SAN ANTONIO – The UTSA baseball team is set for the first of two crosstown rivalry games against UIW this season, facing the Cardinals on their campus at Sullivan Field on Tuesday at 2 p.m.
QUICK HITS
The Roadrunners posted a 4-0 record last week, which included a midweek victory over the Big 12’s Baylor Bears and a conference road series sweep at Tulane.
UTSA has an even 3-3 record in midweek games so far this season, picking up wins against Tarleton as well as two Big 12 opponents in Houston and Baylor. The Roadrunners have also won three consecutive weekend series against Northwestern, then-No. 10 East Carolina and Tulane.
Mason Lytle has earned the AAC Player of the Week honor on April 1, as he recorded 12 hits, seven runs, five RBI for a .600 batting average to lead UTSA to a 4-0 record last week. The junior is on a hot streak recently with a 14-game hitting streak, the last 11 of those being multi-hit games.
The Roadrunners lead the American Athletic Conference in three different categories, including batting average (.315), hits (318) – fifth in the nation in this category, triples (7), triples per game (0.25) and slugging percentage (.477). UTSA averages 3.46 walks allowed per nine innings, good for second in the AAC and 20thin the nation.
Ruger Riojas has a 1.80 ERA, which is second in the conference and 16th in the nation and five victories, which leads the conference and is ninth-most in the nation. His strikeout-to-walk ratio of 7.80 leads the conference and is 12th in the nation. Matt King leads the nation with seven sacrifice flies.
Lytle takes the top league spot in three categories, including batting average (.405), hits (51) and hits per game (1.89) – which he ranks second in the nation in both – and total bases (78). Caleb Hill leads the AAC with 37 runs, 1.37 runs per game and .667 slugging percentage.
BIG HONOR FOR MASON LYTLE
Junior centerfielder Mason Lytle was named the American Athletic Conference Player of the Week on April 1, following a 4-0 week for UTSA in which he picked up 12 hits, seven runs, five RBI and a .600 batting average along. He recorded two doubles, a triple, home run and two stolen bases across the week.
This marks the Pearland, Texas, native’s first weekly accolade as a Roadrunner. Transferring from Oregon, Lytle has been a key component to UTSA’s offensive power. He leads the conference with a .405 batting average, 51 hits, 78 total bases and 126 at-bats. Lytle is also second in the league with 13 stolen bases.
In an offensive battle against Baylor on Tuesday, he scored the tying run in the fifth which reignited UTSA’s fight to eventually win. On Friday against Tulane, he scored the Roadrunners’ first run and 11th run. In Saturday’s series finale against the Green Wave, he hit his fifth home run of the season, while picking up two runs and four RBI to lead UTSA to the series sweep.
SCOUTING THE CARDINALS
UIW holds a 15-11 overall record, following a series loss against the New Orleans Privateers this past weekend. The Cardinals are 3-5 in midweek games this season, including wins over UIC, UTRGV and Prairie View. The team was picked to finish fourth in the Southland Conference Preseason Coaches’ Poll.
Josh Salinas, who graduated from UTSA in the spring and transferred to UIW to continue his career, was named the Southland Conference Pitcher of the Week on April 1. He currently leads the team with a 1.59 ERA and a 3-0 record, along with 35 strikeouts. Four Cardinals were named to the Southland Preseason Teams – Rey Mendoza, Cameron Crotte, Grant Randall and Isaiah Zavala. Dalton Beck leads the team with a .415 batting average, 44 hits, 28 RBI and 13 doubles.
SERIES HISTORY VS UIW
The Roadrunners hold an 18-12 advantage in the all-time series over the Cardinals, playing two games against each other last season.
UTSA won the first meeting by 2-1 at its home field on March 1, 2023. Caleb Hill, Tye Odom, Isaiah Walker and Matt King played in the game, along with pitchers Ryan Ward and Ruger Riojas. A go-ahead stolen home by Antonio Valdez lifted the Roadrunners over the Cardinals in a pitchers’ duel matchup.
In the second meeting at UIW’s Sullivan Field on April 4, the Cardinals won by 9-6 on a walk-off home run. Hill, King and Walker all played in the game, while Zach Royse, Fischer Kingsbery, Ulises Quiroga and Ruger Riojas made appearances on the mound.
LAST WEEK FOR THE ROADRUNNERS
UTSA earned a big series sweep on the road against Tulane on March 28-30 to improve to 16-12 overall. This marked the Roadrunners’ first conference road series sweep since the 2015 season (March 13-15 against Marshall). In Saturday’s series finale, the team beat the Green Wave by 12-6 to secure the sweep. Both Mason Lytle and Hector Rodriguez turned in 3-for-5 games, while starter Ulises Quiroga earned his second win of the season.
The Roadrunners clinched the series victory on Friday with a 11-7 win. Tye Odom exploded for a 4-for-5 showing with one run, three RBI and a triple. Daniel Garza struck out seven batters in the final 5.1 innings pitched to earn the win.
UTSA opened the series with a 6-3 win, led by a 4-for-5 game by Matt King. Ruger Riojas picked up fifth win of the season as he struck out seven batters in the final 4.2 innings of the game.
The Roadrunners started last week’s five-game road trip with a 9-7 win over the Big 12’s Baylor Bears on March 26. Ruger Riojas picked up his fourth save of the season, which is his third consecutive appearance in which he has earned a save. Caleb Hill and Mason Lytle both went 3-for-5 at the plate.
THREE’S A LUCKY NUMBER
The Roadrunners were picked to finish third in their first season in the American Athletic Conference.
Ahead of UTSA in this year’s AAC Preseason Coaches’ Poll, powerhouse East Carolina took the top spot. Charlotte, who made the move to the AAC with UTSA this year and won last year’s C-USA Tournament, earned second place.
Following UTSA is Florida Atlantic, South Florida, Memphis, Wichita State, Rice, Tulane and UAB took the fourth-10th spots, respectively.
ON DECK
The Roadrunners host the Charlotte 49ers on Friday through Sunday at Roadrunner Field. The series begins on Friday at 6 p.m., before a Saturday matchup at 2 p.m. The series concludes at 12 p.m. on Sunday.
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