? Game notes (.pdf)
SAN ANTONIO ? UTSA looks to keep pace near the top of the Southland Conference standings with a three-game series at Stephen F. Austin this weekend at Hoya Field in Nacogdoches. The Roadrunners have won four of their past five games and are 14-7 in the league and tied with Sam Houston State (12-6) for second place behind UTA (14-4), while SFA is seventh (11-10). Game one of a Saturday doubleheader is set for 1 p.m., followed by a single game at noon Sunday.
Tuning In: Fans may follow CSTV’s GameTracker of all three games at sfajacks.com.
UTSA Roadrunners (22-24, 14-7 SLC) at Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks (18-27, 11-10 SLC)
Saturday, April 21 ? 1 p.m. (DH) | Sunday, April 22 ? Noon
Hoya Field (500) ? Nacogdoches, Texas
GameTracker: sfajacks.com
Series Record: UTSA leads, 30-14
Last Meeting: UTSA 11, SFA 4 (March 26, 2006)
Base Hits
? The Roadrunners have won four of their past five games, but are looking for their first road win since March 11 at Southeastern Louisiana
? UTSA leads the all-time series with SFA, 30-14, and has won nine of the last 12 meetings
? The Roadrunners are 6-9 overall and 5-4 in SLC play on the road this season
? UTSA, which has led the NCAA in home runs each of the last four seasons, has slugged 51 round-trippers in 46 games this season (1.11 per game)
? Senior Jessica Rogers leads the league with a .478 batting average, 33 hits, 20 runs, 10 home runs, 22 RBIs and .971 slugging and .506 on-base percentages in SLC play
By The Numbers
66 ? Career home runs for Jessica Rogers
99 ? Career extra-base hits for Jessica Rogers
100 ? Lori Cook will coach her 100th game as UTSA’s head coach on Sunday
400 ? UTSA will play its 400th Southland Conference contest in game two on Saturday
UTSA/SFA Series History: UTSA and SFA have met 44 times with the Roadrunners holding a 30-14 advantage in the series. The Roadrunners have won three straight and nine of the last 12 meetings. UTSA is 3-0 against SFA under head coach Lori Cook, sweeping the Ladyjacks, 8-0, 8-3 and 11-4 last year in San Antonio. The Ladyjacks have won three of the last six meetings in Nacogdoches.
Scouting The Ladyjacks: SFA fell to 18-27 overall and 11-10 in the league after dropping two of three games to McNeese State at home this week. Briana Bishop is the leading hitter with a .315 batting average, 10 doubles, six home runs and 23 RBIs, while Kendal Harper is batting .302. Kari Hugie leads a solid pitching staff with an 8-11 record, 2.55 ERA and 37 strikeouts in 126.1 innings pitched. Head coach Jenifer Wells is 38-55 in her second season.
Week In Review: UTSA took two of three games from Northwestern State at last weekend Roadrunner Field. Amanda Glenn struck out 14 and Kelly Corliss had the game-winning double in the top of the eighth inning of a 2-0 victory for the Demons in game one. UTSA fought back to take the next two contests, 6-5 and 3-2, and win its fourth straight series against Northwestern State. Sophomore Rachel Rackley returned from an arm injury that had kept her sidelined since Feb. 18 and went 3-for-3 with three RBIs in the second game, hitting her first home run of the season and driving in the winning run in the bottom of the seventh with a bases-loaded single to left field. Sophomore Leanne Risberg was the hero in game three, slugging her 10th homer of the season in the fifth inning, a three-run shot to center field that proved to be the difference. Junior Amanda Nikolenko was solid in the circle, picking up two wins in relief and recording a 1.54 ERA and nine strikeouts in the series.
Tough Slate: UTSA has played a tough schedule in 2007, with seven games against teams ranked in the top 20 of this week’s ESPN.com/USA Softball and USA Today/NFCA Top 25 Polls. The Roadrunners faced No. 2/2 Alabama in the CenturyTel Classic, No. 5/5 Texas A&M at the Aggie Classic, No. 19/15 Texas on March 8 and 22, No. 6/6 LSU on March 13 and No. 7/10 Baylor in a March 28 doubleheader.
No Place Like Home: UTSA has turned Roadrunner Field into a true home-field advantage over the past three-plus seasons. Dating back to 2004, the Roadrunners are 58-12 (.829) at home, including a 12-6 mark this season. UTSA has won 20 of its past 26 home games.
