Athletics will be recognizing one male and one female student-athlete each month as Student-Athletes of the Month. At the end of the 2024-25 athletics season, one male and one female student-athlete will be selected as UTPB's Student-Athletes of the Year.
Dharmaratne was 5-1 in singles matches (2-0 at No. 5, 3-1 at No. 6) in March, including an exhibition win over NCAA Division I UTRGV at No. 6 singles. All five of her victories on the month came in straight sets. To start the month, Dharmaratne clinched the match with a 6-1, 6-4 win at No. 6 singles in a 4-2 victory over Metro State (Mar. 2). She also clinched the match with a 6-0, 6-0 win at No. 6 singles as UTPB won its 2025 home opener and Lone Star Conference opener 5-2 over Cameron (Mar. 28), improving to 6-0 in singles at the time as just a freshman.
LaChappa was 2-0 during March with two complete-game victories over No. 23 West Texas A&M and No. 3 UT Tyler. He started the month by allowing five hits, one run and three walks while striking out four in a 14-1 win over West Texas A&M (Mar. 1). It was the second complete game and was the first-career win for LaChappa and was the first complete-game victory of the season for the UTPB pitching staff. At the end of the month, he again went the distance and tossed a one-hit shutout in which he allowed three walks and struck out three batters in a 1-0 win over UT Tyler (Mar. 29). He retired the final 10 batters he faced to become the first pitcher to shut out the Patriots this season. It was the fourth one-hitter in program history and the first since 2017, and was the third complete game one-hitter in program history (one pitcher). LaChappa would subsequently be named both the Lone Star Conference Pitcher of the Week and the National Collegiate Baseball Writer's Association (NCBWA) South Central Region Pitcher of the Week.
Tate has been named a student-athlete of the month twice this year (October, March). Tate recorded a tournament win, two top-five finishes, and was in the top-20 during all three tournaments during the month of March. He claimed the first individual win of his career, taking top honors at the Midwestern State Invitational (Mar. 24-25), and was also tied for fourth at the Shadow Valley Invitational (Mar. 3-4) and tied for 19th at Oak Tree Invitational (Mar. 17-18). The Falcons finished in fourth place while Tate was one-over par during round one and shot 73-75 (148) overall at the Shadow Valley Invitational. Tate then shot 79-72-76 (227) and was plus-two during round two at the Oak Tree Invitational. The highlight of the month came as Tate claimed the individual win at the Midwestern State Invitational while UTPB put together its second top-five team finish of the month. Tate shot six-under-par during the opening round and led the tournament by four strokes, and kept up his pace with a minus-one during round two to lead the tournament by six strokes. After shooting under-par during each of the first two rounds, Tate finished at 65-70-72 (207) and was plus-one during the final round, but still won the tournament by five strokes and beat six golfers who are ranked in the top-10 of their respective division. Tate jumped into the top-five of three categories in the UTPB record book. His single-round score of 65 during round one ranks as the fifth-lowest in program history while his three-round score of 207 is tied for fifth. ...
