Category Archives: College baseball

As the postseason dawns, UTSA fans are feeling all the emotions

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Caleb Hill. UTSA beat Incarnate Word 13-3 in non-conference baseball on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Caleb Hill and the second-seeded UTSA Roadrunners take on the No. 7 Charlotte 49ers today on opening day of the American Baseball Championship. The tournament runs through Sunday in Clearwater, Fla. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

How does everyone feel this morning? I’m talking about fans of the UTSA Roadrunners. Are you feeling anxious? Optimistic? Pessimistic? I’m here in San Antonio today, sorting it all out for you as the American Baseball Championship gets underway in Florida.

With UTSA this season, it’s understandable if you feel a mix of emotions going into Day 1 of the six-day event in Clearwater. As it happens with the nearby Gulf of Mexico, Roadrunners baseball has experienced its ebbs and flows over the past three months. Low and high tides. Cloudy weather, followed by sunny skies.

I am an optimist at heart, and I do think the Roadrunners have a decent shot of making it to Sunday’s championship game. But let’s start with a few reasons to feel sort of anxious or even pessimistic this morning, just to get those emotions out of the way. There aren’t many reasons to wring your hands. But let’s do it anyway, just to deal with reality.

First, the Charlotte 49ers, I suspect, will supply stiff opposition when the Roadrunners take the field this afternoon for the third of today’s four-game lineup. Their coach, Robert Woodard, has guided his team to NCAA tournaments in 2021 and 2023. He knows how to get it done this time of year.

Woodard and the 49ers, in fact, eliminated the Roadrunners from the Conference USA tournament in Houston last season.

Second, the 49ers have two effective left-handed pitchers that I remember seeing at Roadrunner Field on April 5. Cole Reynolds started and AJ Wilson relieved for the 49ers in the first of a three-game series, and it was a tough night for the home fans. Lefties tend to do well against the Roadrunners, and these two presented problems that night. In part because of the pitching of these two guys, and also because a couple of freshmen who jumped up and played well, Charlotte won, 10-5.

In this double-elimination format through the semifinals, you don’t want to lose the opener. You don’t want to get behind the proverbial eight-ball right off the jump. For the Roadrunners to heighten their hopes of making a long and successful run, they’ll need to play well against the 49ers, no matter who is on the mound.

Because, if they lose, it gets really hard. A losers’ bracket game would be played on Wednesday.

Then again, I’m not counting out the Roadrunners even if they lose today. No way. This team has impressed me from opening day with its steady resolve. Part of that resolve stems from players spending so much time around fifth-year Coach Pat Hallmark and assistants Zach Butler and Ryan Aguayo.

But I think most of it is the players and how they approach the game. Take Ulises Quiroga, for instance. Quiroga wasn’t healthy in February as the season opened. But he was determined to have a good season, and he did.

I suspect Quiroga will be on the mound for the Roadrunners today, so that is one good reason to be hopeful. The senior from Baytown had a great year, fashioned an 8-1 record with a 3.59 earned run average and made first-team all conference.

Ideally, for the Roadrunners, they take an early lead and then start to grind down the 49ers. Keep the lead and then turn it over to a bullpen that has been good for most of the season, especially Ruger Riojas, only one of two pitchers in the nation with as many as 10 victories and seven saves.

Riojas, surely, will be a highly motivated player this week. On Monday, the AAC announced its postseason honors. One reliever, East Carolina’s Wyatt Lunsford-Shenkman, made the first team. Riojas was second team.

I’m sure that Lunsford-Shenkman, with a 1.20 earned run average and a .218 batting average against, would have felt the same way if he had been second team. But Riojas had as much to do with his team’s success as any player in the conference this season, and I suspect he will be out to make a point this week.

Quiroga and Riojas, you have to think, will be motivated and determined. Combined with their skill, I believe it gives UTSA a fighting chance to make it to Sunday.

Offensively, the Roadrunners had some issues down the stretch of the regular season. They hit around .255 as a team during a spell of four losses in seven games from late April through early May. But they will come into the tournament with the likes of Mason Lytle, Alexander Olivo and Matt King — all first-team, all conference — all of them hitting well north of .300.

They’ve also got players with first-team ability who didn’t make it. Caleb Hill is one of them. If Hill can get hot, the Roadrunners should be able to do damage and score some runs. Also, keep an eye on Diego Diaz. He’s another X-factor, type player. A member of the conference’s all freshman team.

Like I say, I think the Roadrunners have enough good players to win some games early this week. If they win today, they’ll play either Tulane or Florida Atlantic on Thursday. Based on past results — sweeping to three wins at Tulane earlier this year and beating FAU two of three last weekend — they should be OK in Game 2, as well.

As for their chances beyond that, a lot will depend on pitching depth. As everyone knows, the Roadrunners have had some struggles in that area over the past month or so. Freshman Rob Orloski, their Friday night starter in March, is working his way back into form after enduring a tough month of April.

