| Sophomore Casey Selsor went 3-for-5 with two home runs and three RBIs on Sunday. |
SAN ANTONIO — Sophomore Casey Selsor went 3-for-5 with two home runs and three RBIs, junior right-hander Taylor Walton recorded his fourth consecutive quality start and UTSA won its season-best sixth game in a row with a 7-6 victory against McNeese State on Sunday at the Bird Bath.
The Roadrunners (20-27, 11-19 SLC) continued their hot play in the campaign's final month and they will enter next weekend's regular season-ending series at Central Arkansas two games behind Nicholls (13-17 SLC) for the eighth and final spot in the Southland Conference Tournament. UTSA swept the Cowboys (27-23, 15-15 SLC) for the fourth year in row and have won 14 of the past 15 meetings between the two programs dating back to the 2006 season.
"The guys have really stepped up to the challenge of winning when we need it most," 10th-year head coach Sherman Corbett said after the game. "We've talked to them about preparation, execution and the character we want to see from them as a team and they've really responded and played well the last two weekends. We've got four games left in the regular season and we want to continue that trend on Tuesday night against TCU."
Walton (6-1) allowed five runs but only two were earned in his 7.2 innings of work and the Midland native scattered 10 singles, walked two and fanned one in the 114-pitch performance (71 strikes). He now has won three of his last four starts and posted a 2.43 ERA during that span.
Junior right-hander Kevin Clarke, who won both ends of Saturday's doubleheader, recorded the final four outs and stranded the tying run on first in the ninth for his fifth save in nine chances this year.
The Birds got on the board early and often, scoring three times in the first, once in each of the following two frames and two more times in the fourth.
Junior Tyler Carpenter led off the contest with a triple to center and Selsor followed with homer down the right-field line. Senior Lance Brown then hit a single and, after an error and walk loaded the bases, a fielder's choice off the bat of sophomore Matthew James brought home Brown with the third mark of the frame.
Selsor pushed the lead to four in the second with his seventh long ball of the year, a solo blast to right center, and junior Ryan Hutson led off the next stanza with his 14th bomb of the season (38th of career/t-3rd in UTSA history).
After McNeese pulled within four with a run in the fourth, the UTSA advantage grew to a half dozen in the bottom of the inning after a run-scoring double by Hutson and an RBI single by James, both of which came with two out.
The Cowboys scored three unearned runs in the fifth, one more three frames later and another in the ninth, but UTSA was able to hold on when Clarke got Blake Ellender to strike out swinging to end the contest.
Tyler Davis (3-6) was tagged with the loss after surrendering seven runs (six earned) on 10 hits and three walks in five innings.
Hutson went 3-for-3 with two runs and a pair of RBIs and finished the weekend series with nine hits (.750 BA), including two doubles and three homers, seven runs scored and seven RBIs. Brown also added three safeties, as the Roadrunners rapped out a dozen on the day.
Jace Peterson went 2-for-3 with a walk, two runs scored and pair of stolen bases and Steven Irvine added two hits and a pair RBIs to lead McNeese State at the plate.
UTSA will wrap up its season-long eight-game home stand on Tuesday night against No. 4 TCU (40-11). First pitch is slated for 6 p.m. The Horned Frogs handed the Roadrunners a 17-12 setback on March 2 in Fort Worth.