Kendall Dove allowed one run in five innings to earn the victory Sunday as UTSA swept three games from Dallas Baptist. – Courtesy photo from UTSA athletics

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Josh Arquette stroked two hits and produced three RBIs Sunday as undefeated and record-setting UTSA downed the Dallas Baptist Patriots 6-3 to sweep a three-game series between mid-major powers in college baseball.

A crowd of 1,049 at Roadrunner Field watched as UTSA improved to 7-0, the best record after seven games in program history. Another record was set with 3,048 in attendance for the three games.

Roadrunners starter Kendall Dove started and worked five innings, giving up only one run on five hits, to earn the victory.

Reliever Gunnar Brown, making his second appearance in two days, was almost as effective in pitching the last four innings for the save.

He yielded two runs on five hits, a day after UTSA’s 10-8 victory, in which he earned the win in 2/3 of an inning.

A bit of drama unfolded in the last inning Sunday when Brown issued one-out walks to Jake Bennett and Ben Tryon, who both later advanced on a wild pitch.

With runners at second and third, Brown responded by striking out Chayton Krauss on a check swing. Finally, he retired slugger Ryan Martin on a long fly ball to right field to end it.

UTSA coach Pat Hallmark praised his players for evolving into “a complete team” in winning the finale against the Patriots, who fell to 4-3.

“We looked like a very good baseball team today” he said. “We pitched it. We put together grown-up bats versus good pitching in conditions that were not conducive to hitting.

“We played good defense. We ran the bases (well). It was a just a very complete game. It’s one that’ll make a coach pleased.”

Hallmark raised an eyebrow when he was asked what it means to start the season 7-0.

“It means we’re OK,” he said. “It means we got a decent team. But, again, we want to improve. We’re always looking forward …. We’re looking to improve, but 7-0 is better than anything else.”

After winning seven straight at home by a combined score of 81-32, the Roadrunners play their first road game Tuesday night in San Marcos against the I-35 rival Texas State Bobcats.

“(They are) a good team and they’re good fans,” Hallmark said. “They love their team, and they mostly hate UTSA, and that’s OK. That’s what fans are supposed to do.”

On a cool afternoon with fans wearing jackets and sweatshirts and a stiff wind blowing into the hitters’ faces, the Roadrunners jumped on the Patriots in the bottom of the first.

They scored three runs on three hits, two walks and a wild pitch by Patriots starter Ryan Borberg.

With the bases loaded and only one out, Arquette bounced a single up the middle to score the first two runs.

Christian Hallmark followed with a bouncer through the right side to make it 3-0.

In essence, the inning served as a microcosm of how the Roadrunners won the series against a perennial NCAA tournament team.

They laid off pitches out of the strike zone. They took the walks when they could and then capitalized with timely hitting.

“Really it’s just trusting your approach, trusting your eyes and just not trying to do too much,” Arquette said. “Get a pitch that you can handle, and if they don’t give it to you, take the free pass.

“Because,” he added, “we can hit. So we’re going to capitalize on pitchers’ mistakes.”

The Patriots out-hit the Roadrunners 10-9, the second time on the weekend that they had more hits than the home team and still lost.

Their problem stemmed from the disparity in walks and how the Roadrunners took advantage of it.

They Patriots issued eight free passes, compared to only three combined by Dove and Brown.

Four of the eight UTSA players who walked ended up scoring. DBU, by contrast, didn’t score with any of its three who reached via the base on ball.

Dove said he felt good and tried to just throw as many strikes as possible, and then let the defense do the work.

“And they played great (behind me) today,” said Dove, who struck out six batters and walked one.

In the fifth inning, the Patriots scored their first run of the game when Jake Bennett delivered an RBI double down the left field to make it 4-1.

Afterward, Hallmark came out to the mound to tell his starting pitcher that the next batter, Tryon, would be the last one he’d face.

But after Dove struck out Tryon, he signaled to the dugout that he’d like to pitch to the next batter, Krauss, the preseason Player of the Year in Conference USA.

Dove was granted his wish, and then he retired Krauss on a long fly ball to left.

“I thought I had him,” Dove said. “I wanted to compete against him. Thanks to coach Hallmark for letting me get the opportunity right there.”

Looking into looming challenges for the Roadrunners, the Bobcats in San Marcos and then the Astros Classic in Houston next weekend, Dove said there’s “definitely” more work to be done.

“We’re starting to figure out our identity a little bit,” he said. “But it’s going to be tested again on Tuesday and this weekend, and we’ll see how we handle it from there.”

Records

Dallas Baptist 4-3
UTSA 7-0

Coming up

UTSA at Texas State, Tuesday, 6 p.m.

