UTSA Roadrunners (23-23) at Baylor Bears (33-17)
Tuesday, April 21 ? 5 p.m.
Getterman Stadium (1,230) ? Waco, Texas
Series History: Baylor leads, 15-12
Last Meeting: Baylor, 7-3 (Feb. 14, 2009)
SAN ANTONIO ? UTSA (23-23) will continue its six-game non-conferencestretch with a single contest at Baylor (33-17) on Tuesday, April 21.First pitch is set for 5 p.m. at Getterman Stadium.
On The Web: UTSA will provide live stats and audio at goUTSA.com.
Base Hits:
? This will be the second meeting this season and 28th overall between UTSA and Baylor
? The Roadrunners are 7-10 in road games and 11-13 including neutral site contests
? Baylor’s Getterman Stadium was the site of UTSA’s first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance at the 2004 Waco Regional
? The Roadrunners played five games (2-3 record) at Getterman Stadium as part of the Getterman Classic on Feb. 13-15
? UTSA head coach Lori Cook was an assistant coach at Baylor in 1999-2000
? The Roadrunners are 12-1 when they score five or more runs and 17-3 when leading after five innings
? Senior Leanne Risberg is tied for eighth on the school’s career home runs chart with 30 and she ranks seventh with 55 extra-base hits
? Junior Rudi Cantu ranks second in UTSA annals with six career triples, one shy of Shannon Steadman’s school record set from 1993-96 ... Cantu also is third with 34 career stolen bases, 14 behind Steadman’s standard of 48
? Freshman Caitlyn Ivy is riding a six-game hitting streak in which she is batting .421
? Junior Kelly Cato (Feb. 24) and freshman Amber Anderson (Feb. 10) have earned SLC Hitter of the Week honors this season
Last Time Out: Playing without the services of senior Leanne Risberg and junior Kelly Cato due to injury, UTSA dropped two of three games at home to Cal State Bakersfield. Sophomore Emily Humpal was the star in the opener, a 3-1 victory. The right-hander tossed a complete-game five-hitter and went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run to lead the way. In the nightcap on Saturday, freshman Laura Little hit her first collegiate home run to give UTSA a 1-0 lead, but CSUB rallied with a run in the seventh and plated two in the eighth in a 3-1 win. The visitors scored a run in both the sixth and seventh innings and rode the right arm of Katie Chavez to a 2-0 victory in the rubber game.
UTSA/Baylor Series History: The Bears lead the all-time series against UTSA, 15-12, including a 7-3 victory in the Getterman Classic on Feb. 14 in Waco. Baylor has won four straight meetings dating back to a 4-0 win on Feb. 9, 2002. The Roadrunners’ last win was a 1-0 decision on March 21, 2001, in Waco, where the Bears hold a 7-5 advantage.
Scouting Baylor: The Bears moved to 33-17 on the season after splitting a Big 12 Conference series against Nebraska over the weekend. Freshman outfielder Kayce Walker leads a potent offense with a .409 batting average, while senior infielder Alex Colyer is batting .353 with a team-best nine doubles, four home runs and 20 RBIs. Senior infielder Brette Reagan leads the squad with six homers and 22 RBIs. Freshman left-hander Whitney Canion (21-13, 1.49, 341 Ks) is the top arm on a pitching staff that boasts a 2.15 team ERA and 433 strikeouts.
Major Milestones: UTSA picked up victory No. 500 for the program in an 8-0 run-ruling at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Feb. 24. The Roadrunners now own an all-time record of 516-431-2. Additionally, fourth-year head coach Lori Cook earned win No. 100 with an 8-5 victory over UT Arlington on March 15. She now totes a UTSA career record of 112-93, including a 74-37 (.667) mark in Southland Conference games.
Working Overtime: UTSA has played nine extra-inning games this season ? including four in the month of April ? and is 4-5 in those contests. The Roadrunners opened the season with a 4-3 loss to Tulsa in eight frames at the Aggie Classic, but outlasted Northwestern State, 2-1, in eight in the final game of the Getterman Classic the following weekend. Senior Leanne Risberg’s walk-off grand slam in the eighth lifted the Roadrunners to a 10-6 win over Sam Houston State on March 1, and UT Arlington edged UTSA, 5-3, in nine innings on March 15. On March 24, UTEP edged UTSA, 2-1, in eight frames. The Roadrunners played three consecutive extra-inning affairs in early April. Nicholls used an Audrey Wood homer in the eighth for a 3-2 victory on April 4, while freshman Amber Anderson singled home junior Rudi Cantu with the winning run in a 3-2, 11-inning win on April 5. On April 10 in the first game of the Texas State series, freshman Caitlin Ivy’s bases-loaded single pushed the winning run across in a 3-2 win in nine frames. Cal State Bakersfield slipped past UTSA, 3-1, in eight innings on April 18.
SLC Accolades: Two Roadrunners have earned Southland Conference Hitter of the Week honors in the first three weeks of the season. On Feb. 10, freshman Amber Anderson picked up the award after batting .588 with 10 hits, three runs, two doubles, a pair of home runs, five RBIs, a 1.059 slugging percentage and a .611 on-base percentage in the Aggie Classic on Feb. 6-8. On Feb. 24, junior Kelly Cato collected weekly accolades after batting .833 (5-for-6) with two home runs and six RBIs in the North Texas doubleheader on Feb. 10.
