| April 5, 2005
Contact: Matt Schabert (210) 458-4930 Roadrunners set to host Angelo State Complete Release | Live Stats | Listen Live SAN ANTONIO - The University of Texas at San Antonio baseball team returns home to host Division II Angelo State Tuesday afternoon at 2 p.m. at Roadrunner Field. The Rams, a first-year program, are 17-16 in 2005. UTSA Roadrunners (11-19)
vs.
Angelo State Rams (17-16)
Tuesday, April 5 • Roadrunner Field • 2 p.m.
First Pitch
• The Roadrunners return home for a mid-week tilt with the Angelo State Rams.
• UTSA has won seven of its last 10 games and is 10-6 since beginning the year 1-13.
• The Roadrunners are 6-2 at Roadrunner Field in 2005 are scoring 7.6 runs in those games.
• The Roadrunners are 3-8 all-time against teams from the Lone Star Conference.
• UTSA pitchers have not allowed more than five runs in a game in the last seven contests.
Roadrunner Tidbits
UTSA has won seven of its last 10 games...The UTSA pitching staff has a 3.25 ERA in the last seven games...Junior pitcher Caleb Barton struck out a career high five batters in Sunday’s 4-2 loss at Sam Houston State...Today’s starter, sophomore Blake Brannon, is making his first start of the year and just the third of his career...He has made 41 appearances, including 39 from the bullpen, in just one-plus years at UTSA...Junior Jason Vecchio collected his fourth save of the year and fourth of his career in Friday’s 5-3 win at SHSU, which moves him into a tie with junior Ryan Crew for sixth in career saves...Senior Chris Lewis moved into sole possession of sixth place for career home runs with his 20th in Friday’s win at Sam Houston...Junior Ryan Crew has just seven strikeouts in 113 at-bats, or only one every 16.1 at-bats...Angelo State has five players from Temple Junior College, the same school that produced UTSA catcher Chris Lewis...The Rams also have five players from the San Antonio area.
Voyles on a Tear
Second baseman J.R. Voyles has been nearly unstoppable at the plate in the last five games. In that span, he’s hitting .611 with a team high two homers and a 1.111 slugging percentage. In SLC play, Voyles leads the league, hitting .483. Overall, the junior from Tomball leads the Roadrunners at the plate, hitting .361 and has produced a .522 average in the last seven games. He’s making his third year his best ever as he has improved on his career .253 average.
Up Next
The Roadrunners travel to Thibodaux, La., for a three-game Southland Conference series at Nicholls State. The first game is set for Friday, April 8 at 6:30 p.m.
Scouting the Rams
Angelo State is 17-16 in its first year as a baseball program. The Rams, members of the Lone Star Conference, are a powerful hitting club and like to run often on the base paths. They hit .338 as a team and have stolen 101 bases so far in 2005. Former UTSA assistant coach Kevin Brooks leads the Rams. Daniel Ochs leads the batters with a .430 average, while Kyle Mandelbaum has seven home runs.
A Look at the Series
This is the first meeting between these two schools as Angelo State is in its first year withe a baseball program.
Last Time on the Field
UTSA won the opener 5-3, but dropped the next two, 5-3 and 4-2, at Sam Houston State last weekend. The Roadrunners fell to 5-4 in the Southland Conference and 11-19 overall. Junior J.R. Voyles had six hits in the series.
Hold ‘Em Down
In the last seven games the UTSA pitching staff has performed admirably, with a low 3.25 ERA. In that span, UTSA pitchers have recorded 34 strikouts, almost five per game. Senior Aaron Rodriguez leads the staff in the seven-game stretch, with a 1.74 ERA and a 1-0 record. Junior Noah Tritz has made three appearances in the last seven and has a 1.80 ERA during the span.
Streaking
Several Roadrunner regulars have strung together impressive hitting streaks so far in 2005. Currently, junior J.R. Voyles has a five-game streak to lead UTSA, while junior first baseman Lee Todesco is riding a four-game streak. Three Roadrunners - sophomore third baseman Ryan Saltzgaber (11), junior shortstop Ryan Crew (10) and senior centerfielder Sean Danielson (10) have double-digit streaks in 2005.