To win a title this week, they’ll need him, along with Zach Royse and Fischer Kingsbery and Braylon Owens and Daniel Garza and Ryan Beaird and all the others to dial up A-game performances. They’ll need the defense to lock down and make the plays, as well.

Oh, and I almost forgot. They’ll need some intangibles, for sure.

Momentum. Good fortune. More momentum. A few more good breaks … They haven’t had a full week of that type of thing since 2013, when they swept through the Western Athletic Conference tournament in Grand Prairie all the way to an NCAA Regional in Corvallis, Ore.

So, hey, maybe it’s been so long, they are due. Maybe the stars will align and the tide will come in for them this week. I guess we will soon find out.

American Baseball Championship

Tuesday, May 21
Game 1: No. 5 UAB vs. No. 4 Wichita State | 8 a.m. | ESPN+
Game 2: No. 8 Rice vs. No. 1 East Carolina | 47 minutes after Game 1 | ESPN+
Game 3: No. 7 Charlotte vs. No. 2 UTSA | 3 p.m. | ESPN+
Game 4: No. 6 Florida Atlantic vs. No. 3 Tulane | 47 minutes after Game 3 | ESPN+

Wednesday, May 22
Game 5: Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2 | noon | ESPN+
Game 6: Loser of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4 | 47 minutes after Game 5 | ESPN+

Thursday, May 23
Game 7: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2 | noon| ESPN+
Game 8: Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4 | 47 minutes after Game 7 | ESPN+

Friday, May 24
Game 9: Loser of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 5 | noon | ESPN+
Game 10: Loser of Game 8 vs. Winner of Game 6 | 47 minutes after Game 9 | ESPN+

Saturday, May 25
Game 11: Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 9 | 8 a.m. | ESPN+
Game 12: Winner of Game 8 vs. Winner of Game 10 | 47 minutes after Game 11 | ESPN+
Game 13: Loser of Game 11 vs. Winner of Game 11 | TBD (if necessary) | ESPN+
Game 14: Loser of Game 12 vs. Winner of Game 12 | TBD (if necessary) | ESPN+

Sunday, May 26
Game 15: Semifinal Winners | 11 a.m. | ESPNEWS

Postseason honors: UTSA lands four on AAC first team

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Four baseball players from the UTSA Roadrunners have been named all-conference first team in the American Athletic Conference, according to a news release.

The four included centerfielder Mason Lytle, who was also named as the AAC’s Newcomer Position Player of the Year. The others were pitcher Ulises Quiroga, shortstop Matt King and designated hitter Alexander Olivo.

Landing on the second team were a pair of UTSA players in relief pitching ace Ruger Riojas and leftfielder Caleb Hill. All-Freshman honors went to UTSA’s Robert Orloski and second baseman Diego Diaz.

The postseason honors were announced in a release on Monday afternoon. UTSA is set to play the Charlotte 49ers Tuesday at 3 p.m. in Clearwater, Fla., on opening day of the six-day American Baseball Championship, a tournament consisting of the top eight teams in the AAC.

AAC Baseball Honors

Player of the Year – Carter Cunningham, Sr., 1B, East Carolina

Pitcher of the Year – Trey Yesavage, Jr., East Carolina*

Newcomer Position Player of the Year – Mason Lytle, Jr., OF, UTSA

Newcomer Pitcher of the Year – Tommy LaPour, Fr., Wichita State

Defensive Player of the Year – Ryley Johnson, Jr., OF, East Carolina

Coach of the Year – Cliff Godwin, East Carolina

First-team all conference

P – Blayze Berry, Sr., UAB*
P – Trey Yesavage, Jr., East Carolina*
P – Ulises Quiroga, Sr., UTSA
P – Caden Favors, Sr., Wichita State
RP – Wyatt Lunsford-Shenkman, Jr., East Carolina
C – Justin Wilcoxen, Sr., East Carolina
1B – Carter Cunningham, Sr., East Carolina*
2B – Bobby Boser, Jr., South Florida
SS – Matt King, Jr., UTSA
3B – Gavin Schulz, Jr., Tulane
OF – Jacob Jenkins-Cowart, Jr., East Carolina
OF – Ryley Johnson, Jr., East Carolina
OF – Mason Lytle, Jr., UTSA
DH – Alexander Olivo, Sr., UTSA
UTL – Ben Rozenblum, R-Sr., South Florida

