SAN MARCOS, Texas – The UTSA baseball team heads north for a Battle of I-35 matchup with Texas State on Tuesday night. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. CT at Bobcat Ballpark in San Marcos, Texas, and will be streamed on ESPN+.
WELCOME TO SAN ANTONIO
Senior Antonio Valdez earned the Conference USA Hitter of the Week on March 6, his first honor since joining the Roadrunners this season.
The Baylor transfer has been unstoppable for the Roadrunners through the first three weeks of action. He leads the conference with 23 hits and 22 RBI through the first three weeks of action.
Valdez helped lead the Roadrunners to a 4-1 record last week, including two wins over Pac-12 opponent Utah and a win over Big 12 opponent Baylor. The senior has made an immediate impact since joining the Roadrunners this season, leading UTSA to a 10-3 record for first in the C-USA standings.
The Corpus Christi, Texas, native had a fantastic week at the plate last week, notching nine hits for a .429 batting average. He hit three home runs for an .857 slugging percentage. In UTSA's 2-1 win over crosstown rival UIW on Wednesday, Valdez scored the winning run as he stole home in the bottom of the eighth. The Roadrunners won the last two games of a three-game series against the Pac-12's Utah. In the 11-5 win on Saturday, Valdez launched his first home run of the season to tie the game up, kickstarting an offensive explosion that lifted UTSA over Utah. The Roadrunners secured the series win over Utah with a 14-3 win on Sunday as Valdez blasted two home runs in the game.
LEADING THE ROADRUNNERS
Antonio Valdez leads the team with a batting average of .460, notching a conference-best 23 hits and 22 RBI, along with 15 runs, three doubles, two triples and team-high three home runs. Shane Sirdashney has a team-best 21 runs, while Caleb Hill leads in doubles (5) and Matt King leads in triples (4).
On the mound, Simon Miller leads the team with a 0.64 ERA and 19 strikeouts. Other key performers include Daniel Garza (1.84 ERA, 3-0 record), Luke Malone (.89 WHIP), Fischer Kingsbery (1.80 ERA) and Ulises Quiroga (2.81 ERA, 2-0 record).
The Roadrunners lead the conference in multiple categories – ERA (2.64), hits (139), triples (11), triples per game (0.85), win-loss percentage (.769) and walks allowed per nine innings (2.72). UTSA's 11 triples also leads the nation, tied with Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
Valdez is first in the conference and fifth in the nation with 23 hits, also holding a conference-best 1.77 hits per game, 22 RBI, 1.69 RBI per game and 39 total bases. Sirdashney's 21 runs and 1.62 runs per game leads the league. King leads the C-USA with four triples and 0.31 triples per game.
Quiroga is tied with 14 players for the nation-best 0.00 strikeout to walk ratio and 0.00 walks allowed per nine innings. Miller has the best conference-best 0.64 ERA and 0.86 WHIP. Miller and Garza are tied for the most wins in the C-USA with three wins each.
LAST WEEK FOR THE ROADRUNNERS
The Roadrunners had a 4-1 record last week for the second week in a row, improving to 10-3 overall. UTSA has won every weekend series they've played so far, as well as every midweek game. The Roadrunners had four wins last week, including three over Power Five opponents (Big 12's Baylor and Pac-12's Utah).
UTSA started the week off with two midweek wins, beginning with an 8-3 win over Baylor on February 28, before defeating UIW on March 1 by 2-1. The Roadrunners fell to Utah in the weekend series opener on March 4 by 5-3, before dominating the Utes in game two and three by scores of 11-5 and 14-3 to secure the series victory.
The Roadrunners showed off that they have power in their bats, as well as great base-running skills. Throughout the week, UTSA stole home twice and scored on wild pitches three times. On the other hand, the Roadrunners also recorded 18 extra-base hits – eight doubles, five triples and five home runs. UTSA had 55 hits and hit .484 over the week. Antonio Valdez went 9-for-21 with six runs, eight RBI, and three home runs for a .429 batting average. Caleb Hill had three doubles, a triple and a home run, while driving in seven. Matt King had a double and a triple with three runs and three RBI. Taylor Smith launched his first home run of the season.
On the mound, Simon Miller and Daniel Garza improved to a 3-0 with another win this past week. Miller struck out six batters in 5.0 innings pitched in two appearances. Garza allowed a run in four innings across an appearance. Drake Smith earned his first win in his first start of the season against Baylor on Feb. 28, allowing one run on three hits in three innings pitched. Daniel Shafer earned his first save of the season in the win against Baylor on Feb. 28. He went five innings and allowed one run on three hits in two appearances. Freshman Ruger Riojas had another outstanding outing as he allowed no runs on one hit while striking out six batters in three innings pitched.
SCOUTING THE BOBCATS
Texas State has started the season with a 7-4 record, after losing a weekend series against Grand Canyon on March 3-5. The Bobcats were shutout by the Lopes, 11-0, in the series finale on March 5. Texas State was picked to finish second in the Sun Belt Conference Preseason Poll, while Triston Dixon, Levi Wells, Zeke Wood and Jose Gonzalez were all named to the preseason team.
Gonzalez leads the Bobcats with a .405 batting average, 15 hits, 18 RBI, 11 runs and five home runs. Daylan Pena is the only other Bobcat with double-digit hits (12) and tied with Gonzalez with 18 RBI. Texas State's starting pitcher Peyton Zabel has a 9.00 ERA, pitching three innings in three appearances while allowing three runs on four hits.
SERIES HISTORY VS TEXAS STATE
The Bobcats lead the all-time series by 61-38 over the Roadrunners. The teams last played last season on April 26, 2022, when UTSA defeated Texas State by 14-8. Ryan Beaird earned the win in this matchup and conveniently will be pitching this week's matchup on Tuesday in San Marcos. Leyton Barry led the Roadrunners as he went 3-for-5 with one run, two RBI and a double.
MEDAL FOR MILLER
Junior Simon Miller earned the Conference USA Pitcher of the Week honors on February 27, his first weekly honor in his career as a Roadrunner.
Miller played a significant role in UTSA's 4-1 record last week, earning a win and a save for the Roadrunners. Coming in to pitch two innings of relief in UTSA's 12-2 seven-inning "mercy rule" win over Houston on Feb. 22, Miller allowed no runs on just two hits while striking out one batter. He earned the win in this game, his second of the season (2-0).
The Canton, Texas, native came in the sixth inning of the first game of a Saturday doubleheader against Saint Mary's with UTSA leading by 10-8 and shut down the Gaels as he allowed no runs on zero hits with five strikeouts. The 11-8 win immediately gave the Roadrunners momentum in the series, winning their first game against the Gaels and eventually moving on to take three of four games for the series victory. He kept the opponents to a .105 batting average in his two outings this week.
FUEL TO THE FIVE
The Roadrunners were picked to finish fifth in the Conference USA, after a phenomenal season in 2022 in which UTSA broke multiple program records and advanced to the C-USA Championship game. Defending champion Louisiana Tech was voted to finish first. C-USA newcomer Dallas Baptist was picked to finish second, followed by Florida Atlantic at third and Charlotte at fourth.
ON DECK
The Roadrunners return home to host a three-game series against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi from March 10-12 at Roadrunner Field.
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