? Diamond notes (.pdf)
Games 2-4 ? Feb. 16-18 ? Louisiana-Lafayette (1-0)
5/2/1 p.m. ? Roadrunner Field ? San Antonio, Texas
Home Opener: UTSA, which lost at No. 6 Rice (4-3) in Tuesday’s season opener, welcomes Louisiana-Lafayette to Roadrunner Field this weekend for a three-game series. Friday’s home opener is scheduled for 5 p.m. and it will be the first night game in school history. Prior to the contest, the UTSA Athletics Department will honor former Roadrunner Brian Wilson, who unexpectedly died of a heart attack on June 17, 2006, at the age of 33. Saturday’s game is slated for 2 p.m., while Sunday’s finale will begin at 1 p.m.
Scouting The Ragin’ Cajuns: UL-Lafayette hosted Nicholls State in its season opener on Tuesday night, defeating the Colonels, 15-7. The Ragin’ Cajuns are coming off a 2006 campaign that saw them post a 39-20 overall record and 19-5 mark in the Sun Belt Conference.
All-Time Series: Last year, UTSA dealt La.-Lafayette a 5-2 defeat at the Baseball Express Collegiate Classic (March 16) and picked up their first win in six tries against the Ragin’ Cajuns. The all-time series dates back to the 1992 season.
Preseason Polls: UTSA was picked to finish second in the West Division by the sports information directors and third by the league’s coaches in the Preseason SLC Polls. The Roadrunners received five first-place votes in the SID rankings and three in the coaches poll. They were six points (51) behind co-favorites Texas-Arlington and Texas State in the coaches poll and only three (58) behind UTA in the SID poll. Defending regular season champion McNeese State was the consensus choice to defend its regular season title in the East.
Trio Named To Preseason All-SLC Teams: Three Roadrunners were named to the preseason All-SLC teams, as senior pitcher Josh Ruffin and sophomore outfielder Michael Rockett were first-team selections and senior third baseman Ryan Saltzgaber was named to the second team. Ruffin earned first-team accolades a year ago, while Rockett was a second-team honoree and Saltzgaber was an honorable mention selection.
Agent Zero: Senior starting pitcher Blake Brannon, who will start Friday’s home opener, won his last five decisions of 2006 and enters this season on a school-record streak of 29 scoreless innings pitched. Brannon has not allowed a run since the fourth inning on May 7, 2006 (at Louisiana-Monroe). In first full season as a starter, the Brenham native went 8-6 with a 3.77 ERA and 67 strikeouts in 100.1 innings of work. He also tossed four complete games and three shutouts (No. 2 in UTSA history).
Ruffin On The Career Charts: Senior Josh Ruffin’s name can be found all over the Roadrunners’ career record book. Sunday’s starter is UTSA all-time record holder with four career shutouts and he also ranks sixth in ERA (4.59) and innings pitched (239.2), seventh in victories (14) and complete games (six), eighth in appearances (66) and 10th in strikeouts (140).
Hit The Lights: For the first time in school history, UTSA will play night games at Roadrunner Field this season. Nine of the team’s 22 contests at the facility will be played under the lights. Friday’s home opener against Louisiana-Lafayette will kick off the night-time action at the “Bird Bath.”
Home Cooking: Roadrunner Field and Wolff Stadium were tough places for the opposition to play in 2006, as UTSA registered a school-record 24 home victories. That broke the previous UTSA record of 23 home wins set in 1994. The Roadrunners have posted a 243-170 (.589) all-time home record.
Home Away From Home: A fixture on the Roadrunners’ home schedule for more than a decade, UTSA will play five games at Nelson W. Wolff Stadium this season. St. Mary’s (Feb. 26) and Houston (Feb. 27) will visit the facility for single mid-week contests, while the Roadrunners will host the College of Charleston for a three-game series from March 9-11. Built in 1994 and known as the “The Jewel of the Texas League,” it also is home to the San Antonio Missions, the Double A affiliate of the San Diego Padres.
What’s Back In 2007: UTSA is coming off a season that saw it finish with a 37-22 record and 20-10 mark in conference games. The team welcomes back 17 letterwinners ? including five position starters and six pitchers ? in addition to 19 newcomers this season. Topping the list of returnees are 2006 first-team All-SLC starting pitcher Josh Ruffin, a senior, and Freshman All-America center fielder Michael Rockett. Also back are sophomore second baseman James Keithley and senior third baseman Ryan Saltzgaber, both of whom earned honorable mention accolades a year ago.
2007 Captains: Senior starting pitcher Josh Ruffin, junior catcher Zach Etheredge and junior shortstop Marshal Davis will serve as the Roadrunners’ team captains this season.
Tough Schedule: The Roadrunners’ 55-game schedule is highlighted by six opponents that qualified for the 2006 NCAA Tournament ? Baylor, The College of Charleston, Houston, Rice, Texas and Texas-Arlington.
Slick Fielding: Under the direction of seventh-year associate head coach Jason Marshall, who mentors the team’s infielders, UTSA has become one of the best fielding teams in the Southland Conference. Last season, the Roadrunners led the league with a school-record .969 fielding percentage on the strength of just 70 errors, the second-fewest in school history. UTSA has recorded four of the top five fielding seasons in school annals under Marshall’s guidance.
Chasing 400: UTSA enters the 2007 campaign two victories shy of its 400th in school history. In 15 years of action, the Roadrunners have compiled 398 all-time wins, an average of nearly 27 per season.
Head Coach Sherman Corbett: With more than 20 years of playing and coaching experience, Sherman Corbett is in his seventh season at the helm of UTSA’s baseball program. The winningest coach in school history (175 victories), Corbett led the Roadrunners to 37 victories a year ago, the second-most in school history. In his first six seasons, he has coached 24 All-SLC players, including seven first-teamers. Corbett also has mentored the 2001 SLC Pitcher of the Year (Jared Howton), 2002 SLC Player and Hitter of the Year (Mark Schramek), 2003 SLC Freshman of the Year (Ryan Crew) and two Freshman All-Americans ? Crew (2003) and Michael Rockett (2006).