Notable

The Patriots haven’t been swept in a three-game series since March 3-5 in 2023 when they lost three straight to the Southern Miss Golden Eagles in Hattiesburg.

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Drew Detlefsen had four hits, including a two-run single in a six-run eighth inning, as the undefeated UTSA Roadrunners rallied on a windy day in San Antonio to defeat the Dallas Baptist Patriots, 10-8.

Coach Pat Hallmark’s team won its second straight in two days over the Patriots, a perennial NCAA tournament team, clinching the three-game series going into Sunday’s finale at Roadrunner Field.

The win also lifted Hallmark’s Roadrunners to a 6-0 record for the best start after six games in program history.

Dallas Baptist, a program that has advanced to 11 straight NCAA tournaments, scored two runs in the seventh and three more in the eighth to take a 7-4 lead.

From there, the Roadrunners capitalized on an ensuing Patriots’ bullpen meltdown in the bottom half to score six runs on four hits, four walks and a hit by pitch.

Leading by three runs going into the ninth, UTSA called on pitcher Mike DeBattista, who earned the save.

Battista gave up a one-out solo home run to Ryan Martin for the final run of the day, but after that, he retired two straight to secure the save, getting Landon Underhill on a grounder and Adam Burghult on a fly ball to right field.

UTSA’s momentum from a record-breaking, 47-15 season last year has become undeniable.

The Roadrunners, featuring a core of veterans who won the American Conference and NCAA Austin Regional titles a year ago, have started to play like they expect to win every day.

Detlefsen told ESPN on the postgame that the team felt confident going into the bottom of the eighth.

“This team is special,” said Detlefsen, who had two hits in the inning. “You can see it here, with a top team like DBU. (It’s a) respectable team, and we just battled. I can’t give enough praise to everyone. The fans. The players. Everyone that contributed to this win.”

In the series opener, the Patriots out-hit the Roadrunners by two, while both teams slugged three home runs. But the Roadrunners countered with pitching that didn’t walk a batter and a defense that didn’t make an error in 12-8 victory

UTSA wasn’t quite as clean on Saturday. The Roadrunners’ offense left 15 runners on base. The defense made two errors in the field, and the pitching walked seven.

But the pitching did have its moments, particularly a stretch of a few middle innings from reliever Conor Myles, and the hitting also came to life when it counted.

Down by three runs going into the bottom of the eighth, the Roadrunners sent 13 batters to the plate to stun the Patriots with six runs.

Detlefsen, one of the standouts on last year’s team, led off against DBU pitcher Athan Kroll with a single to right field.

Lane Haworth followed with his own single to right, putting runners at first and second. Kroll got the first out of the inning when Josh Arquette fouled off a pitch that was caught in front of the DBU dugout by Burghult, the catcher.

At that point, Hallmark got aggressive. He called for a double steal, and it worked, with Detlefsen taking third and Haworth pulling into second. At that juncture, Kroll started to falter, walking Christian Hallmark to load the bases.

Dallas Baptist coach Dan Heefner promptly countered by bringing in a new pitcher, a 6-foot-5, 255-pound righty named JT Long, to put out the fire.

Long looked imposing. He was throwing hard. Nevertheless, Jacob Silva greeted him with an RBI single for UTSA’s first run of the inning. With the bases still loaded, Long continued to struggle, hitting Diego Diaz with a pitch to force in a second run.

Hallmark maneuvered again, bringing in freshman Nathan Johnson to pinch hit, and Johnson responded with a long sacrifice fly ball to right for the second out. Nevertheless, another run scored to tie the game, 7-7.

After UTSA’s Jordan Ballin walked, Caden Miller stood in the box and worked the count to 3-2 against Long. He lashed a ball down the right field line that might have been a three-run extra-base hit, but it was barely foul.

Finally, Miller drew another bases-loaded walk to break the tie, lifting the Roadrunners into an 8-7 lead. With the crowd up and cheering and with the bases still loaded, Detlefsen stepped into the box for the second time.

He responded with a single through the left side, driving in two, and pushing UTSA’s lead to 10-7.

“I can’t lie,” Detlefsen told ESPN. “I was feeling nervous. With the adrenaline and all that. But once I got it to 2-0, I was looking for a pitch to hit, and on the ground, of course, with this wind.

“So, I just wanted to do damage. I got the pitch up (in the strike zone) and put it in play.”

In the end, UTSA outhit Dallas Baptist 13-7, with Detlefsen leading the way. He went four for six, scored twice and produced two RBIs. Silva and Haworth both had three hits in four at bats.

Records

Dallas Baptist 4-2
UTSA 6-0

Coming up

Dallas Baptist at UTSA, Sunday, 1 p.m.
UTSA at Texas State, Tuesday, 6 p.m.

