SAN ANTONIO – After securing the series win on Saturday, the UTSA baseball team fell to Tarleton, 7-5, in the series finale on Sunday at Roadrunner Field.
Starting pitcher Ulises Quiroga struck out five batters in four innings pitched. In his first appearance as a Roadrunner, freshman Ruger Riojas had a successful outing as he allowed no runs on just two hits and struck out two in three innings of work. Antonio Valdez led the Roadrunners as he went 3-for-4 with an RBI. Caleb Hill also notched a multi-hit game as he went 2-for-4 with a run and a RBI.
Quiroga had a solid first two innings as he only allowed one hit and struck out three batters. After a couple scoreless innings, the Texans got on the board first as they plated three runs on a single and triple in the top of the third. The Roadrunners didn't plate their first run until a couple innings later when Valdez singled to second base to drive in Hill and make the score 3-1, in favor of Tarleton.
Although the Roadrunners had a few opportunities and even had bases loaded in the seventh, the sixth and seventh inning went scoreless. The eighth inning is when things started to heat up. In the top of the frame, the Texans added another two runs to their lead with a solo home run and a double. The Roadrunners responded in the bottom of the frame.
In the bottom of the eighth with the Roadrunners down by 5-1, Shane Sirdashney started things off right as he reached base on an error by the Texans' shortstop. Two batters later, Leyton Barry doubled down the left field line to drive in Sirdashney. Matt King followed this with a single through the right side to then drive in Barry. Garrett Brooks worked a walk to put runners on first and second, before Isaiah Walker came in to pinch run for him. Hill then worked a full count to single down the left field line and bring home King. Two batters later, Valdez singled to center field to drive home Walker and knot to score at 5-5.
Shafer sat down the Texans in order in the top of the ninth with a ground out, strikeout looking, and a foul out. The Roadrunners then singled to start the bottom of the frame, but the next three batters were sat down in order to take the game to extra innings. The 10th and 11th saw some action but no score change. The Texans then plated a couple runs in the top of the 12th and the Roadrunners weren't able to answer in the bottom of the frame as UTSA fell to Tarleton, 7-5, in the series finale on Sunday afternoon.
The Roadrunners end the season-opening series with a 2-1 record on the season, while Tarleton earned their first win (1-2 overall).
ON DECK
The Roadrunners are set to host the Houston Cougars in their first midweek matchup of the season on Wednesday, Feb. 22. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. (CT) at Roadrunner Field.
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