| Senior Amanda Nikolenko set a pair of UTSA career records on Saturday. |
CONWAY, Ark. ? Senior Amanda Nikolenko set two career records and UTSA scored 11 runs in the sixth to rally past Central Arkansas, 13-5, on Saturday afternoon at Farris Field.
With its sixth straight Southland Conference victory, the Roadrunners improved to 15-12 overall and 11-4 in league play. The Bears fell to 2-25 and 0-12.
Nikolenko broke Ursula Mares’ all-time strikeout record in the third inning, her first of five punchouts on the afternoon in a relief appearance. She earned to win to move to 7-6 on the year and tied Mares’ school record with her 61st career victory.
Sophomore Mercedes Hessel went 3-for-3, while senior Kourtney Jones and junior Leanne Risberg drove in three runs apiece, as UTSA rallied from a 5-2 deficit with 11 runs in the sixth inning.
UCA struck first with a pair of solo homers in the first by Keatha Tollett and Kayla Hitchcock.
Jones drew a bases-loaded walk in the top of the second to get UTSA on the board, but the Bears responded with RBI singles from Ashlee Genseal and Tollett to make it 4-1.
A Jones sacrifice fly in the fourth plated freshman Whitney Balch, who doubled to start the inning, and cut the deficit to two, but UCA answered with a double from Janae Owens and a run-scoring single up the middle by Hitchcock to push the lead to 5-2 after five.
Hessel started the sixth with a base hit and a single by Perry and a hit batter loaded the bases for the top of the order. Eight hits and one error later and UTSA had the eight-run mercy rule in effect following a two-out, two-run double to left center by Risberg that made it 13-5.
Nikolenko worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the sixth, capping the remarkable comeback.
Balch, senior Lindsay Perry and freshman Danye Holmes all collected two hits apiece for the Roadrunners, as UTSA pounded UCA pitching for 13 runs on 13 hits.
UTSA hosts Missouri at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, March 25.