Notable

Three years ago, the Patriots swept three games at Roadrunner Field to clinch the Conference USA title. After UTSA joined with the American, the two played again last year in Dallas, and the Patriots won the series, two games to one.

With those outcomes, DBU increased its overall head-to-head record to 8-1 against UTSA. Now, of course, the Roadrunners have trimmed that lead to 8-3, going into Sunday’s series finale.

Last season, both teams advanced to play in the NCAA tournament. While the Patriots were ousted in the Baton Rouge Regional, the Roadrunners swept to three straight wins to claim the Austin Regional title.

Included in the regional victory were two straight wins over the Texas Longhorns, who were the Southeastern Conference regular-season champions and the No. 2 overall seed in the tournament.

UTSA reached the Los Angeles Super Regional and lost two straight to 15th-seeded UCLA.

UTSA relief pitcher Sam Simmons showed his emotions after throwing 64 pitches in 4 and 2/3 innings of one-run relief. The senior from Manvel scattered seven hits, earned the victory and improved to 2-0. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

In their first test against a quality program this season, the UTSA Roadrunners won the baseball game and passed the examination.

UTSA scored six runs in the first inning Friday night and then held on behind reliever Sam Simmons for a 12-8 victory over the Dallas Baptist Patriots at Roadrunner Field.

With the win, the Roadrunners beat a perennial NCAA tournament team, scored in double figures for the fifth straight game and remained undefeated at 5-0, matching the 2010 and 2013 teams for the fastest starts in program history.

Josh Arquette smashed a three-run triple to spark UTSA’s six-run first inning. He also doubled in the fifth. – Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA will try to break the record Saturday afternoon in the second of three games this weekend against the Patriots, who fell to 4-1.

In their first four games, the Roadrunners won by a combined score of 53-13, so Coach Pat Hallmark said on the eve of this weekend’s series that he knew the Patriots would be the first to challenge them.

He was eager to discover how his team could respond to adversity.

“We found out we can handle getting punched, at least sometimes, and we’ll keep finding out,” Hallmark said. “I asked the guys to enjoy tonight — without partaking. But I asked them to wake up (Saturday) a little bit pissed off.

“I don’t want to be satisfied.”

Hallmark said that sort of attitude last spring at the NCAA Austin Regional helped immensely when the Roadrunners beat the Kansas State Wildcats in their opener for the program’s historic first playoff victory.

He told his players then not to let up. To keep playing with a purpose, and they did it, winning the next two nights against the Texas Longhorns to claim their first NCAA regional title.

“This (game, against Dallas Baptist) is just one game,” Hallmark said. “Everybody thought we hung the moon (after Kansas State last year). I’m happy tonight, but we didn’t hang the moon. We beat a good team. We’ve beat a good team before.

“We need to win again.”

Diego Diaz jumps into a gaggle of his best friends after socking a two-run homer to cap a six-run first inning.- Photo by Joe Alexander

Dallas Baptist entered the season as one of only five programs in the nation to reach the NCAA tournament each of the last 11 years (excluding the 2020 Covid season).

The other four programs include Florida, LSU, Oklahoma State and Vanderbilt.

While some fans around the nation might not know about the Patriots’ prowess, the Roadrunners certainly do. Dallas Baptist entered the weekend 8-1 all time in baseball against UTSA.

Simmons (2-0) was still feeling the emotion about 30 minutes after it was over.

After hurling 4 and 2/3 innings of one-run relief to finish off the game and earn the victory, he was asked if it was all right for the media to call him the iron man, considering he threw 64 pitches.

“Yes sir, you can,” he said. “It was just a lot of fun. Games like that, as a player, are what you live for.”

Simmons entered with one out in the fifth inning, with UTSA leading 8-7. Dallas Baptist’s Ben Tryon had just cranked a three-run homer, prompting coaches to visit the mound and take the ball from UTSA starter Connor Kelley.

Simmons, who delivers his pitches both from the side and over the top, did not disappoint.

Facing his first two hitters, he yielded a loud single to Chayton Krauss and then another blast off the bat of Ryan Martin. Fortunately for Simmons and the Roadrunners, Martin’s ball sailed deep to center field, where Christian Hallmark turned, ran and made a running catch into the padded wall for the second out.

Andrew Stucky is greeted by Coach Pat Hallmark as he rounds third in the fifth inning following his two-run homer. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Landon Underhill followed with an infield single, putting two runners aboard and bringing up Dylan Cupp.

As it turned out, UTSA escaped the inning without another run scoring when UTSA shortstop Jordan Ballin snared Cupp’s ground ball deep in the hole and threw on multiple hops to first base for the third out.

