| April 22, 2004 UTSA wraps conference regular season with three-game series at McNeese State this weekend Complete Release Note: No live stats will be available this weekend. |
UTSA Roadrunners (31-15, 18-6 SLC)
at
McNeese State Cowgirls (19-35, 8-15 SLC)
Cowgirl Diamond - Lake Charles, La.
Games 47-48: Saturday, April 24 - 5 p.m.
Game 49: Sunday, April 25 - 12 p.m.
UTSA vs. McNeese State History
UTSA vs. McNeese State: UTSA leads, 27-16
Last three meetings:
UTSA 13, MSU 12 (April 2, 2003 - San Antonio)
MSU 19, UTSA 8 (April 1, 2003 - San Antonio)
UTSA 6, MSU 3 (April 1, 2003 - San Antonio)
SLC Title On The Line
With three games remaining in the Southland Conference regular season, UTSA is 18-6 and stands one game behind first-place Texas State (19-5). The Roadrunners can catch the Bobcats this weekend with a two-game swing between the two teams as Texas State plays at fourth-place Texas-Arlington. Three wins by UTSA combined with a loss by Texas State (or two wins versus two losses) would tie the two teams for first place in the final standings. UTSA would gain the No. 1 seed for the SLC Postseason Tournament by virtue of its head-to-head sweep of the Bobcats last weekend.
Week In Review
UTSA swept then No. 24-ranked Texas State in a three-game series last weekend at Roadrunner Field, the program's first sweep of the Bobcats since 1996. In game one, sophomore Krystal Guevara's pinch-hit, three-run homer in the bottom of the sixth inning proved to be the difference in a 5-3 victory. Junior Krystal Gibson slugged a walk-off, two-run homer to win game two for the Roadrunners, 9-7, while Guevara was the hero again in game three, lining a pinch-hit double to left-center field that plated the tying and winning runs in a 7-6, come-from-behind victory. Freshman Ursula Mares worked all 21 innings in the circle for UTSA, picking up all three wins to improve to 22-9 overall.
Top Of The Charts
In 2003, UTSA slugged 80 home runs over 55 games for a 1.45 home runs per game average. That mark led the nation just ahead of NCAA Champion UCLA's 1.44 average. Roadrunners who hit 71 of those 80 home runs (89 percent) are back in uniform in 2004, led by senior Christy Brownlee, who hit a team-best 15 last year.
Going, Going, Gone
UTSA has soared past last year's NCAA-leading home run pace, belting 93 home runs through 46 games for a 2.02 average. The Roadrunners lead the nation in total home runs and homers per game by a sizeable margin ahead of Louisiana-Lafayette (65/1.44), Arizona (57/1.30), UCLA (55/1.57) and LSU (52/1.06).
Early Risers
UTSA has struck for runs early and often in 2004. In the first three innings combined, the Roadrunners own a 158-70 advantage over their opponents through 46 games this year. The fourth inning has been friendly, as well, with the Roadrunners outscoring the opposition 51-15. UTSA has outscored its foes 295-145 overall, an average of 6.4-3.2 per game.
No April Fool's Day Joke
On April 1, UTSA tied the NCAA single-game home run record with eight long balls in game one of a doubleheader against Texas Southern. If that was not enough, the Roadrunners belted eight more bombs in the nightcap to equal the mark twice in the same day. Senior Christy Brownlee slugged four of the 16 homers, two in each game, while sophomore Jessica Rogers hit three and junior Krystal Gibson and sophomore Stacey Gillespie lost two apiece. In an interesting bit of irony, I-35 rival Texas State set the record against Stephen F. Austin on March 2, 2002. One of the eight homers hit that day was by current UTSA assistant coach Stephanie Hughes. Almost lost in all the home run buzz is the fact that freshman pitcher Ursula Mares hurled her first career no-hitter in game one, the first no-no at UTSA since Denise Briggs in 2000.
Third Time's The Charm
In the third and final game with Texas Southern one week later in Houston, UTSA broke the NCAA single-game home run record with 10 long balls in a 26-1 crushing of the Tigers. Junior Jessica Ellison hit two homers in the fifth inning, the second one the record-breaker. Sophomores Jessica Rogers and Jenny Garcia and freshman Aimee Murray also hit two apiece. UTSA also tied the NCAA single-game total bases record of 64 set by Canisius in 1990, pounding out an SLC-record 28 hits, including the 10 homers, four doubles and one triple.
