? Diamond notes (.pdf)
Games 43-45 ? April 27-29 ? Sam Houston State (27-16, 11-7)
6:30/2/1 p.m. ? Don Sanders Stadium ? Huntsville, Texas
UTSA Concludes Seven-Game Road Trip With Key SLC Series: UTSA (24-18, 14-4) looks to get back on the winning track this weekend when it travels to Huntsville for a key three-game Southland Conference series at Sam Houston State. Just three games separate the two squads in the SLC West standings. Friday’s opener is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Don Sanders Stadium, while Saturday and Sunday’s contests are slated for 2 and 1 p.m. starts, respectively. The Roadrunners have lost three games in a row, their longest losing streak since opening the season with six straight defeats. UTSA’s next victory will be the 200th of seventh-year head coach Sherman Corbett’s career, as he has a 199-190 all-time record.
Scouting The Bearkats: Sam Houston State comes into this weekend’s series with a 27-16 overall record and 11-7 mark in league play. The Bearkats swept McNeese State last weekend before losing at No. 3 Rice on Tuesday (6-2). Sam Houston State tied the all-time series that dates back to 1993 at 26 games apiece with a 3-1 victory on March 3 at the Al Ogletree Classic. UTSA swept last year’s three-game set at Roadrunner Field and has won seven of the past 10 matchups.
Getting Off On The Right Foot: UTSA’s success this season can be directly attributed to its solid 9-1 record in series openers. Since dropping their first lid-lifter of the year to Louisiana-Lafayette (10-2, Feb. 16), the Roadrunners have reeled off nine consecutive series-opening victories, including six in a row in SLC play.
UTSA Dominating SLC Series Finales: The Roadrunners, off to a program-best 14-4 start in Southland Conference play (previous: 13-5/1995), have built that impressive record on the strength of five victories in series finales this season. UTSA ? which has scored in double figures in nine of its 18 league games, outscored the opposition by 72 runs (151-79) and is averaging 8.3 runs per contest ? has three run-rule triumphs in series finales this year. The Roadrunners defeated McNeese State, 16-2 (eight innings), on March 18; Central Arkansas, 14-1 (seven), on March 25; and Texas-Arlington, 12-1 (seven), on April 7.
UTSA Offense Among NCAA Leaders: Through games of April 22, the Roadrunners currently rank among the nationally leaders in three offensive categories: triples per game (seventh/0.49), home runs per contest (29th/1.02) and slugging percentage (33rd/.472).
Perfect Start Best Ever: UTSA began the 2007 Southland Conference season a perfect 10-0, which was its best SLC start in school history and tied for the second-best in league history. Lamar started 14-0 in 1984, while Texas-Arlington was 10-0 a year ago. UTSA’s previous best start was 4-0 in both 1994 and ’96.
Bring Out The Brooms: The Roadrunners opened the SLC campaign with consecutive sweeps of McNeese State, Central Arkansas and Southeastern Louisiana. The sweeps marked the first time the program’s 16-year history that UTSA swept back-to-back-to-back three-game series against league opponents. The Roadrunners now have swept SLC foes 16 times in school annals, 10 of which have come under the direction of head coach Sherman Corbett.
You Dropped A Bomb On Me: Thirty-seven of UTSA’s 42 home runs (88.1 pct.) this season have been hit during the past 25 contests. Leading the long ball parade are senior Ryan Saltzgaber and junior Zach Etheredge, both of whom have slugged all eight of their homers this year during that time. Sophomore James Keithley has launched five bombs and junior Trent Lockwood, senior Mitch Ponza and sophomore Michael Rockett each have left the yards four times. Lockwood, Rockett and Saltzgaber have grand slams among their homers. Also on the board is redshirt freshman Tim Palincsar ? who has three long balls ? and junior Josh Wilson, who hit a pinch-hit home run against Texas-Pan American (April 17).
Season Tater Total Second-Best In Corbett Era: With 42 home runs this season, UTSA already has surpassed its season total from a year ago and it is the second-highest total of the Sherman Corbett era (highest: 55, 2004). The 42 long balls rank as the seventh-most in school history. The UTSA record is 66 set in 1999.
