SAN ANTONIO – After four road games, the UTSA softball team returns home to resume Conference USA play against Marshall this weekend at Roadrunner Field. The Roadrunners open the three-game series with a doubleheader on Saturday slated to start at 1 p.m. CT. The series will conclude with a single game on Sunday at 12 p.m.
The Roadrunners enter the weekend 15-16, 4-5 in C-USA, while Marshall is 16-19-1, 6-5-1 in league play. UTSA is looking to bounce back after a competitive 1-0 loss at Texas earlier this week. Marshall picked up its first win in four games with a 6-3 victory over Saint Francis on Tuesday.
All games will be streamed on CUSA.tv with live stats available on the softball schedule at goUTSA.com.
Ranking eighth in Conference USA, UTSA is led by Celeste Loughman, Bailee Baldwin and Ashlynn Walls, who are all batting over .300. Behind a team-best .346 batting average, Loughman paces the Roadrunners with 36 hits and 27 runs. Baldwin follows with a .344 average and team-best 32 RBI and 13 home runs. The junior has also collected 26 runs and 31 hits for the Roadrunners. Walls rounds out the trio with a .309 batting average and a squad-best 10 doubles.
In the circle, UTSA is sporting a 3.03 ERA led by Lizzy Fox who has a 2.15 ERA. Fox had a 9-6 record in her 15 starts with 45 strikeouts while Madison Nelson also has 15 starts on the year with a 5-10 record and 24 strikeouts.
Marshall is currently sixth in league standings with the Thundering Herd winning its series over Southern Miss before falling to FlU and Florida Atlantic, and tying with UAB.
The Thundering Herd is averaging four runs per game and batting .280 as a team. Marshall ranks fourth in the nation in steals per game, averaging 2.44. Senior Jordan Colliflower leads the team with a .386 average to go with nine RBI, 12 runs and 12 steals. Elicia D'Orazio is batting .370 with five RBI, 31 runs and a team-high 29 steals, which ranks ninth in the nation. Ally Harrell has a .358 average with five homers and 21 RBI.
In the circle, Marshall has a 3.90 team ERA and allows a .279 opposing average. Junior Abigail Tolbert has a 7-7 record and a 4.22 ERA in 24 appearances, with 54 strikeouts in 102 innings. Ali Burdette has a 3.30 ERA and a 3-5 mark in 24 appearances, while Kailee Williamson is 5-7 with a 4.48 ERA in 21 appearances.