On The National Radar
UTSA's power-hitting prowess has gained national attention this season. As of April 20, the Roadrunners find themselves ranked in several categories. Besides leading the NCAA in home runs (93) and home runs per game (2.02), UTSA ranks fifth in scoring at 6.41 runs per game and ninth in batting average at .324. Individually, Christy Brownlee leads the NCAA in home runs (20) and homers per game (0.43) and ranks sixth in slugging percentage (.860). She is tied with Jessica Rogers for 25th in RBI per game (0.91). Rogers is also seventh in homers per game (0.35) and 21st in slugging (.762), while Krystal Gibson stands 15th in homers per game (0.30). Additionally, UTSA ranks 27th in fielding percentage (.967) and freshman Ursula Mares is 11th in wins (22).
Movin' On Up
Senior Christy Brownlee has developed into one of the top all-around players in UTSA history during her career. The Galena Park native ranks in the top 10 on 20 of UTSA's 22 single-season or career offensive and defensive charts. She broke Michelle McElyea's record for career home runs with her 38th career long ball against Louisiana Tech on Feb. 20 and now has upped that mark to 53. Brownlee broke three more career records in the doubleheader sweep of Texas Southern on April 1. She moved past McElyea for first place on UTSA's career RBI chart and ahead of former All-American Amanda Michalsky on the runs scored and extra-base hits lists. For her career, Brownlee now has 149 runs, 131 RBI and 89 extra-base hits. Other career rankings for Brownlee include second with 214 hits, 697 at-bats, 389 assists and 84 walks and sixth with 34 doubles. Brownlee broke the SLC and UTSA single-season home run record of 19 set by Michalsky in 1999 with her 20th against Northwestern State on April 9. Brownlee also has put herself in position to rank as one of the NCAA's all-time best home run sluggers. Her SLC-record 53 career bombs already ranks 14th on the NCAA list, while her season average of 0.43 homers per game is fourth. With her next homer, she will move into a tie for 20th on the NCAA single-season chart with 21, while 25 homers would move her all the way up to a tie for fifth place.
League Leaders
UTSA has been one of the Southland Conference's top offensive clubs on a yearly basis since Corrie Hill took over the program in 1999. This year is no different as the Roadrunners lead the league in nine offensive categories as of April 22. The Roadrunners top the charts in batting average (.324), slugging percentage (.610), on-base percentage (.397), runs scored (295), hits (396), RBI (278), doubles (65), home runs (93), total bases (746) and sacrifice flies (11). UTSA also has the fewest strikeouts (209) in the league. The Roadrunners top the charts in fielding percentage (.967), a category they ranked dead last (.939) in last year. In conference games only, UTSA has made its mark on the offensive charts. The Roadrunners lead the league in batting average (.315), slugging percentage (.569) and on-base percentage (.389). UTSA dominates several categories with 143 runs scored, 32 more than Texas State (111), 197 hits, 32 more than Texas State (165), 138 RBI, 37 more than Texas State (101), 42 home runs, 24 more than Texas State (18) and 356 total bases, 86 more than Texas State (270).
Weekly Honors
UTSA has garnered seven Southland Conference Hitter or Pitcher of the Week honors this year. Christy Brownlee has been hitter of the Week three times, including back-to-back weeks on March 29 and April 5, while Ursula Mares has received Pitcher of the Week accolades twice. Other honorees, all hitters, are Krystal Gibson on March 9 and Krystal Guevara on April 19.
On A Roll
UTSA has won 16 of its past 17 games and the success of several players at the plate and in the circle has played a big role. As a team, the Roadrunners are batting .374 with an unbelievable 56 home runs (3.29 per game), 23 doubles, a slugging percentage of .788 and an on-base percentage of .432. Individually, three Roadrunners are hitting above .400 during the stretch (minimum 34 at-bats). Krystal Gibson leads the team with a .440 mark, including nine homers, 17 RBI, 16 runs scored and a slugging percentage of 1.020. Jessica Rogers is batting .424 with seven bombs, 13 RBI and 17 runs, while Christy Brownlee is hitting .413 with nine homers, four doubles, 19 RBI, 19 runs, and slugging and on-base percentages of 1.087 and .550, respectively. Additionally, Amanda Horton has nine homers and a team-best 20 RBI while hitting .325 during the stretch. In the circle, Ursula Mares is 12-0 with a 2.36 ERA and 50 strikeouts against just 22 walks.