UTSA Leaves Yard Four Times: The Roadrunners launched four home runs in their 11-3 victory against Northwestern State on April 13 and it was the first time in more than two years that the program has done so. The last time UTSA hit four long balls in a contest was a 14-3 victory against Texas-Pan American on March 30, 2005.
Ten-Run Third A First Since 2005: In their 12-0 victory at Texas-Arlington on April 7, the Roadrunners scored 10 runs in the third inning, which was the first time since April 20, 2005, that UTSA crossed the plate 10 times in a frame. The Roadrunners sent 15 batters to the dish and had seven hits in the stanza, including a school-record-tying two by both junior Trent Lockwood and sophomore Michael Rockett.
Lineup Changes Do The Trick: Stuck with a 4-9 record and averaging just 4.2 runs per game, head coach Sherman Corbett decided to shuffle his lineup on March 9. The seventh-year skipper moved sophomore James Keithley and redshirt freshman Tim Palincsar into the top two spots in the lineup and junior Zach Etheredge to the six hole. Since those switches, the Roadrunners have posted a 20-9 (.690) record, hit .319 as a team, averaged 11.6 hits per game and scored 7.7 runs per contest.
Red Hot Offense: After starting the year slowly, the UTSA offense has exploded the past 25 games, 17 of which have resulted in victories. The Roadrunners have scored 203 times (8.1 pg) and outscored the opposition by 80 runs during that time. UTSA has posted a .326 batting average on the strength of 297 hits (11.9 pg), slugged .546 (497 total bases) and reached base at .388 clip. Nearly 37 percent of the squad’s 297 hits (109) have gone for extra bases, including 55 doubles, 17 triples and 37 home runs. The Roadrunners also have stolen 25 bases.
Tough Schedule: The Roadrunners’ 55-game schedule is highlighted by six opponents that qualified for the 2006 NCAA Tournament ? Baylor, College of Charleston, Houston, Rice, Texas and Texas-Arlington. UTSA has a 5-7 record against those squads this season.
Close Games: In addition to scoring runs in bunches this year, the Roadrunners have shown the knack of playing close games. Twenty-three of the club’s 42 contests this year have been decided by three runs or less and it has a 13-10 mark in those games. UTSA has a 5-5 record in one-run tilts, a 4-3 mark in two-run contests and 4-2 record in games decided by three runs.
Ruffin On The Career Charts: Senior Josh Ruffin’s name can be found all over the Roadrunners’ career record book. The Humble native is UTSA’s all-time record holder with four career shutouts and he also ranks third in innings pitched (303.2) and appearances (76); fourth in victories (18), and complete games (eight); fifth in games started (38) and strikeouts (185); and sixth in earned run average (4.68).
Blakley Throwing Strikes: Senior Josh Blakley has been as good as it gets coming out of the UTSA bullpen this season. The Lorena native has a perfect 4-0 record with one save and leads the staff with a 3.00 ERA. Blakley has appeared in 19 contests and has a sterling 41/7 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 48 innings. The right-hander picked up his fourth victory of the season on March 31 against Southeastern Louisiana after tossing a career-high 5.2 scoreless innings. He has gone at least four innings in seven of his appearances this season.
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 mark of 23 home wins set in 1994. The Roadrunners are 15-6 at home this year and now have posted a 258-176 (.594) all-time home record.
Hit The Lights: For the first time in school history, UTSA is playing night games at Roadrunner Field this season. Eight of the team’s 21 contests at the facility are being played under the lights. The Feb. 16 home opener against Louisiana-Lafayette kicked off the night-time action at the “Bird Bath” and UTSA has a 5-1 record under the lights at Roadrunner Field this year.
Roadrunners Collect 400th All-Time Victory: UTSA won its 400th game in school history when it defeated St. Mary’s, 8-5, on Feb. 26. In 15-plus years of action, the Roadrunners have compiled 422 all-time wins, an average of nearly 27 per 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.
