BOCA RATON, Fla. – The UTSA baseball team is set to conclude regular season action this Thursday through Saturday with a three-game American Athletic Conference series against Florida Atlantic in Boca Raton, Fla. The series opens on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. CT/6:30 p.m. ET, before game two on Friday is set for 5:30 p.m. CT/6:30 p.m. ET and the series concludes at 12 p.m. CT/1 p.m. ET on Saturday.
All three games will be broadcasted on ESPN+.
QUICK HITS
The Roadrunners are coming off a 13-3 run-rule victory over crosstown rival UIW, sweeping the Cardinals in the two-game season series. This win secured UTSA’s 30th win of the season for the program’s third consecutive 30-win season, dating back to the 2022 season.
UTSA has won six of its eight conference series thus far, picking up a big series win against conference favorite and then-No. 10 ECU, as well as a road series sweep over 2023 AAC Tournament champion Tulane, home series win against 2023 C-USA Tournament champion Charlotte, road series win over Memphis, a home series win over UAB and most recently, a home series win over South Florida.
This final weekend of conference play is crucial to seeding in the tournament and final standings. The Roadrunners (15-9) currently sit in second place, just one game behind conference favorite No. 13 East Carolina (16-8). Tulane and Wichita State are currently tied for third place with a 13-11 record. The fifth-place spot (11-13) is a four-way tie between Florida Atlantic, UAB, Charlotte and Rice.
The Roadrunners lead the American Athletic Conference with 541 hits, 101 hits by pitch (22nd in the nation) and 3.51 walks allowed per nine innings (18th in the nation). UTSA is also second in the conference with a .305 batting average, 529 hits, .393 on-base percentage, 30 sacrifice flies (20th in the nation), and a 2.46 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Ruger Riojas has nine victories, which is second in the conference and seventh-most in the nation. Matt King leads the nation with 10 sacrifice flies, while Mason Lytle is the toughest batter to strike out in the AAC (10.6). King is currently on an 18-game reached-base streak. Lytle takes the top league spot in five categories, including doubles (18), doubles per game (0.35), hits (83), hits per game (1.67) and total bases (140). Lytle’s hits and hits per game numbers are ranked ninth-most in the nation, respectively.
In AAC games only, the Roadrunners lead the conference in hits by pitch and sacrifice flies. Mason Lytle leads the conference in hits and at-bats, while King has the most sacrifice flies.
SCOUTING THE OWLS
Florida Atlantic holds a 25-25 overall record, following a midweek 28-18 loss to Florida Gulf Coast on Tuesday. In conference action, the Owls have lost their last two conference series, against UAB and Rice. They are currently tied for fifth in the American Athletic Conference standings. Florida Atlantic was selected to finish fourth out of 10 teams in the preseason coaches’ poll.
The Owls are second in the conference and 17th in the nation with four shutouts. Senior infielder Christian Adams leads the team with a .332 batting average, 48 runs and 62 hits. Senior CJ Williams is the pitching leader for the Owls, holding a 3.09 ERA and 5-3 record in 13 starts.
SERIES HISTORY VS FLORIDA ATLANTIC
The Roadrunners trail the Owls by 12-15 in the all-time series. UTSA and Florida Atlantic played last season on March 17 & 19 in a three-game series in San Antonio in which the Roadrunners swept the Owls.
The two teams played each other nearly every season from 2014 to 2023, excluding the 2020 and 2021 seasons, because they were both in the Conference USA together through that span. Both teams made the move to the American Athletic Conference on July 1, 2023.
THE AMERICAN DREAM
In their first season in the American Athletic Conference, the Roadrunners hold a 15-9 record in conference play and are second in the standings and only one game behind No. 13 East Carolina.
UTSA has picked up a big series win against conference favorite and then-No. 10 ECU, as well as a road series sweep over 2023 AAC Tournament champion Tulane, home series win against 2023 C-USA Tournament champion Charlotte, road series win over Memphis, a home series win over UAB and most recently, a home series win over South Florida.
In AAC games only, the Roadrunners lead the conference in hits by pitch and sacrifice flies. Mason Lytle leads the conference in hits and at-bats, while King has the most sacrifice flies.
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 opened this week with a big 13-3 run-rule victory over crosstown rival UIW on Tuesday night. Alexander Olivo led the team as he had three hits - two of them doubles – along with three RBI and a run. Ryan Beaird (2-0) earned his second win of the season, allowing just one run and striking out one in 2.2 innings pitched.
The Roadrunners secured a crucial conference series victory against South Florida on May 10-12. The Roadrunners opened the series with a 5-2 win on Friday, May 10. Matt King led the team with a 3-for-4 day at the plate with two runs scored. Ulises Quiroga (6-1) acquired his seventh win in eight innings of two-run ball with four strikeouts. Ruger Riojas picked up his seventh save of the season, recording the final two outs of the game while striking out one batter. The Roadrunners turned three double plays, their most of the season.
The series was evened on Saturday, May 10, as UTSA fell to South Florida by 6-3. Diego Diaz led the team as he went 3-for-5 with one RBI and a double. Three more Roadrunners had two-hit games, including Mason Lytle, Mark Henning and Zane Spinn. Spinn launched a solo home run in the eighth, the first of his career as a Roadrunner.
The Roadrunners earned a 5-3 victory over the Bulls on Sunday, May 12, to secure the series victory – the team’s sixth conference series win of the season. Mason Lytle and Matt King led the team with two-hit games. Riojas (9-3) secured his ninth win of the season, allowing just one run and striking out four batters in 3.2 innings pitched.
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 American Athletic Conference Tournament is set for May 21-26 at BayCare Ballpark in Clearwater, Fla. Seeding will come down to the final day of regular season action on May 18 and will be announced shortly after the conclusion of the final game.
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