Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (9-17, 1-8 SLC) at UTSA Roadrunners (14-8, 6-3 SLC)
Games 23-25 ? Friday-Sunday, March 27-29 ? 6/2/1 p.m.
Roadrunner Field (800) ? San Antonio, Texas
Probable starting pitching matchups (W-L, ERA. IP, K)
Friday, March 27: 8 Red Patterson, rhp (2-2, 4.88, 31.1, 34) vs. Jake Liedka, lhp (1-1, 5.51, 16.1, 17)
Saturday, March 28: 24 Kris Ruepke, lhp (0-2, 8.33, 27.0, 20) vs. Brandon Orr, rhp (1-1, 6.82, 31.0, 19)
Sunday, March 29: 2 Clay Schrader, rhp (2-1, 3.90, 32.1, 27) vs. Roy Ferdin, lhp (1-3, 5.67, 33.1, 13)
Probable UTSA starting lineup (BA, R, HR, RBI, SB)
1. R 14 Tyler Carpenter, c (.350, 19, 1, 11, 3)
2. S 10 Marshal Davis, ss (.356, 20, 1, 18, 1)
3. R 1 Michael Rockett, cf (.361, 22, 6, 25, 6)
4. R 22 Jose Hernandez, dh (.416, 25, 8, 27, 5)
5. R 13 Aaron Powell, lf (.275, 19, 3, 17, 1)
6. R 29 Matthew James, 1b (.275, 11, 1, 6, 0)
7. R 17 Lance Brown, 3b (.294, 21, 1, 12, 2)
8. R 16 Jason Mohn, rf (.313, 5, 2, 8, 1)
9. R 23 Ryan Hutson, 2b (.250, 15, 1, 8, 1)
Leading off:
? UTSA defeated Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 10-4, in a non-conference matchup up at Whataburger Field on Tuesday, Feb. 24
? The Roadrunners are 4-1 at the Bird Bath this season (7-2 overall home record) and they have won 21 of their last 27 games at their on-campus facility
? UTSA is averaging more than eight runs (8.3) and 11 hits (11.2) per contest this year
? The Birds are 7-1 when playing under the lights this spring
? Senior Jose Hernandez has been named Southland Conference Hitter of the Week in two of the last three weeks
? Senior All-American Michael Rockett has set the program's all-time at-bat and hits records this season
? UTSA’s 11-8 victory on Sunday, March 1, at Oral Roberts ended the nation's longest active home winning streak at 25 games
? The Roadrunners picked up their first season-opening win in nine years with their 8-5 victory against San Francisco on Friday, Feb. 20
? The Birds are the consensus preseason favorite to win their third consecutive Southland Conference Regular Season Championship
? UTSA returns 22 letterwinners, 10 pitchers and six position starters from last year's squad that tied a school record with 39 wins
? Two-time defending SLC Coach of the Year Sherman Corbett has led the program to three league titles in the last four years (two regular season/one tournament)
? Rockett and Zach Calhoon are preseason All-Americans
? Four players were named to the conference's preseason teams (Rockett & Calhoon first team/Aaron Powell & Ryan Proudfoot second team)
Series history: The Roadrunners lead the all-time series that dates back to the 2002 season, 17-15. UTSA, which entered the year having lost four of the last five matchups with the Islanders, picked up a 10-4 non-conference victory at Whataburger Field on Tuesday, Feb. 24. This will be the third year in a row that the two programs have met as members of the Southland Conference.
On the Web: A free audio stream of 54 of UTSA's 55 games will be carried live courtesy of Yahoo! Sports this season. Pat Evans will call all the action on Friday and Saturday, while Ed Suarez will broadcast Sunday's tilt. Live stats also will be available at no cost for every contest the Roadrunners play this spring on goUTSA.com. Beginning Easter weekend, video streamingwill be available for Rowdy Zone subscribers for 12 selected home gamesat Roadrunner Field (April 9-11 vs. Northwestern State; April 13 vs. Dallas Baptist; April17-19 vs. Lamar; May 2-3 vs. Texas State; May 14-16 vs. CentralArkansas).