Multi-Dimensional
The Roadrunners have gotten multi-hit and multi-RBI games from several players this year. As a team, UTSA has recorded 77 instances of multi-hit games and 35 multi-RBI performances. Sophomore Ryan Saltzgaber and junior J.R. Voyles lead the way with 11 each, while sophomore Michael McKennon has seven multi-RBI games.
Motley Crew
Junior Ryan Crew is climbing up the UTSA stat charts in just his third season. Crew now ranks eighth all-time with 177 career hits. He also ranks tied for 9th now on the career doubles list with 33 and needs only four more to move as high as fifth. In RBIs, Crew now ranks 10th with 99 and needs just three to move to ninth. In home runs, his total of 17 ranks him tied for eighth all-time, while his total of seven triples puts him fourth on that stat chart.
Runners Play Long Ball
UTSA broke out the big bats last week when they hit five home runs against Texas-Pan American. Junior Ryan Crew homered both last Tuesday and Wednesday, his second and third of the year. Junior Lee Todesco and sophomore Michael McKennon both had two-run homers on Wednesday, while junior J.R. Voyles smashed a solo shot.
The Scoreboard Couldn’t Keep Up
In last Wednesday’s 14-3 win over Texas-Pan American, the Roadrunners registered a season high 21 hits, including 11 extra-base hits. It was the first time since March 24, 2004 that UTSA had more than 20 hits. The last time was ironically against Texas-Pan American as well.
Let’s Compare
After 30 games in 2005, the Roadrunners are 11-19 overall and 5-4 in the Southland Conference. This year, the Roadrunners are hitting .282 as a team with 16 triples. In 2004, UTSA was hitting just .260 with 10 triples. UTSA was 16-14 and the same 5-4 in SLC play.
Racking up the Treys
UTSA has 16 triples as a team, an average of more than 1.5 per game, in 2005. That’s already two more than 2004’s season total of 14. The Roadrunners’ 16 treys leads the conference, four ahead of Lamar’s 12. Sophomore Ryan Saltzgaber leads UTSA with four triples and needs just four more to set the UTSA single season record.
Sit ‘Em Down, A-Rod
Senior pitcher Aaron Rodriguez is nearing the top five list for career strikeouts. With 156 career punchouts, he needs just 18 more to climb onto the top five list all-time. Justin Burgess (1994-97) tops the K list with 267.
Saving the Day
Junior pitcher Jason Vecchio has solidified himself as the Roadrunners’ closer. He has four saves in 2005 and now ranks tied for sixth in career saves at UTSA.
Tale of the Tape
After hitting four home runs in the first 19 games, the Roadrunners have smashed 14 in the last 11 games. UTSA has 18 total home runs in 2005 and has pushed in 24 RBIs on those shots. The Roadrunners have seven circuit clouts in the last five games and led the league last year with 55 dingers.
Good Eyes
The Roadrunners rank second in the conference in drawing walks in 2005. UTSA has 149 walks, ranking second only to defending SLC champion Lamar with 153. Junior Chris Lewis leads the Roadrunners with 17 walks, while junior J.R. Voyles has 15 and junior Ryan Crew with 14.
Bird Bath Success
UTSA is 35-16 (.686) at Roadrunner Field since 2001, including a 14-game winning streak in the 2001 and 2002 seasons. This year, the Roadrunners are off to another fast start at the “Bird Bath” at 6-2.
Roadrunner Rankings
A look at where UTSA players and team rank in this week’s conference stats: Team batting (6th); Team pitching (9th); Team fielding (8th); Individuals: Batting, J.R. Voyles (7th); Triples, Ryan Crew (4th); Stolen bases, Sean Danielson (T-5th); Doubles, Chris Lewis (T-2nd); On-Base Percentage, J.R. Voyles (5th), Slugging Percentage, J.R. Voyles (8th); Saves, Jason Vecchio (T-4th); Innings, Aaron Rodriguez (3rd); Appearances, Blake Brannon (T-1st).
Roadrunners Picked Sixth
UTSA has been tabbed for a sixth place finish in the Southland Conference this year, according the coaches and SID polls taken before the year began. Defending champion Lamar is again picked to finish number one.
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