Rogers Rewriting Record Books: Senior Jessica Rogers broke the SLC career home runs record with her 56th in the 4-1 loss to No. 8 Texas on March 8, moving out of a tie atop the league list with former Roadrunner Christy Brownlee. She now has 15 this season and 66 career homers, which ranks ninth on the NCAA’s all-time list. The 2005 SLC Player of the Year also eclipsed the SLC career total bases mark of 428 set by Lori Tande (Louisiana-Monroe) from 1999-2002 with four in the Texas game and now has 498 for her career. Rogers, who set the conference single-season home run and RBI records with 23 and 64 in 2005, took down the league’s career RBI record of 147 with five in the Rutgers win on Feb. 16 and now has 182. In addition to those three career records, the South Grand Prairie High product has set school standards for hits (264) and extra-base hits (99) and ranks second with 149 runs and 693 at-bats. Her .381 career batting average is second all-time behind Amanda Michalsky’s .394. Rogers also broke the UTSA single-game record with 13 total bases and tied a single-game record with three home runs against Nicholls on March 24.
Making History: Amanda Nikolenko tossed the eighth no-hitter in school history in a 10-0 victory over Rutgers on Feb. 16 at the Aggie Classic. The Ashland, Mo., native struck out five and allowed just two walks and a hit batter in becoming the fifth different Roadrunner to hold a team hitless in 16 seasons of softball. Nikolenko flirted with her second career no-no in the 15-0 victory against Prairie View A&M on April 6, allowing just one infield single in a five-inning affair.
Cantu Can Hit: Rudi Cantu, a true freshman from Alvin, has firmly entrenched herself near the top of the UTSA batting order. The former prep all-stater is batting .336 with 42 hits (third on the team) and a team-best seven stolen bases. Although battling a minor injury, Cantu has heated up over the last month, batting a team-best .444 (22-for-50) with three doubles and four stolen bases since March 10.
Murray Moving Up: Senior Aimee Murray is moving up the UTSA career charts in several categories. The Cy-Fair High product has 11 home runs this season, giving her 46 for third place on the career list. The three-time all-conference shortstop has 147 career RBIs, which is second all-time behind Rogers. Murray also ranks second with 136 runs, third with 83 extra-base hits, fourth with 212 hits, fourth with 293 assists and seventh with 35 doubles.
Nikolenko making noise: Amanda Nikolenko is steadily working her way to the top of several of UTSA’s career pitching record lists. The 2006 SLC First-Team selection ranks second with 52 wins, third with 415 strikeouts, fourth with 77 starts, fifth with 51 complete games, sixth with 10 shutouts, sixth with 511.2 innings pitched and seventh with a 2.72 ERA.
Going, Going, Gone: UTSA has made a name nationally with the success it has enjoyed hitting the long ball. Dating back to 2003, the Roadrunners have slugged 440 home runs in 266 games, an average of 1.65 per game. Last season, UTSA shattered its own NCAA record, hitting 105 round-trippers in 51 contests for a 2.06 average, eclipsing the 1.87 mark set in 2004 (101/54). The Roadrunners own three of the top six home run seasons in NCAA history ? 105 (2006), 103 (2005), 101 (2004) ? and set a conference record with 14 home runs in four games at the 2006 SLC Tournament. This season, UTSA has 51 long balls in 46 games (1.11), which ranks third in the league and 23rd in the country.
UTSA In The NCAA Statistical Rankings: UTSA traditionally has been ranked nationally in several statistical categories and 2007 is no different. As of April 15, the Roadrunners are 23rd in home runs per game (1.11) and 62nd in slugging percentage (.438). Individually, Jessica Rogers is fourth in toughest to strike out (four in 144 at-bats), 14th in home runs per game (0.33), 29th in slugging percentage (.764), 57th in RBIs per game (0.93) and 78th in batting average (.403). Leanne Risberg is seventh in hit by pitch per game (0.30), while Aimee Murray is 81st in home runs per game (0.24).
SLC Supremacy: UTSA is the winningest program in Southland Conference history, owning a 246-152 (.618) all-time record in conference games. Dating back to 2004, the Roadrunners are 77-23 (.770) in league play, including a 14-7 mark this season. UTSA has won three consecutive SLC regular season crowns and is 10-2 in SLC Tournament games over the last three years, winning two-of-three titles (2004, 2006).
A New Era: Lori Cook is in her second year as head coach after guiding the Roadrunners to one of the most successful seasons in school history in 2006. UTSA was 37-14 overall, won its third consecutive SLC regular season title with a 22-5 mark, won the SLC Tournament for the second time in three years and made its second NCAA Tournament appearance. Cook’s career record is 59-38 (.608).
Another Honor For Rogers: Jessica Rogers added another award to her resum? last week as she was named one of 20 national candidates for the 2007 Lowe’s Senior CLASS (Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School) Award. Candidates were selected based on personal qualities that define a complete student-athlete. While on-the-field performance during their collegiate softball careers is a factor in determining candidates and the eventual winner, their personal character and off-the-field achievements in the classroom and community are major areas of focus. The award was conceived by famed sportscaster Dick Enberg, who continues to serve as Honorary Chairman. A national media committee will select 10 finalists in April with the winner announced during the week of May 28 at the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City, Okla.
Up Next: UTSA hosts Sam Houston State in the final home games of the season next Saturday-Sunday, April 27-28, at Roadrunner Field.
