SAN ANTONIO – The UTSA baseball team dropped a 5-3 loss in the series opener against Utah on Friday night at Roadrunner Field.
Reliever Ryan Beaird had a great outing as he allowed one run on two hits while fanning three batters in 4.0 innings pitched. Antonio Valdez led the Roadrunners as he went 2-for-4 at the plate.
The first three innings went scoreless as both teams got base runners on but were unable to convert that into runs. The Roadrunners had the bases loaded in the bottom of the first with two walks and a single, but nothing came of it. Again, three singles in the third inning by UTSA loaded the bases but the score remained scoreless. In the fourth inning, the Roadrunner struck first, scoring the first pair of runs as Taylor Smith tripled to center field to drive it Garrett Poston, before Smith scored on a wild pitch seven pitches later to give UTSA a 2-0 lead.
The Utes answered in the next frame, scoring four to take a 4-2 lead at the top of the fifth. The sixth and seventh innings went scoreless, before the Roadrunners tacked on another run in the bottom of the eighth.
Pinch hitter Clark Henry started the inning off with a single, before Isaiah Walker came in to pinch run for him. Walker then advanced to second on a wild pitch, before advancing to third on a passed ball shortly after. Smith then worked a walk from a full count. After a pitching change, Walker scored on a wild pitch to cut UTSA's deficit to 4-3. Two walks by Barry and Killeen juiced the bases with two outs, but nothing came of it as the inning ended with a strikeout.
Utah added another run in the top of the ninth on a solo home run. UTSA was unable to respond as the Roadrunners dropped the series opener with the Utes, 5-3, on Friday night.
The Roadrunners fall to a 8-3 record, while Utah improves to a 5-4 overall record.
ON DECK
The Roadrunners continue the home series against the Utes on Saturday. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. CT at Roadrunner Field.
-UTSA-