Senior Standout: UTSA’s lone senior ? Leanne Risberg ? has heated up at the plate over the past month, but has missed the past six games due to injury after colliding with junior Rudi Cantu in the outfield in game two of the Texas State series on April 10. The New Orleans, La., native is batting .368 with a pair of home runs and six RBIs over her past 12 games and has recorded a hit in 11 of those games. For the season, the right fielder is hitting .303 with a team-best five round-trippers and 19 RBIs. She is tied for eighth place on UTSA’s career home runs chart with 30 and ranks seventh with 55 extra-base hits. Her 94 RBIs are just five shy of the top 10 list.
Alvin Express: A pair of Roadrunners ? junior Rudi Cantu and freshman Amber Anderson ? hail from Alvin, Texas, the hometown of Nolan Ryan. Cantu has been named all-conference in each of her first two seasons with the program, including first-team accolades at second base last year. Cantu, a preseason first-team All-SLC pick who missed three games due to injury after the collision with Risberg, is hitting .290 with 15 stolen bases (on 16 attempts). She is tied for second on UTSA’s career triples list with six and ranks third with 34 stolen bases. Anderson helped guide Alvin to the Class 5A State Championship last season, earning all-state and state tournament MVP honors. She is batting .298 with nine doubles, four home runs and a team-best 24 RBIs and was tabbed SLC Hitter of the Week on Feb. 10.
Dual Threats: UTSA has several players who can contribute at the plate and in the circle, beginning with sophomore Dany? Holmes. The Sugar Land native became the first player in school history to earn all-conference honors at two different positions in the same season when she was named second team at pitcher and third team at designated player. Holmes is batting .281 with three home runs and 14 RBIs and in the circle she owns a 9-9 record, 2.11 ERA, three shutouts and 101 strikeouts in 119.1 innings. In fact, UTSA boasts four pitchers who also will see time at the plate. Sophomore Emily Humpal, a Corpus Christi native who transferred after her freshman season at Creighton, totes a 2.68 ERA, 12-10 record, one save and 102 strikeouts in 149 frames and is batting .321 with a pair of home runs. Freshman Amber Anderson has pitched in eight games and is one of the team’s leading hitters with her .298 batting average, while freshman Morgan Luksa owns a 1-1 record, 3.63 ERA and 12 strikeouts against only four walks in nine appearances and has started six games at designated player, two in right field and one in left.
Fountain Of Youth: With just one senior on the roster, UTSA is fielding a young squad this season. The four-person pitching staff is composed of two sophomores ? Dany? Holmes and Emily Humpal ? and two freshmen ? Amber Anderson and Morgan Luksa. Of the nine starting positions, five have been occupied by sophomores or freshmen, including more than 40 starts for sophomore Kristin Kappler at third base and freshman Ashley Kappler at second base.
Brazoswood Buddies: Three of UTSA’s four starting infielders all hail from Brazoswood High School, located in Clute, Texas. Junior shortstop Kelly Cato and sisters Kristin, a sophomore third baseman, and Ashley, a freshman second baseman, Kappler all played for the Buccaneers, a traditionally-strong prep program.
SLC Preseason Polls: UTSA was picked to finish third in the Southland Conference Preseason Polls by both the head coaches and sports information directors. The Roadrunners picked up one first-place vote and tallied 90 points in the coaches’ poll for third behind preseason favorite and defending SLC Tournament Champion Stephen F. Austin and defending regular season champ Texas State. UTSA garnered a pair of first-place votes and 84 total points in the SIDs’ poll for third behind SFA and Texas State.
Trio Named To Preseason All-SLC Team: Junior Rudi Cantu was named to the Southland Conference Preseason First Team at second base, while senior outfielder Leanne Risberg and sophomore pitcher/designated player Dany? Holmes were second-team selections.
Head Coach Lori Cook: Head coach Lori Cook is in her fourth season at the helm of the program and is in her ninth year overall in the Alamo City. In her three-plus seasons as the third head coach in school history, Cook has posted a 112-93 record (.546), including a 74-37 (.667) mark in Southland Conference play. Under her direction, UTSA has won at least 18 conference games and finished in the top three in the league standings each season, captured one SLC regular season and one tournament crown and made one NCAA Tournament appearance. Fifteen Roadrunners have combined to earn 20 All-SLC accolades during her head coaching tenure. Prior to her promotion to head coach in September 2005, Cook spent one season as associate head coach after serving as assistant coach for three seasons and a volunteer assistant in 2001, all under Corrie Hill. A native of Napa, Calif., Cook also has coached at Baylor (1999-2000), Cosumnes River College (1996-98), Peanut (Italy) Softball Club (1995-96), Napa Valley College (1991-95), Cal State Hayward (1990-91). She played two seasons at Napa Valley College before finishing her collegiate career at Nebraska in 1989-90. Cook also played professionally overseas for Ronchi dei Legionari (Italy) in 1992.
Next Up: UTSA will conclude its 2009 home slate with a three-game Southland Conference series against Northwestern State this weekend.