All-Conference Second Team

P – Colin Daniel, So., UAB
P – Danny Beal, Sr., East Carolina
P – C.J. Williams, Sr., Florida Atlantic
P – Tommy LaPour, Fr., Wichita State
RP – Ruger Riojas, So., UTSA
C – Colin Tuft, Jr., Tulane
1B – Brady Marget, Jr., Tulane
2B – Connor Rasmussen, So., Tulane
SS – Gavin Lewis Jr, Jr., UAB
3B – Camden Johnson, Fr., Wichita State
OF – Caleb Hill, Sr., UTSA
OF – Derek Williams, Jr., Wichita State
OF – Logan Braunschweig, Jr., UAB
DH – Ryan McCrystal, Jr., East Carolina
UTL – Michael Lombardi, So., Tulane

All-Freshman Team – Bristol Carter, OF, East Carolina; Ethan Norby, P, East Carolina*; Trey Beard, P, Florida Atlantic; Emilio Gonzalez, INF, Florida Atlantic; Diego Diaz, 2B, UTSA;
Robert Orloski, P, UTSA; Tyler Dobbs, P, Wichita State; Lane Haworth, OF, Wichita State; Camden Johnson, INF, Wichita State; Tommy LaPour, P, Wichita State*

* – Denotes unanimous selection

UTSA draws Charlotte in opening round of AAC tournament

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The second-seeded UTSA Roadrunners will face the No. 7 Charlotte 49ers in the opening round of the American Baseball Championship on Tuesday at 3 p.m. in Clearwater, Fla.

The postseason tournament for teams from the American Athletic Conference will run from Tuesday through Sunday, May 26, at the BayCare Ballpark in Clearwater.

It’s a double-elimination format through the semifinals, with a winner-take-all championship set for May 26. The winner earns the AAC’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

Top-seeded East Carolina likely is the only team in the eight-team field that could reach the NCAAs without winning the AAC tournament. The Pirates have won 40 games and have been ranked in the Top 25 all year.

For the Roadrunners to be successful, they must stay away from an opening-day loss against Charlotte. A loss would send them into a losers’ bracket game on Wednesday.

If they can beat the 49ers, they get a day off before they play again on Thursday against either third-seeded Tulane or No. 6 Florida Atlantic.

Should the top two seeds make the finals, it would be a single-game rematch of UTSA’s opening-weekend series victory over East Carolina in San Antonio.

UTSA and Tulane are the only two AAC teams in the field to win a series against East Carolina this season.

The Roadrunners have been playing well over the past eight days. They won two of three at home from South Florida. They won 13-3 at home last Tuesday against Incarnate Word in non conference. Finally, they won two of three at Florida Atlantic in Boca Raton.

They beat the Owls 14-1 (on the run rule, in 8 innings) on Thursday and 3-2 (in 10 innings) on Friday before giving up two late runs to fall in Saturday afternoon’s finale, 6-4.

American Baseball Championship

Tuesday, May 21
Game 1: No. 5 UAB vs. No. 4 Wichita State | 8 a.m. | ESPN+
Game 2: No. 8 Rice vs. No. 1 East Carolina | 47 minutes after Game 1 | ESPN+
Game 3: No. 7 Charlotte vs. No. 2 UTSA | 3 p.m. | ESPN+
Game 4: No. 6 Florida Atlantic vs. No. 3 Tulane | 47 minutes after Game 3 | ESPN+

Wednesday, May 22
Game 5: Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2 | noon | ESPN+
Game 6: Loser of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4 | 47 minutes after Game 5 | ESPN+

Thursday, May 23
Game 7: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2 | noon| ESPN+
Game 8: Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4 | 47 minutes after Game 7 | ESPN+

Friday, May 24
Game 9: Loser of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 5 | noon | ESPN+
Game 10: Loser of Game 8 vs. Winner of Game 6 | 47 minutes after Game 9 | ESPN+

Saturday, May 25
Game 11: Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 9 | 8 a.m. | ESPN+
Game 12: Winner of Game 8 vs. Winner of Game 10 | 47 minutes after Game 11 | ESPN+
Game 13: Loser of Game 11 vs. Winner of Game 11 | TBD (if necessary) | ESPN+
Game 14: Loser of Game 12 vs. Winner of Game 12 | TBD (if necessary) | ESPN+

Sunday, May 26
Game 15: Semifinal Winners | 11 a.m. | ESPNEWS

Teams at a glance

1) East Carolina – The Pirates (19-8, 40-13) entered the final weekend on a five-game losing streak before winning three in a row at home against the Rice Owls to nail down their fifth straight AAC regular-season title.

2) UTSA – The Roadrunners (17-10, 32-22) won consecutive weekend series against South Florida at home and against FAU on the road to give them seven series wins out of nine in their inaugural AAC campaign.

3) Tulane – The Green Wave (15-12, 31-24) will enter the tournament as one of the hottest teams, having won five of their last six games, including three straight at home from May 10-12 against East Carolina.

4) Wichita State – The Shockers (15-12, 29-27) were slumping badly coming into San Antonio in May. At Roadrunner Field, they started a string of three straight AAC series wins against UTSA, Charlotte and Memphis, respectively. They took two of three games at UTSA en route to a 7-2 finish.