Notables
Aimee Murray currently is riding a season-best nine-game hitting streak dating back to game two of a doubleheader against Stephen F. Austin ... Jennifer Davis has hit safely in the last seven games, also a season-best ... Jessica Els had the Roadrunners' longest hitting streak, an 11-game stretch that ended in early April ... Jessica Rogers has tallied a team-best 22 multi-hit games, including four three-hit performances ... Davis has posted four hits in a game twice ... Christy Brownlee has 13 multi-RBI games, including three games with four RBI and one with six against Southeastern Louisiana on March 27 ... Jenny Garcia also had a six-RBI performance in a 26-1 win win at Texas Southern on April 8 ... Rogers and Gibson have posted 12 and 11 multi-RBI games, respectively ... UTSA has started the same infield - 1B: Gibson, 2B: Brownlee, 3B: Rogers, SS: Murray - all 46 games this season ... Krystal Guevara is 8-for-15 in a pinch-hitting role this year, including two game-winning hits against Texas State ... UTSA has 93 homers, four more than the combined totals of Sam Houston State, Nicholls State, Stephen F. Austin, McNeese State, Texas-Arlington and Louisiana-Monroe ... Brownlee and Amanda Horton have nine home runs in conference play, as many as six other schools have hit as a team.
Clutch Homers
Krystal Gibson has displayed a penchant for hitting game-winning homers of late, slugging three in the last three weekends of play. She hit a walk-off, two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh to help UTSA beat SFA 7-5, on April 3. She had a solo shot in the top of the eighth at Northwestern State on April 10 in a 3-2 win and she lost a two-run bomb deep over the center-field fence in a 9-7 win over Texas State on April 17. Additionally, since moving from the leadoff spot to fifth in the batting order back in mid-March, Gibson is batting .414 with nine homers and 17 RBI.
Dazzling Debuts
A trio of freshmen has made dazzling debuts this season. Aimee Murray has started all 46 games at shortstop and has been solid in the field and at the plate. She is batting .355 with nine doubles, nine homers and 34 RBI. She is fielding at a .939 clip with just 12 errors in 196 chances. Right-handed pitchers Ursula Mares and Stevi Simpson have been the two key cogs in the UTSA rotation. Mares has made 31 starts and appeared in 37 games. She is 22-9, second on UTSA's single-season victories chart, with an ERA of 2.61, and has struck out a team-high 153 batters against just 76 walks. Opponents are batting .230 off of her and she has won 12 consecutive decisions. Mares tossed her first career no-hitter in an 18-0 win over Texas Southern on April 1. Simpson has pitched in 23 games and is 9-6 with an ERA of 3.40. She also tossed a complete-game shutout in her last victory against Texas Southern on April 1.
Tough Slate
The 2004 schedule features three tournaments, including the annual UTSA Fastpitch Express College Classic on Feb. 13-15, several tough non-conference games and the always-competitive Southland Conference lineup. The Roadrunners also faced No. 13 LSU (now ranked No. 6) at the LSU Purple & Gold Challenge on Feb. 20-22. UTSA just swept then-No. 24 Texas State on April 17-18, and also pounded Tulsa, 8-2, in February, a team now receiving votes in the latest NFCA poll. The schedule also featured non-conference matchups with then No. 19-ranked Texas, Houston and Southern Miss. The Southland Conference Postseason Tournament is slated for April 30-May 2, in San Marcos, Texas.
Hill At The Helm
Entering her sixth season with the Roadrunners softball program, Corrie Hill has emerged as one of the top offensive minds in fastpitch softball today. In five seasons in San Antonio, Hill has tutored one All-American in Amanda Michalsky, five all-region performers and 28 all-conference players, including 15 first-teamers. Hill, who reached 200 wins for her career in a 5-4 victory over Texas-Arlington on March 6 and now has 218, has taken the power-hitting game to a new level at UTSA. During her first five seasons, the Roadrunners have rewritten the record books in nearly every major offensive category. Her teams have set 23 school records, including 12 offensive. Under Hill's direction, UTSA players have entered the top 10 list in all 22 offensive single-season and career categories kept. Current Roadrunners appear in 20 of those lists, including senior Christy Brownlee, whose name shows up in 18 different categories. She has coached the top 12 home run sluggers in school history. Hill has averaged 28 wins per season in her first five years at UTSA and needs nine more victories to become the winningest coach in school history. In the last five seasons, UTSA has posted wins over a number of highly-regarded programs including Texas, Texas A&M, Baylor, Texas Tech, Oregon, Tulsa, Colorado State, Arkansas and Southwest Missouri State.