Potent offense: UTSA is averaging more than eight runs (8.3) and 11 hits (11.2) per game this season. More than 36 percent of the squad's safeties have gone for extra bases (56 doubles, 8 triples, 25 home runs) and that has translated to a .494 team slugging percentage. The Roadrunners have scored in double figures in nine contests this spring (three of last four overall), all of which have resulted in wins
Comeback kids: Ten of UTSA's 14 victories this year have come after the Roadrunners have fallen behind in the early innings. UTSA did not trail in their Feb. 21 contest against San Francisco (12-3/second game of doubleheader), March 1 tilt at Oral Roberts (11-8) and the first two games of last weekend's series at Sam Houston State (12-0/10-6).
Hit the lights: When the sun has gone down and the lights have been turned on, UTSA has been at its best this spring. The Roadrunners are 6-1 when playing at night this season.
Rockett setting records: Senior All-American Michael Rockett just missed his second cycle in a year in the Birds' 11-8 win at Oral Roberts on March 1, but his 3-for-5 performance vaulted him into first place on the program's career hits chart. The All-America center fielder now has 273 in his four years as a Roadrunner and that mark has surpassed former record holder Jeff Juarez. who recorded 249 from 1996-99. The Sugar Land native became UTSA's career leader in at-bats on March 17 at Kansas State and has since pushed his total to 786 (previous record: 762, Juarez). Rockett's name can be found all over the school's all-time lists, as he ranks second in doubles (52), third in bating average (.347), runs scored (159) and RBIs (177), fourth in home runs (29) and fifth in triples (9). He is hitting .361 with 22 runs scored, five doubles, one triple, a half dozen homers and 25 RBIs this year. He also leads the club with 35 hits and six stolen bases in addition to ranking second in batting average, runs, RBIs, total bases (60) and slugging percentage (.619). His career-long 19-game hitting streak (dating back to May 16, 2008) came to an end on Sunday, March 15 (first game of a doubleheader at UT Arlington) but enters this weekend's series riding a seven-game stretch that began the following contest. Rockett has reached base in every game this season.
Heavy-hitting Hernandez: Reigning Southland Conference Hitter of the Week Jose Hernandez arguably has been the team's most consistent hitter this spring. The left fielder/designated hitter is leading the Roadrunners in batting average (.416), runs scored (25), doubles (11), home runs (8), RBIs (27), walks (17), on-base percentage (.540), total bases (69) and slugging percentage (.896/eighth NCAA) in addition to ranking second in hit by pitches (5) and stolen bases (5). The Anaheim Hills, Calif., native was a member of the College Baseball Foundation's National All-Star Lineup for games played during the week of March 2-8 and also was tabbed the SLC Hitter of the Week after going 9-for-15 (.600) with seven runs, a pair of doubles, a triple, four homers and 11 RBIs. His top performance that week was a three-homer, six-RBI effort that included a two-run walk-off shot with two down in the ninth on March 6 against Southeastern Louisiana. Hernandez was tabbed SLC Hitter of the Week for the second time in three weeks on Monday after hitting .556 (10-18), including two hits in all five contests, with five runs, three doubles, a homer and four RBIs. He is coming off a junior year that saw him hit .319 with nine doubles, a homer and 24 RBIs in 43 games (41 starts).
Leadoff production: After batting seventh in the first two games of the season, sophomore Tyler Carpenter has found a home atop the Roadrunners' lineup. Carpenter, who saw a career-long 17-game hitting streak (dating back to May 23, 2008) come to an end on March 17, is hitting .350 with 19 runs scored, nine doubles, a homer, 11 RBIs and three stolen bases. The Missouri City native leads the squad with 35 hits, including a half dozen three-hit performances, is reaching base at a .420 clip (second on team) and owns a .470 slugging percentage. He has reached base in all but two contests since being penciled into the leadoff spot for good on Feb. 21.
He Is Marshal: You would never know that senior Marshal Davis missed the entire 2008 campaign based on how he has begun his final year as a Roadrunner. Davis is hitting .356 with 20 runs, three doubles, a team-leading three triples, his first career home run (hit on March 10 vs. Illinois State) and 18 RBIs. His eight career triples rank seventh on the program's all-time chart.