5) UAB – The Blazers (13-14, 26-27) won two of three against South Florida in Tampa over the weekend, so they will have an easy commute to the tournament ballpark in nearby Clearwater. UAB can be dangerous. The Blazers won Friday night games against both UTSA and Tulane.

6) Florida Atlantic – The Owls (12-15, 26-27) seemed a bit anemic offensively against the Roadrunners on Thursday and Friday but came alive late in the final game on Saturday to win the series finale.

7) Charlotte – The 49ers (12-15, 23-32) are in a funk. They’ve lost seven of their last eight, including two of three at home this weekend against the Tulane Green Wave. Coach Rob Woodard can be a difference-maker in the postseason. Even though this team is down, his 49ers squads have made NCAA tournaments in two of the past three seasons.

8) Rice – The Owls (11-16, 22-34) will open the tournament against East Carolina. Not a great draw for Coach Jose Cruz’s team given that it was swept by the Pirates over the weekend in Greenville, N.C.

Is UTSA’s Ruger Riojas one of only two pitchers in Division I with 10 wins and seven saves?

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Ruger Riojas. UTSA beat South Florida 5-2 in American Athletic Conference baseball on Friday, May 10, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA’s Ruger Riojas apparently is one of only two pitchers in NCAA Division I with as many as 10 victories and seven saves. The other is Nick Wissman of Dayton. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

UTSA’s Ruger Riojas earned his 10th victory of the season last night in Boca Raton, Fla., when he pitched the Roadrunners to a 3-2 victory in 10 innings against the Florida Atlantic University Owls.

Based on what I see in the NCAA Division I online statistics, Riojas may have joined some exclusive company when he struck out FAU’s John Schroeder to end the game. Apparently, he is now one of only two pitchers in the nation with as many as 10 wins and seven saves.

The other is senior Nick Wissman of the Dayton Flyers. Wissman, from Dayton, Ohio, is 10-1 in the Atlantic 10. Riojas, from Wimberley, Tex., is 10-3 in the American Athletic Conference. Each has seven saves.

Notable

Here is a list from the NCAA Division I statistics of pitchers with 10 or more victories this season. This morning, I cross-checked each one of the 10 pitchers on the list to see how many had seven or more saves. The only two I found were Wissman, a Howser Award semifinalist, and Riojas.

Michael Ross, Samford, 12-0, 0 saves
Carter Gaston, Portland, 11-1, 2 saves
Trey Yesaage, East Carolina, 11-1, 0 saves
Matthew Matthijs, North Carolina, 11-4, 0 saves
Tyler Bremer, UC Santa Barbara, 10-0, 0 saves
Chase Burns, Wake Forest, 10-1, 0 saves
Nick Wissman, Dayton, 10-1, 7 saves
Ryan Johnson, Dallas Baptist, 10-2, 0 saves
AJ Causey, Tennessee, 10-3, 1 save
Ruger Riojas, UTSA, 10-3, 7 saves

UTSA beats FAU 3-2 in 10 innings to clinch second in the American

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The UTSA Roadrunners scored on a catcher’s interference call in the top of the 10th inning and then held on in the bottom half to beat the Florida Atlantic University Owls, 3-2, Friday night to secure a second-place finish in the American Athletic Conference baseball race.

UTSA ace Ruger Riojas earned his 10th victory of the season when he closed the door in the last inning. With a base runner at third, he fanned FAU’s John Schroeder, who checked his swing but was called out.

Just about the same time that the UTSA-FAU game was going into extra innings in Boca Raton, the 13th-ranked East Carolina Pirates clinched the AAC title with a doubleheader sweep of the Rice Owls.

The Pirates completed their regular-season schedule by winning 15-5 on the run rule in eight innings and then adding a 6-4 victory in the nightcap. In the second game, East Carolina fell behind 4-2 but rallied to win.

In Boca Raton, UTSA led most of the way against FAU behind the pitching of Zach Royse and Daniel Garza. The home-team Owls made it interesting at the end, scoring twice in the bottom of the eighth to tie it.

Garza started the eighth and allowed a couple of hits to open the inning, putting runners at first and second base. At that point, UTSA coach Pat Hallmark called on his ace, Riojas, who replaced Garza.

Riojas appeared to have good stuff but Jalen DeBose greeted him by fighting off a pitch and blooping it into right field for an RBI single.

After a sacrifice bunt moved runners to second and third, Schroeder hit it hard down the line in left. The drive was caught by Caleb Hill, but it brought in the tying run to make it 2-2.

With Danny Trehey pitching for FAU, opposite Riojas for UTSA, neither team could score in the ninth inning. Trehey was good in the clutch. Following a two-out walk to Alexander Olivo, he struck out UTSA’s Caleb Hill to end the inning. Then it was Riojas’ turn, and he retired three straight.