Though the call was challenged, the umpires upheld it, one of several turning points in a crazy game.

As Patriots fans who made the trip to San Antonio groaned at the decision, Roadrunners fans cheered. They cheered even louder in UTSA’s next at bat as Andrew Stucky socked a two-run homer in the bottom half of the fifth to make it 10-7.

Drew Detlefsen followed with a two-run shot in the sixth for a 12-7 lead. In the top of the eighth, Simmons gave up a solo homer to slugger Adam Berghult as the Patriots trimmed the lead to 12-8.

But in the end, the 6-foot-4 righthander would yield only two more singles the rest of the way, finishing the game by fanning Berghult looking for the last out. The senior from Manvel gave up only one run on seven hits, while striking out four.

“Sam was great,” Hallmark said. “Kelley was good, too. I know the (statistics) line is not going to be good (for him) because he gave up some runs. But I’m proud of both of ’em. We didn’t walk a batter. That’s awesome against that team.

“It’s so, so important not to walk ’em.”

Drew Detlefsen watches the ball sail over the left field wall for his first homer of the season in the sixth inning. It was a two-run blast that yielded a 12-7 lead for the Roadrunners. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Kelley, a late-innings reliever last year, worked the first four and a third innings. Though he gave up two home runs among seven hits and seven runs, he also struck out seven and worked hard into the fifth inning.

That, in itself, was important for the Roadrunners. UTSA will need that from Kelley with ace Robert Orloski battling a shoulder injury. Orloski hurt his arm on opening day after throwing only 23 pitches.

Hallmark said he doesn’t know when he will be able to return but added that it won’t be soon.

Offensively, UTSA cranked out 10 hits, including three home runs, a double and a triple. The homers came from Diego Diaz, Stucky and Detlefsen. Josh Arquette stroked two extra-base hits and had three RBIs.

Diaz and Detlefsen also had a pair of hits and two RBIs apiece.

In the first inning, the Roadrunners erupted, with Arquette sparking the six-run uprising with a three-run triple.

Diaz capped the outburst with his second home run of the season, a two-run blast to right that chased Patriots starter Russ Smith, who took the loss and fell to 1-1.

Smith entered the season as a highly-regarded prospect from Cowley College, where he was 9-1. The righthander won on opening night for the Patriots, allowing two runs on two hits in four innings against Binghamton (N.Y.)

Against the Roadrunners, he couldn’t find the plate, walking three and giving up three hits, with the last one sent soaring 397 feet into an overcast sky by Diaz.

“Everybody’s going to want to talk about the hitting and about Sam, and we should,” Hallmark said. “The hitting and Sam were really good. But Kelley was a grown up tonight. To handle adversity like he did, I’m proud of him.”

Records

Dallas Baptist 4-1
UTSA 5-0

Dallas Baptist coach Dan Heefner has led the Patriots to 11 straight NCAA tournaments. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Coming up

Dallas Baptist at UTSA, Saturday, 2 p.m.
Dallas Baptist at UTSA, Sunday, 1 p.m.
UTSA at Texas State, Tuesday, 6 p.m.

Notable

The Dallas Baptist Patriots hit .353 as a team with six home runs in their first four games, including four by Jake Bennett.

Bennett went one for three with two runs scored and an RBI. But UTSA struck him out twice, once in the first inning by Connor Kelley and again in the eighth by Sam Simmons.

DBU cranked out 12 hits, including three homers.

Hitting the ball out of the park for the Patriots were Chayton Krauss in the third inning and Ben Tryon in the fifth, both off Kelley, and also Adam Berghult in the eighth off Sam Simmons.

Four free passes issued by Dallas Baptist pitching turned into UTSA runs. Three of the first four Roadrunners who walked ended up crossing the plate and, later, the second of two batters hit by pitches also scored.

UTSA pitching didn’t walk a batter, but it did put three runners on base via the hit by pitch. Only one of those Dallas Baptist base runners scored.

After plunking two straight batters in the sixth, UTSA’s Simmons fell behind Tryon 3-0 in the count, only to rally and register a strikeout on an overhand breaking pitch.

On Saturday, Jared Schaeffer (1-0, 0.00) is expected to start for Dallas Baptist, but for UTSA, it’s an unknown as coach Pat Hallmark said he remains undecided.

Ryan Borberg (0-0, 40.50) is expected to start for the Patriots on Sunday against Roadrunners’ righty Kendall Dove (1-0, 0.00).

UTSA relief pitcher Sam Simmons delivers the ball from the side and also from over the top. He’s worked 9 and 2/3 innings this season, giving up one run on eight hits. – Photo by Joe Alexander