What’s Back In 2007: UTSA is coming off a season that saw it finish with a 37-22 record (20-10 SLC). 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 team captains this season.
Player Updates
C ? Zach Etheredge, Jr. - Starter in all 42 games ... leads the squad with eight home runs and 12 multi-RBI performances ... ranks second with .346 batting average, 38 RBIs, 93 total bases and a .574 slugging percentage ... stands third with 11 doubles and 19 multi-hit games, ... also has a triple and .388 on-base percentage ... had a career-high four hits, including a pair of solo homers, against Northwestern State (April 15) ... had a seven-game hitting streak from March 17-27 in which he posted a .452 average (14-31) with three doubles, a triple, five home runs (1.097 slg%) and 16 RBIs ... registered a .462 batting average (6-13) with three runs scored in last weekend’s three-game set at Stephen F. Austin ... hit .500 (5-10) with three doubles and five RBIs in the weekend sweep of Southeastern Louisiana (March 31-April 1) ... claimed SLC Hitter of the Week honors on March 26 after he hit .450 (9-20) with three doubles, a triple, three home runs and 11 RBIs ... named to Southwest Diamond Classic All-Tournament Team (4-10, 4 R, 4 RBIs).
1B/DH ? Trent Lockwood, Jr. - Has started 41 games, 38 at first base and three at DH ... leads the club in batting average (.364), hits (60), multi-hit games (22), doubles (13), total bases (100), slugging percentage (.606) and on-base percentage (.433) ... also ranks second in triples (three), home runs (seven), multi-RBI contests (nine) and walks (19) ... stands third with 32 runs and 37 RBIs ... had an 11-game hitting streak from April 3-20 (.391, 5 XBH, 8 RBI, .630 SLG), his third stretch of at least eight contests this season ... has hit safely in 24 of his last 27 contests (.409 BA, 19 XBH, 25 RBIs, .682 SLG, .480 OBP) ... has 18 multi-hit performances during that stretch ... had a 12-game hitting streak from March 11-31 in which he posted a .510 batting average (25-49) with eight doubles, a triple, three homers (.898 slg%) and 17 RBIs ... hit safely in his first eight games as a Roadrunner ... tied a school record with two hits in the third inning on April 7 at Texas-Arlington ... had a career-high six RBIs on March 17 at McNeese State ... earned SLC Hitter of the Week honors on April 16 after hitting .438 (7-16) with a double, one triple, a home run and five RBIs ... named to Southwest Diamond Classic All-Tournament Team (5-14, 3 R, 2B, 2 HR, 6 RBIs, SB).
2B/LF ? James Keithley, So. - Has started 33 games at second base and nine in left field ... ranks second on the club with 39 runs, three triples and seven stolen bases... also has a .313 batting average with seven doubles, six home runs, 23 RBIs and 16 walks ... had a career-best 19-game hitting streak snapped on April 7 at Texas-Arlington ... hit .400 (36-90) with four doubles, three triples, five home runs (.678 slg%) and 13 RBIs during that stretch ... squad is 20-9 since he moved into the leadoff spot on March 9 against the College of Charleston ... has scored a run in 21 of the past 26 games ... hitting .342 (53-155) with seven doubles, three triples, six home runs and 21 RBIs since starting the season 2-for-21 (.095) ... was 7-for-15 (.467) with eight runs scored, a double, one triple, a pair of home runs and three RBIs vs. Central Arkansas ... went 7-14 (.500) with four runs scored, a triple, his first homer of the year and four RBIs vs. the College of Charleston (March 9-11) ... 2006 honorable mention All-SLC.
3B ? Ryan Saltzgaber, Sr. - 2007 preseason second-team All-SLC ... starter in all 42 contests ... has hit a homer in five of his last 10 games and now is tied for the team lead with eight ... ranks second on the squad with 58 hits, 20 multi-hit performances, 93 total bases and nine multi-RBI efforts ... stands third with a .531 slugging percentage ... also hitting .331 with seven doubles, 34 RBIs and seven stolen bases ... has recorded at least two hits in 14 of his last 22 tilts ... had a career-high 10-game hitting streak from March 11-27 ... hit at a .364 clip (16-44) with two doubles, a pair of triples, three homers (.705 slg%) and 14 RBIs during that stretch ... has a quartet of three-hit performances this year ... 2006 honorable mention All-SLC.