The 10th inning was tense for both teams.

UTSA loaded the bases against Trehey on an error and a couple of walks. With two outs, injury-hobbled Tye Odom entered the game as a pinch hitter. On a 2-1 count, Odom swung and missed, but the home-plate ump called catcher’s interference.

FAU asked for a review, but umpires upheld the original call. Florida Atlantic catcher Andrew McKenna was ruled to have interfered with Odom’s swing.

With the bases still loaded and UTSA looking to improve on its one-run lead, Trehey got out of the jam when Mason Lytle flied to right field.

Not to be outdone, FAU tried to rally against Riojas, with Brando Leroux rapping a single to right field. He advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt and took third on a fly ball to center. At that point, Schroeder stepped to the plate.

On a 1-2 count, he tried to check his swing on a ball that appeared to veer outside the strike zone, only to be called out.

Riojas (10-3) earned the victory with three scoreless innings of relief. The sophomore from Wimberley allowed two hits and one walk and struck out three.

Trehey (3-3) was the hard-luck loser. The 6-4 senior pitched two innings, did not allow a hit and gave up the winning run, which was unearned. He walked three and struck out three.

Records

FAU 25-27, 11-15
UTSA 32-21, 17-9

AAC leaders

East Carolina 19-8, 40-13
UTSA 17-9, 32-21

Coming up

AAC regular-season finale: UTSA at FAU, Saturday at noon
AAC tournament, Tuesday through next Sunday (May 21-26), at Clearwater, Fla.

Notable

With 14-1 and 3-2 victories at Boca Raton, the Roadrunners have clinched the series. They have won seven out of nine series in their inaugural season in the American.

Ruger Riojas keeps stacking up some staggering individual totals. In 24 appearances, he has pitched 64 and 2/3 innings. Riojas has struck out 70 batters and walked only 17. In yielding only 23 earned runs, his ERA for the season is 3.20.

He is 10-3 in the win-loss column, with seven saves. In a quick check of NCAA Division I statistics, he may be one of only two pitchers in Division I baseball with the 10-win, seven-save combination, the other being Nick Wissman of Dayton.

UTSA run-rules FAU 14-1 to stay one off pace in AAC title chase

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The UTSA Roadrunners scored five runs in the top of the first inning Thursday and then cruised behind a two home-run performance from Alexander Olivo to a 14-1 victory over the Florida Atlantic Owls.

Playing in Boca Raton, the Roadrunners won after seven innings on the run rule in the first of a three-game series in the American Athletic Conference.

Second-place UTSA cranked out 14 hits to stay in the chase for the regular-season title in the AAC. First-place East Carolina, playing at home, defeated the Rice Owls 8-2 to remain one game ahead of the Roadrunners with two to play.

Ulises Quiroga (8-1) pitched 5 and 2/3 innings and allowed one run to earn the victory. Ryan Ward went 1 and 1/3 to finish off FAU. C.J. Williams (5-4) took the loss for the Owls.

UTSA has won three straight games and four of its last five. The Roadrunners’ last two wins have come on the run rule. UTSA beat Incarnate Word 13-3 in eight innings Tuesday night in San Antonio.

Individually for the Roadrunners, Olivo enjoyed a big day at FAU, reaching base four times and scoring four runs. He highlighted a two-for-three batting performance with solo home runs in the second and third innings. The homers were his fourth and fifth of the season.

Olivo is five for eight with five RBI in his last two games combined.

Another UTSA player swinging a hot bat is freshman Diego Diaz, who had three hits and three RBI against the Owls, giving him eight hits and five RBI over his last three performances.

Zane Spinn led off the fifth inning with a homer, his second in four games, as the Roadrunners erupted for six runs. Diaz and Mark Henning capped the outburst with consecutive two-run singles.

Records

UTSA 31-21, 16-9
Florida Atlantic 25-26, 11-14

Coming up

AAC series: UTSA at Florida Atlantic
Friday at 5:30 p.m.
Saturday at noon

AAC tournament: At Clearwater, Fla.
May 21-26

In the race for a title in the American? For UTSA, it’s time to pump it up

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UTSA players get their groove on with the ‘Pump It Up’ song playing in the stadium before the bottom of the eighth inning. After the music subsided, the Roadrunners came to bat, tacked on three runs and defeated the Incarnate Word Cardinals 13-3 on the run rule. – The JB Replay

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Up and down the lineup, everyone made solid contact. From Mason Lytle at the top of the batting order, to Zane Spinn in the nine hole, everyone seemed to square up the baseball at least once on Tuesday night.

Eight of nine UTSA starters had at least one base hit and the one who didn’t, Whitt Joyce, was robbed of a single on a hot smash that was speared by Incarnate Word Cardinals third baseman Ryder Hernandez.