Stopper of the Year candidate: Junior closer Zach Calhoon was one of 40 relief pitchers named to the NCBWA's Stopper of the Year watch list last month. The Spring native saved two of UTSA’s three wins against San Francisco in the opening weekend of the year. The right-hander set down the Dons in order and fanned two in the season-opening 8-5 victory and came back two days later with another two-strikeout performance in finishing off the Roadrunners’ 6-3 triumph. He picked up his third save of the year (in five chances) last Sunday at Sam Houston State and owns a UTSA career record of 22 in his two-plus seasons in the Alamo City. Calhoon also sports a 2-1 ledger with a 2.92 ERA in 11 appearances, has fanned 15 in 12.1 frames this season and opponents are hitting just .211 off him this. He saved an SLC-best 13 games a year ago, a mark that ranked eighth nationally (NCAA's third-best returning total), and also posted a 4-1 record with a 1.54 ERA and 54 strikeouts in 41 innings of work (26 appearances).
Patterson on a roll: Junior right-hander Red Patterson has stepped in and become a dominant force as UTSA's Friday night starter this season. The Frisco native is coming off a four-hit shutout last week at Sam Houston State and he tied his career-high with eight strikeouts in the seven-inning victory. He faced just four hitters over the minimum and did not allow a runner to second base until there were two down in the final frame. Patterson is 2-2 with a 4.88 ERA this year and he has whiffed 34 hitters and walked just 10 in 31.1 innings (five starts). Opponents are hitting only .264 against him and he leads the staff with a pair of quality starts.
Schrader closing out series strong: Freshman Clay Schrader has found a home as the Birds' Sunday starter this spring, as he leads the team with a 3.90 ERA in a team-high 32.1 innings. The Humble native has a 2-1 record and struck out 27 hitters in six games (five starts). The right-hander picked up his first collegiate win on Feb. 24 with six strikeouts in four scoreless relief innings at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. He went 9.1 panels at UT Arlington on March 15 (second game of doubleheader) and that was the longest start by a Roadrunner in nearly five years (10.2/Lucas Stewart/April 3, 2004).
Alka-Selsor: Freshman left-hander Casey Selsor has found a niche in the Roadrunners bullpen during the early part of his first campaign in navy blue and orange. The San Antonio native leads the pitching staff with a 4-1 record and has struck out 13 in 19.2 innings this spring (eight appearances). A 37th-round draft pick of the Washington Nationals following his final season at Reagan High School, Selsor was a 2008 all-state honoree and the San Antonio 5A Player of the Year after posting a 13-2 record with two saves and a 2.25 ERA. He also struck out 124 in 96.1 innings of work.
Preseason All-Americans: Senior center fielder Michael Rockett and junior closer Zach Calhoon both earned preseason All-America honors from multiple organizations. Rockett, who became the program's first-ever second-team honoree last spring, was selected to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association's first team and Collegiate Baseball's third team. Calhoon, meanwhile, earned third-team accolades from both the NCBWA and Collegiate Baseball.
National Player of the Year candidate: Preseason All-American Michael Rockett has been named to the Brooks Wallace and NCBWA's Dick Howser Award watch lists, both of which honor the nation's top player. He is coming off a junior campaign that saw him hit .360 with a UTSA-record 25 doubles, five triples, 10 home runs and 68 RBIs. He also scored 60 runs, stole nine bases and threw out seven runners at the plate from center field.
Duo among nation's best: On pace to break nearly every hitting record in school annals, senior center fielder Michael Rockett entered the 2009 season ranked among returning hitters nationally in career hits (238/third), RBIs (152/third), total bases (370/third) and doubles (47/sixth). Meanwhile, junior closer Zach Calhoon's UTSA career-record 19 saves stood fourth among the country's returnees entering the spring.
Preseason polls: UTSA was the consensus choice to win its third consecutive Southland Conference Regular Season Championship, as voted by the league's coaches and sports information directors. The Roadrunners picked up five first-place votes in both polls and outdistanced second-place Lamar by nine points (111-102) in the SIDs Poll. In the coaches poll, they were ahead of Sam Houston State and Texas State by four tallies (110-106).
Getting ready for the grind: UTSA is slated to play 55 games this season and those contests will take place over an 85-day span. In a rare feat for a southern-based program, the Roadrunners will play 30 of their tilts away from the Alamo City, which translates to 54.5 percent.
Team captains: Seniors Marshal Davis, Michael Rockett and Kris Ruepke and junior Ryan Rummel will serve as team captains this spring.