SS ? Marshal Davis, Jr. - Starter in all 42 games ... has reached base by hit, walk or hit by pitch in 43 of his last 47 games dating back May 22, 2006 ... leads team with 30 walks and ranks second with a .402 on-base percentage ... also has scored 27 runs, stroked five doubles and two triples and driven in 15 runs ... has eight two-hit games and a pair of career-high-tying three-hit performances (March 17 at McNeese State/April 1 vs. SE Louisiana).
CF ? Michael Rockett, So. - 2007 preseason first-team All-SLC ... leads team with 39 RBIs ... stands second with 58 hits and 12 doubles ... also hitting .326 with a triple, four home runs, 31 runs and five stolen bases ... had a 13-game hitting streak from April 1-21 (.304, 4 XBH, 16 RBI) ... has recorded 12 two-hit games, five three-hit performances and a career-high-tying four-hit effort vs. Central Arkansas (March 24) ... tied a school record with two hits in the third inning on April 7 at Texas-Arlington ... had his first career grand slam and a career-high five RBIs at No. 6 Texas (April 3) ... also has a pair of four-RBI efforts (Feb. 27, vs. Houston/March 25, vs. Central Arkansas) ... was 10-for-13 (.769) with two doubles, a triple, his first homer of the season and six RBIs in the three-game sweep of Central Arkansas ... 2006 Freshman All-America and second-team All-SLC selection.
LF/DH ? Tim Palincsar, Fr. - Starter in 39 games this year (six LF/33 DH)... leads club with 42 runs scored and nine stolen bases ... ranks second with a .408 on-base percentage and nine multi-RBI games and third with 11 doubles ... also hitting .331 with a triple, four home runs and 31 RBIs ... had a career-high 13-game hitting streak from March 21-April 10 in which he had a .415 (22-53) batting average with seven doubles, one triple, three home runs (.755 slugging pct.) and 18 RBIs ... also reached base at a .492 clip and stole five bases during that stretch ... 10 of his last 21 starts have resulted in at least two hits, including a career-best 4-for-4 performance against Texas-Pan American (April 17) ... had a career-best four RBIs on vs. Southeastern Louisiana (April 1) and matched that performance on six days later at Texas-Arlington (April 7) ... hit his first career homer vs. the College of Charleston on March 10 ... had seven-game hitting streak from Feb. 23-March 4 (.385/10-26) ... named to the Al Ogletree Classic All-Tournament Team (5-11, 2 R, 2B, SB).
SP ? Josh Ruffin, Sr. - Preseason first-team All-SLC pick is one of the best pitchers in school history ... leads team with 46 strikeouts in 68 innings and also has five quality starts and two complete games ... is 4-2 with 5.29 ERA in his 11 starting assignments ... allowed three runs (two earned) on eight hits and fanned four in complete game win against Northwestern State (April 13) ... went 7.2 innings, allowing three runs, in earning win at Texas Arlington (April 5) ... tossed a four-hitter for first complete game of year and struck out seven, as UTSA won its SLC opener at McNeese State (March 16) ... allowed just one run on five hits and fanned six in seven innings vs. the College of Charleston (March 9) ... struck out career-high nine and picked up first victory of year vs. Gonzaga (Feb. 23) after allowing just three runs on six hits in eight-plus innings ... 2006 first-team All-SLC pick.