Alexander Olivo. UTSA beat Incarnate Word 13-3 in non-conference baseball on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Alexander Olivo went three for five with two doubles and three RBI in UTSA’s home finale against UIW. – Photo by Joe Alexander

In the end, UTSA won its 30th game of the season on the run rule, 13-3, on Mark Henning’s two-out, RBI single in the bottom of the eighth. All in all, it was a good way to finish the home schedule before embarking on a road trip to Florida.

Awaiting UTSA immediately is a three-game series in Boca Raton at Florida Atlantic to close the regular season. The series starts Thursday, with UTSA sitting in second place in the American Athletic Conference.

After that, they’ll take a bus to Clearwater, where the postseason will commence. The AAC tournament will run from May 21-26 at the BayShore Ballpark..

Roadrunners designated hitter Alexander Olivo said the manner in which his teammates won the UIW game — in a rout, going away – was important.

“It’s good for us to get a little momentum going into Florida Atlantic and the conference tournament,” Olivo said. “You know how it goes. In postseason baseball, it’s who gets hot at the right time. So, we’re just kind of looking to get rolling. The pitching’s been great so far. Everything’s been great.

“We just need that little extra offense to get us going and I think we’ll be just fine, and we’ll use that momentum to go into the tournament.”

UIW's Dalton Beck. UTSA beat Incarnate Word 13-3 in non-conference baseball on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UIW’s Dalton Beck came into the UTSA game ranking the Southland Conference in batting average at .391. Roadrunners pitching held him to one for four. The hit was a high-hop double that bounced over the first baseman’s head in the seventh inning. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Records

UIW 24-27
UTSA 30-21

Coming up

AAC series: UTSA at Florida Atlantic
Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
Friday at 3 p.m.
Saturday at 11:30 a.m.

AAC tournament: At Clearwater, Fla.
May 21-26

Notable

Going into the final weekend, the first-place East Carolina Pirates (16-8 in the AAC, 37-13 overall) have a one-game lead on the Roadrunners (15-9, 30-21).

East Carolina plays its last three at home against Rice. For UTSA to come from behind to claim a share of the title or win it outright, and to do it on the road, it sounds like a tough chore.

Then again, who knows?

“I think the biggest thing for us is to not really focus on what everyone else is doing,” Olivo said. “We can only control what we can control. That’s kind of what Coach (Pat) Hallmark and (Assistant) Coach (Ryan) Aguayo have talked about all year.

Zach Longshore. UTSA beat Incarnate Word 13-3 in non-conference baseball on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Lefty Zach Longshore pitched one shutout inning, in the fifth, allowing only a double to UIW’s Grant Randall. – Photo by Joe Alexander

“Control what you can control. After that, we have to just leave it up to destiny and God … If we go over there to FAU and play our game, we have to hope that Rice helps us out. But first, do our job.”

Kind of strange to root for Rice, right?

“Yeah, it is,” Olivo said. “But, whatever it takes.”

Coming into the UIW game, the Roadrunners needed a boost. In their previous 10 games, they had struggled offensively, hitting .257, almost 50 points below their season average.

In that stretch, a team that has been suffering from some injury issues had averaged 5.1 runs per game. Things are starting to change just a bit, though. The Roadrunners hit .278 in winning two of three against South Florida last weekend.

They followed up with 12 hits in 34 at bats (.352) against the Cardinals, including five hits that went for doubles.

“We’ve been talking that, as an offense, since Rice, we haven’t been ourselves,” Hallmark said. “I think we’re a better hitting team than we were at Rice and in the two home series (against Wichita State and South Florida). But, tonight was good.

“We’ve just been trying to be a little more aggressive in the strike zone. Little what I call violent swings. A little bit dangerous.

“You know, maybe we might not crush it, but if you do hit it, they’re going to do some damage, instead of some of the most passive swings. I thought we did that tonight.”

Home finale: Roadrunners run-rule the UIW Cardinals

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Freshman Diego Diaz rips an RBI single through the middle, boosting UTSA to a 3-0 lead. The Roadrunners later made it 4-0, getting off to a fast start in the bottom of the first against the Cardinals. – The JB Replay

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The UTSA Roadrunners won their home finale Tuesday night, rolling past the UIW Cardinals 13-3 in eight innings on the run rule.

Originally, officials counted it as a 14-3 UTSA victory when two baserunners crossed home on Mark Henning’s single.

Later, a run came off the board. Because, technically, the game ended when the margin of victory reached 10 runs.

Records

UIW 24-27
UTSA 30-21

Coming up

For the Roadrunners
AAC series: UTSA at Florida Atlantic
Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
Friday at 3 p.m.
Saturday at 11:30 a.m.

AAC tournament: At Clearwater, Fla.
May 21-26

For the Cardinals
Southland series: UIW at Houston Christian
Thursday at 2 p.m.
Friday at 1 p.m.
Saturday at 2 p.m.

