By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

After suffering five losses in a seven-game span, the UTSA baseball team journeyed to Florida last weekend for its American Conference-opening series against the FAU Owls.

As the Roadrunners opened defense of their league title, they found their groove once again.

They made some adjustments, played better baseball and emerged from the weekend 10 games over .500 on the season. Also, most importantly, 2-1 in league play.

Coach Pat Hallmark said Monday that he is happy with the series victory, especially in getting it done at Boca Raton, Fla., but he believes the Roadrunners can make plenty of improvements moving forward.

“I think we’ve been pretty consistent with the bat,” he said on a zoom call with reporters. “I haven’t been all that disappointed with the pitching at all.

“It’s maybe one or two pitchers, maybe not performing the way everyone wanted.

“For the most part, the pitching has been fine … We just got to get a little stingier defensively. That’s really where the progress can be made.”

Hallmark recalled thinking, as the team left Boca Raton on Sunday afternoon to return home, that UTSA is having a good year.

“We’re still 17-7,” he said. “We’re 2-1 in conference. And I feel like, I think a lot of people feel like we could be better, which is a positive. Right?”

“What’s wrong with that?” he asked rhetorically.

Nevertheless, Hallmark vowed that the Roadrunners, coming off a regular-season title in the American and an NCAA Super Regional appearance last year, will continue to work on their defense.

Players, he said, need to think on every pitch like the opponent will hit a ball at them. They need to expect it.

“It sounds so easy, but when you play 140 pitches and three hours, people’s minds can wander,” the coach said. “And I think it’s cost us a little bit.”

Leading into Boca Raton, the Roadrunners had committed 11 errors over a four-game period from March 13-17.

Even though UTSA settled down and made only one error in three games at FAU, the spree of fielding miscues in its most recent home series against UT Arlington remains on Hallmark’s mind.

“Again, that (focus on defense) starts with me, making that a point of emphasis,” he said.

Walks issued by UTSA pitching have also been a major concern.

The Roadrunners had allowed 52 bases on balls combined in eight games through last Friday night.

Comparatively, UTSA had issued only 42 free passes in 14 games during its 13-1 start to the season.

Roadrunners pitching settled down to walk only three over the last two games in Boca Raton. After winning the opener, 4-1, the Roadrunners gave up a lead late and lost on Saturday, 7-6.

They bounced back behind slugging Jacob Silva to claim an 18-8 victory on Sunday. The game was called after seven innings on the run rule.

Coming up

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at UTSA, Tuesday, 6 p.m.
East Carolina at UTSA, Friday, 6 p.m.
East Carolina at UTSA, Saturday, 2 p.m.
East Carolina at UTSA, Sunday, 1 p.m.

Notable

The Roadrunners, powered by an offense averaging just under 10 runs a game, came in at No. 44 nationally on Monday in the NCAA’s ratings percentage index.

Senior Drew Detlefsen was named as the conference’s player of the week after he hit for a .667 average (12 for 16) over four games.

Sophomore Jacob Silva is also hot, batting .448 over his last eight games (13 for 29).

Silva went 4 for 4 with home run, three runs scored and three RBIs Sunday.

In UTSA’s 4-1 victory Friday night, Christian Okerholm, Gunnar Brown and Sam Simmons combined on a four-hitter.

With regular Friday starter Connor Kelley getting the weekend off, Okerholm opened the game with three innings scoreless, allowing no hits.

He walked one and struck out two.

“Christian did a great job starting us off with strikes,” Hallmark said. “We’re happy with that.”

Hallmark said Okerholm will continue to pitch in a variety of roles.

“I don’t want to speak for him,” the coach said, “but we hang our hat on throwing strikes. That’s what we like about him. He’s very reliable.”

Hallmark said he’s hoping to work Kelley back into games in “lower leverage” situations “to see if he can get back in the strike zone.”

“Now is not the time to run him out there in high leverage situations, with the game on the line,” the coach said. “That’s the hope. But these games mean so much.

“Every game means a lot. So, it’s not super easy to do.”

Hallmark said Kelley is working “very, very hard” for another opportunity.

Last year, in his first season at UTSA, he worked exclusively out of the bullpen and emerged as one of the team’s best, going 3-1 with a 2.72 ERA in 24 appearances.

Kelley struck out 49 and walked 15 in 36 and 1/3 innings.

This year, the 6-5, 245-pound junior is 1-1 with a 7.58 ERA in six outings, including five starts. He has struck out 25 and walked 13 in 19 innings.

Kelley joined the starting rotation on the second weekend of the season after Rob Orloski went down in the opening game with a shoulder injury.

Orloski is out for the season.

By the numbers

The Roadrunners started the season 13-1, including a 3-0 sweep of Dallas Baptist at home and a 3-0 run in Houston against Ohio State, 9th-ranked Coastal Carolina and Baylor. Since then, they are 4-6. Here’s a look at UTSA’s last 10 games:

March 8 – @New Mexico State, L, 4-5
March 10 – @Texas Tech, W, 9-8
March 11 – @Texas Tech, L, 5-10
March 13 – UT Arlington, L, 11-15
March 14 – UT Arlington, L, 8-11
March 15 – UT Arlington, W, 15-8
March 17 – @Houston Christian, L, 11-12
March 20 – @FAU, W, 4-1
March 21 – @FAU, L, 6-7
March 22 – @FAU, W, 18-8 (7)