| Contact: Matt Schabert (210) 458-4930 Ruffin throws gem as Roadrunners knock off Notre Dame, 9-4 SAN ANTONIO – For seven innings Wednesday night, University of Texas at San Antonio sophomore pitcher Josh Ruffin appeared to be auditioning for the Cy Young Award. Ruffin took a one-hitter into the eighth inning against Big East powerhouse Notre Dame (4-6), and the UTSA offense exploded for five runs in the first inning en route to a 9-4 victory over the Irish at Wolff Stadium on the opening day of the Alamo City Irish Baseball Classic. UTSA improved to 2-13, knocking off the Irish for the second year in a row in the Alamo City Classic. Ruffin, who came into the game with a 6.17 ERA, allowed just one double to the Irish in the first seven innings and struck out four while picking up his first career victory. UTSA held an 8-0 lead until the eighth when Irish first baseman Matt Edwards broke up the shutout bid by smashing a grand slam off Roadrunner reliever Blake Brannon. Brannon came on after Ruffin left with the bases loaded. Until that point, it looked like the Roadrunners were on their way to ending Notre Dame’s 156-game streak of scoring at least one run. Offensively, UTSA, which came into the game hitting just .242 as a team, exploded for a season high 15 hits. Senior Eric Moreno led UTSA with a 4-for-5 night at the plate, while sophomore Ryan Saltzgaber extended his hitting streak to nine games by going 3-for-5 with two runs scored. Junior Ryan Crew, who leads UTSA with a .300 average, went 2-for-4 with three RBIs. Junior J.R. Voyles tallied three RBIs as well. The Roadrunners limited Notre Dame to just three hits and chased Irish starter Jess Stewart from the game in the first inning. The Roadrunners, who were the visitors for the game, jumped on top 5-0 in the first inning, setting a season high for runs in an inning. Sean Danielson led off b reaching on a error and stole second. Sophomore Michael McKennon blasted a triple off the right centerfield wall, scoring Danielson. Crew followed with a single to score McKennon, and then Moreno singled to send Crew to third. Two batters later, junior Lee Todesco doubled to score Crew. After Derek Olvey relieved Stewart, J.R. Voyles doubled to right center to score Chris Lewis, who had walked, and Todesco. The Roadrunners added a single run in the fourth when Crew scored Saltzgaber on a sacrifice fly. Meanwhile, Ruffin continued to retire the Irish in order until the eighth Ross Brezowsky led of with a triple. Brett Lilley walked as well as Alex Nettey before Ruffin was pulled for Brannon. On a 3-2 pitch, Edwards crushed a line drive over the left field wall to pull the Irish back to within 8-4. In the ninth, UTSA added the game’s final run. UTSA will return to the Wolff Stadium field tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. when the Roadrunners take on Oral Roberts. The Golden Eagles handed Southwest Missouri an 11-0 defeat in the tournament’s first game. |