Southland tournament: At Hammond, La.
May 22-25

Notable

*) One storyline in the second meeting of the season between the Roadrunners and the Cardinals centered on a return to action for UTSA freshman pitcher Robert Orloski. The first-year player from Idaho, who hasn’t played since April 30, started and pitched an inning and a third without allowing a run or a hit. He faced six batters. In the second inning, with one out, he walked two straight and was lifted.

Orloski made a name for himself by winning a couple of big games for the Roadrunners in March, including one against the nationally-ranked East Carolina Pirates. In April, he suffered a few shaky outings as a starter and one as a reliever. At Texas A&M, Orloski, pitching in the ninth, yielded a walk off home run against the SEC powerhouse Aggies.

*) After two innings, the Roadrunners have built a 5-0 lead. They scored four in the first inning off little-used UIW righthander Edward Mendoza. Mendoza had only pitched 3 and 2/3 innings this season. A hit by pitch and two walks led to the first-inning outburst, highlighted by James Taussig‘s two-run single and an RBI single by Diego Diaz. In the second inning, facing UIW’s Braden Berry, UTSA made it 5-0 on a run-scoring single by Matt King.


UIW third baseman Ryder Hernandez makes a nice play to end the bottom of the third for UTSA. He snares a hard-hit ground ball, comes up throwing and nips Whitt Joyce for the last out. Roadrunners lead 5-1 going into the T4. – The JB Replay

*) Mason Lytle’s quickness with the bat and speed on the bases ignited a two-run inning for the Roadrunners in the bottom of the fourth. Lytle, USA’s leading hitter at .365 coming in, led off by bashing a double into the left field corner. On the next pitch, he stole third. On the play, the catcher’s throw skipped into the outfield, and Lytle scored. The Roadrunners made it a 7-1 ball game when Alexander Olivo drove an RBI double to the base of the wall in left center.

*) Dalton Beck, a 6-2 UIW junior from Frisco, entered the game as one of the hottest players in the Southland Conference. Beck led the Southland with 16 home runs. He was also second in batting at .391. UTSA pitching has done a good job with the SLC honors candidate through six innings. Beck is 0-for-3 with a pop foul out and two fly balls to right. So far. He may get another turn or two tonight. In the bottom of the sixth, UTSA is batting and Mason Lytle is doing his thing again. On board via fielders choice, he stole second base. His second steal of the night. Just scored on a hard-hit ball by Olivo into right field. Now Olivo scores on a Matt King ground ball that was thrown away at first. The Cardinals’ fourth error of the game.


UTSA senior Alex Olivo smashes the first of his two RBI doubles tonight. This one came in the fourth inning. He had another one in the sixth. With the last three games of the season looming this weekend at Florida Atlantic, it’s a good time for Olivo to get hot. – UTSA athletics

*) The Cardinals got it going in the T7 against Conor Myles, the fifth UTSA pitcher of the game, scoring a couple of runs on two hits and a throwing error. Cameron Caley and Beck, UIW’s top two players, ignited the rally. Caley singled and Beck doubled. Beck’s hit bounded high in the infield and over the head of the UTSA first baseman. The Roadrunners picked up the ball in the outfield and threw it away, allowing Caley to score and Beck to take third. Myles retired the next two batters to end the threat.

Division I baseball: UTSA prepares for home finale tonight against UIW

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The UTSA Roadrunners hope to see their offense come to life tonight in their home-field season finale when they host the University of the Incarnate Word Cardinals.

The final non-conference game for both of San Antonio’s NCAA Division I baseball programs will get underway at 6 p.m. at Roadrunner Field.

Over their last 10 games, the Roadrunners have struggled offensively, hitting .257, almost 50 points below their season average. In that stretch, a team that has suffered from some injury issues has averaged 5.1 runs.

UTSA is 5-5 in its last 10, including 4-5 in the American Athletic Conference.

The Roadrunners perked up slightly last weekend, when they hit .272 as a team in three games at home against South Florida. But they left 16 on base on Saturday and 10 more on Sunday.

Fortunately for the Roadrunners, their pitching came through as they won two of three in the series and pulled to within one game of the lead in the American Athletic Conference going into the final weekend.

UTSA will take to the road for its final three games of the regular season on Thursday, Friday and Saturday against the Florida Atlantic Owls at Boca Raton. The AAC tournament will open a week from today in Clearwater, Fla.

UIW comes into the game on a slide, having lost six straight and 11 of their last 12. The Cardinals are also set to close out the regular season on the road with their final three in the Southland Conference Thursday through Saturday at Houston Christian.

UTSA is 19-12 in the series against UIW, including 12-6 at Roadrunner Field. UTSA has won five straight at home in the series. UIW hasn’t won at UTSA since 2016. The Roadrunners beat the Cardinals 7-4 on April 2 at UIW.