SP ? Bradley Chovanec, Jr. - Second on the squad with 42 strikeouts and a 4.61 ERA in team-high 68.1 innings ... has appeared in 14 games with 10 starts and has a 2-4 record this season ... tossed a complete-game five-hitter (one run) and struck out five against Southeastern Louisiana (March 31) ... gave up two runs and fanned six in seven innings vs. Central Arkansas (March 24) to collect his first UTSA victory ... allowed three runs in 6.1 innings, while striking out five vs. Sam Houston State (March 3) ... made first career start on Feb. 17 vs. UL-Lafayette (5 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 4 K) ... has allowed just one run and fanned six in four relief appearances (9 IP).
SP ? Blake Brannon, Sr. - Third on the team with 41 punchouts in 49 innings of work (11 starts) ... went the distance but tagged with loss at Stephen F. Austin on Sunday, allowing just one run on three hits with four strikeouts ... collected third win of season last Wednesday against Texas-Pan American ... allowed an unearned run on just three hits in five innings ... tossed five scoreless frames and fanned five at Texas-Arlington (April 7) ... allowed two runs and struck out six in seven innings at McNeese State (March 18) ... registered first quality start of year vs. the College of Charleston (March 11) ... allowed pair of runs (one earned) on just six hits in seven-plus innings, while tying career high with eight strikeouts ... entered senior season riding UTSA-record 29 scoreless innings streak and extended that stretch to 30 before giving up run vs. Louisiana-Lafayette (Feb. 16) ... needs just two more appearances to tie the UTSA career record.
SP ? Ryan Proudfoot, Fr. - Has 3-2 record and 2.84 ERA in 10 games (seven starts) ... has allowed just 28 hits (.201 BAA) and struck out 36 in 38 innings of work ... defeated Texas-Pan American (April 17) in his first start since April 1 ... allowed just one run on four hits and struck out three in seven innings ... picked up a pair of wins during the week of March 19-25 ... tossed five hitless innings with four strikeouts vs. Lamar (March 20) and then allowed just one run on four hits and punched out career-high 11 in six innings vs. Central Arkansas four days later (March 25).
RP ? Josh Blakley, Sr. - Has appeared in 19 games and is a perfect 4-0 record with one save and a team-best 3.00 ERA ... owns a 41/7 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 48 innings of work ... fanned a career-high six in victory against St. Mary’s (Feb. 26) ... tossed 5.2 scoreless innings, a career high, against Southeastern Louisiana (March 31) ... has gone at least four innings in seven contests and 3.1 innings in another.
RP ? J.T. Mackey, Jr. - Sports a 5-2 mark with three saves ... has recorded a 4.01 ERA in 21 games (one start) and struck out 27 in 33.2 innings of work ... made first career start at No. 13 Texas A&M ... picked up team-best fifth win of season with 2.2 scoreless frames against Northwestern State (April 15) ... collected fourth victory with a career-high five scoreless innings at McNeese State (March 17) ... got out of a bases-loaded jam with nobody out in the eighth to keep Roadrunners within one run in that contest ... earned both of team’s victories vs. the College of Charleston ... first UTSA victory came after two scoreless innings against Stephen F. Austin (March 2) ... earned first save against St. Mary’s (Feb. 26) ... saved the Roadrunners’ 6-3 victories at Texas-Arlington (April 5) and against Southeastern Louisiana (March 31).
RP ? Zach Calhoon, Fr. - Posted a 3-2 record with squad-best four saves in 18 appearances ... has a 2.74 ERA and allowed just 15 hits (.190 BAA), while striking out 33 in 23 innings ... named SLC Pitcher of the Week on March 5 after posting a win (vs. Houston) and a save (vs. Stephen F. Austin) ... struck out career-high five in 4.2 innings vs. Cougars (Feb. 27) ... picked up a win and a loss in last weekend’s three-game series at Stephen F. Austin ... collected his second victory of the season vs. Southeastern Louisiana (April 1) ... fanned final two batters against Gonzaga (Feb. 23) to earn first collegiate save.
Head Coach Sherman Corbett: With more than 20 years of playing and coaching experience, Sherman Corbett is in his seventh season at UTSA. The winningest coach in school history (199 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 a pair of 30-win squads and 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). Twelve of his Roadrunners have gone on to professional careers, including eight being selected in the MLB Draft.
