MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The UTSA baseball team is back in American Athletic Conference action, facing the Memphis Tigers in a three-game road series on Friday through Sunday. The series opens with a 6 p.m. Friday start, while Saturday’s first pitch is at 2 p.m. and the series concludes on Sunday at 1 p.m.
All three games will have a radio broadcast available at gotigersgo.com/watch. Only Sunday’s series finale will have a video broadcast on ESPN+.
QUICK HITS
UTSA has won all three of its conference series thus far, picking up series wins against then-No. 10 and conference favorite East Carolina, 2023 AAC Tournament champion Tulane, and 2023 Conference USA Tournament champion Charlotte. The team is first in the league standings with a 7-2 AAC record.
The Roadrunners lead the American Athletic Conference in three different categories, including batting average (.315), hits (368) – ninth in the nation in this category, and runs (248). UTSA averages 3.51 walks allowed per nine innings, good for second in the AAC and 23rd in the nation.
Ruger Riojas has a 1.67 ERA, which is second in the conference and eighth in the nation, and six victories, which leads the conference and is seventh-most in the nation. Matt King leads the nation with nine sacrifice flies, while Hector Rodriguez is the toughest batter to strike out in the AAC (11.6).
Lytle takes the top league spot in three categories, including hits (59) and hits per game (1.84) – which he ranks second in the nation in both – as well as batting average (.399) and total bases (91). Caleb Hill leads the AAC with 39 runs and 1.22 runs per game.
AAC HONORS FOR THE ‘RUNNERS
Senior right-handed pitcher Uli Quiroga and junior infielder Hector Rodriguez were both named to the conference weekly honor roll on Monday to make it four total times a UTSA player has been honored. This marks Quiroga’s second time on the honor roll as he turned in a series-clinching quality start against Charlotte on Sunday, only allowing one run and striking out seven in a six-inning start. Rodriguez had a breakout week in which he picked up eight hits, five runs, and five RBI for a .615 batting average. He also had a career-best 4-for-4 day in Saturday’s matchup against Charlotte.
Junior outfielder Mason Lytle was named to the weekly honor roll on March 25, after he picked up nine hits, eight runs and a .450 batting average across four starts at center field during the previous week against Texas State and No. 10 East Carolina.
Quiroga’s first time on the weekly honor roll was March 18. He made his second start of the season in a 2-0 shutout over Northwestern on March 17 that secured UTSA’s second series win of the season. He recorded a quality start in which he pitched the first six innings and earned his first win (1-0), while keeping the Wildcats scoreless on just two hits.
SCOUTING THE TIGERS
Memphis holds an even 17-17 overall record, following a series sweep over Rice on April 5-7 in Houston. The Tigers hold a 5-4 record in conference play and are tied for fourth in the standings, along with Florida Atlantic and Wichita State. Memphis was voted to finish sixth in the preseason coaches’ poll, but picked to finish third in D1Baseball’s preseason AAC preview (which UTSA was picked fourth in).
Senior infielder Duante Stuart leads the team with a .318 batting average, 42 hits, 35 runs, and 25 RBI. Stuart has 14 doubles, which is the 14th most in the nation. The Tigers’ closer Brayden Sanders leads the American with seven saves, good for fifth in the nation. Memphis’ batters lead the conference with 177 walks.
This weekend’s three-game series will be the first time that the Roadrunners and Tigers meet. Memphis has had a baseball program since 1913, while UTSA has been playing baseball since 1992.
THE AMERICAN DREAM
In their first season in the American Athletic Conference, the Roadrunners hold a 7-2 record in conference play through the first three weekends and are first in the standings. UTSA has picked up a big series win against conference favorite and then-No. 10 East Carolina, as well as a road series sweep over 2023 AAC Tournament champion Tulane and home series win against 2023 C-USA Tournament champion Charlotte.
In AAC games only, the Roadrunners lead the conference in batting average, runs, hits and RBI. Matt King holds an impressive .529 batting average in league games, leading the conference in the category, with teammate Mason Lytle shortly behind at .500 and second place. Lytle also has the most runs and hits, while King has the most sacrifice flies. Riojas leads the conference with two wins and a .146 opponents’ batting average. Daniel Garza is also tied with Riojas with two wins.
UTSA officially made the move to the AAC on July 1, 2023, joining a strong baseball conference, already consisting of East Carolina, Memphis, Wichita State and Tulane. A handful of former Conference USA opponents also made the transition with UTSA, including Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, Rice and UAB.
The Roadrunners have seen success in every conference they’ve joined. UTSA went 283-277 in the Southland Conference with two tournament championships and two regular season championships from 1993-2012. In their lone season in the Western Athletic Conference in 2013, the Roadrunners had a 15-11 conference mark and won the tournament. From 2014-2023 in the Conference USA, UTSA posted a 139-127 record.
LAST WEEK FOR THE ROADRUNNERS
UTSA battled against a tough No. 3 Texas A&M team in College Station, Texas, on Tuesday. Despite leading most of the game, the Roadrunners fell to the Aggies by 6-5 on a walk-off solo home run in the ninth.Alexander Olivo led the team with a 2-for-3 day at the plate with two RBI, a walk and a hit by pitch. Starting pitcher Fischer Kingsbery kept the Aggies scoreless through the first two frames, while striking out three batters.
The Roadrunners earned a series win against Charlotte at home last weekend. Despite dropping the opener by 10-5 on Friday, the Roadrunners bounced back to take the second two games in run-rule fashion. On Saturday, perfect days at the plate by Mason Lytle (3-for-3) and Hector Rodriguez (4-for-4) as well as dominant pitching by Ruger Riojas led UTSA to a 14-4 victory in seven innings.
In Sunday’s rubber match, Uli Quiroga’s quality start of one run allowed and seven batters struck out in six innings pitched highlighted the finale. A couple of Roadrunners picked up a team-high two hits, including Matt King (three runs) and Lorenzo Morresi (three runs and five RBI). Morresi and Ty Tilson also hit their first home run as a Roadrunner.
UTSA started last week with a 7-4 win over crosstown rival UIW across town at Sullivan Field. Despite a slow start in which the Roadrunners didn’t record a hit through the first three innings, the team battled back. Four Roadrunners had two-hit games, including Lytle, Caleb Hill, Tye Odom and Broc Parmer. Braylon Owens (3.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 K) picked up his third win of the season, while Riojas (2.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 2 K) recorded his fifth save.
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 return home on Tuesday, April 16, hosting Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at 6 p.m. at Roadrunner Field on Baseball History Day.
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