Records

Incarnate Word 24-26
UTSA 29-21

Coming up

For the UTSA Roadrunners
Non conference: Incarnate Word at UTSA
Tonight at 6

AAC series: UTSA at Florida Atlantic
Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
Friday at 3 p.m.
Saturday at 11:30 a.m.

AAC tournament: At Clearwater, Fla.
May 21-26

For the UIW Cardinals
Non-conference: UIW at UTSA
Tonight at 6

Southland series: UIW at Houston Christian
Thursday at 2 p.m.
Friday at 1 p.m.
Saturday at 2 p.m.

Southland tournament: At Hammond, La.
May 22-25

UTSA wins AAC series against South Florida, moves to within one game of first place

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UTSA’s Ruger Riojas fans Rafael Betancourt for the last out Sunday as the Roadrunners beat the South Florida Bulls, 5-3. With the win, UTSA bounces back from a loss on Saturday and claims the series, two games to one. – The JB Replay

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

A game filled with miscues by players struggling physically near the end of a long season also contained its share of highlight-reel moments, most of them by the UTSA Roadrunners, in a 5-3 victory on Sunday over the South Florida Bulls.

Mason Lytle hit a go-ahead solo home run in a two-run seventh inning and reliever Ruger Riojas closed with a solid 3 and 2/3 innings of relief, allowing UTSA to take two of three for its sixth series win in the American Athletic Conference.

Entering the day two games behind front-running East Carolina and two in front of Tulane and Wichita State in the AAC race, the Roadrunners needed to find a way to win on their home field, and they did.

They also got help later in the day, with Tulane beating first-place East Carolina 10-9 in 10 innings and sweeping the series. As a result, second-place UTSA has moved to within one game of the lead.

In the moments immediately after the Roadrunners grinded out a victory on a hot and muggy Mother’s Day afternoon, they didn’t know about their impending good fortune in New Orleans. The Tulane game was still in progress.

To hear Riojas tell it at the time, players were just happy to win a series again after losing one on the road to Rice and another at home to Wichita State on consecutive weekends.

“This feels really good,” he said. “We needed this. It’s been (since April 19-21, against UAB) since we won a weekend. USF is a really, really good team. Just happy we won (so) we can start a streak.”

In the ninth inning, with South Florida at bat, UTSA coach Pat Hallmark stepped from his post at the dugout rail and into the shade to wipe a cool towel over his head.

At that moment, with a runner at first base and one out, red-hot Bobby Boser smoked a ground ball up the middle. It looked like a sure-fire single.

UTSA shortstop Matt King had other ideas. He dove, skidding on the dirt, and gloved the ball. Popping up, he flipped to second for the force.

“Great play,” UTSA coach Pat Hallmark said. “And that guy’s a really good hitter.”

Hallmark also talked about a “really good” play in the eighth inning when rightfielder James Taussig ran a ball down in the gap, robbing Rafael Betancourt of extra bases. Also, the coach applauded the pitching of Braylon Owens, Zach Longshore and Riojas, who held down an explosive Bulls offense.

On the flip side, nagging injuries are a problem for the Roadrunners right now with a Tuesday night home game against Incarnate Word looming, and after that a three-game AAC set at Florida Atlantic that will close out the regular season.

“We’re a little thin on the health side,” Hallmark said. “We just got to keep persevering and persisting, because the hitting can turn around. We haven’t hit good for a couple of weeks. People just aren’t healthy and strong right now.”

East Carolina closes its season with three games at home against the Rice Owls.

Series recap

Friday: UTSA beats South Florida, 5-2
Saturday: South Florida beats UTSA, 6-3
Sunday: UTSA beats South Florida, 5-3

Records

South Florida 24-27, 10-14
UTSA 29-21, 15-9

AAC leaders

East Carolina 16-8, 37-13
UTSA 15-9, 29-21
Tulane 13-11, 29-23
Wichita State 13-11, 27-26

Coming up

Non conference: UIW at UTSA
Tuesday at 6 p.m.

AAC series: UTSA at Florida Atlantic
Thursday, 5:30 p.m.
Friday, 3 p.m.
Saturday, 11 a.m.

AAC tournament: May 21-26
At Clearwater, Fla., BayCare Ballpark

JB’s video replay


UTSA’s Matt King reaches base in the bottom of the third on a chaotic misplay in the infield by the Bulls. – The JB Replay


South Florida scores on an infield error to take a 2-1 lead in the top of the sixth. UTSA tried to turn two, but the play went awry. – The JB Replay


Mason Lytle hits a solo homer in the seventh for a 3-2 lead that the Roadrunners would not surrender. – UTSA athletics


Later in the seventh, Riley Skeen throws a wild pitch that allows UTSA’s Zane Spinn to score from third, as the Roadrunners take a 4-2 lead. – The JB Replay