SAN ANTONIO — UTSA kicks off its home schedule at Wolff Stadium this weekend when it plays six games over a five-day span beginning Friday night.
The Roadrunners (2-2) will host Saint Joseph's (2-2) in a four-game series that begins at 6 p.m. on Friday. UTSA then will square off against Oregon State at noon on Monday before wrapping up the busy five-day stretch with Houston at 6 p.m. on Tuesday.
The Birds won the final two games of last weekend's season-opening series at Louisiana-Monroe to gain a split of the four-game set. Senior right-hander Taylor Walton helped UTSA to its first win of the spring in Saturday's nightcap with five scoreless innings. The Roadrunners then rallied for six runs in the eighth inning en route to a 14-10 victory in the finale, a game that saw the return of senior righty Zach Calhoon, who earned his first save since April 26, 2009. He is the Southland Conference's all-time leader with 26.
Freshman Mike Warren paced the squad's weekend offensive outburst with a .571 batting average (4-for-7). Sophomore Jake Wood posted a team-high nine hits, while sophomore Ryan Dalton recorded eight, including a pair of home runs. The Roadrunners are hitting .368 as a team with 19 extra-base hits (12 2B, 1 3B, 6 HR).
Saint Joseph's, which is picked to finish 11th in the 13-team Atlantic 10 preseason coaches' poll, is coming off a season-opening series split at Old Dominion. Kevin Kratochwill hit .500 (8-for-16) with eight runs scored, four RBIs and five stolen bases to lead the Hawks. Saint Joseph's also won its final two outings of the series to even its record.
Oregon State, picked to finish eighth in the Pac-10, enters this weekend's Kleberg Bank College Classic in Corpus Christi with a 2-2 mark after sweeping a pair of games from Gonzaga before dropping two at Fresno State. All four contests were decided by one run. The Beavers' pitching staff owns a collective 1.73 ERA.
Meanwhile, Houston has won its first four games of the 2011 campaign, all against Southland opponents. The Cougars boast a .353 batting average to go along with 20 extra-base hits, including five round-trippers. Jordan Lewis hurled seven scoreless innings in a 9-0 win against UT Arlington on last Saturday. Houston, which was selected to finish seventh in Conference USA this spring, will host Mississippi in a three-game series before traveling to the Alamo City on Tuesday.
UTSA will match up with Saint Joseph's and Oregon State for the first time in program history. The Cougars lead the all-time series that dates back to 1992, 16-8, but the two teams have split the last eight meetings.
This weekend wil mark the beginning of nine games at Wolff Stadium this season. The Birds are 64-47 (.577) all-time at the Double A home of the San Antonio Missions and they have won 21 of their last 27 contests at the facility, including a 4-2 victory against Iowa on March 17 last season.
Games 5-8
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