SAN ANTONIO – The UTSA soccer team (5-2) is one of just three league schools with at least five wins through four weeks of non-conference action. The Roadrunners return to Park West for the second time this month to open American Athletic Conference competition on Thursday, Sept. 12 against UAB (3-2-1). Thursday’s contest will be the annual Run As One game for UTSA student-athletes and will be the Salute to Educators as part of UTSA Athletics’ Hometown Heroes celebrations. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
Salute to Educators / Run as One / Other Promotional Activities
Wendy’s is the presenting sponsor for the game and fans can access coupons through the UTSA Roadrunners App (Apple Store / Google Play Store). For Run As One, UTSA student-athletes will be out in full force at Park West to show their support for their peers in the conference-opening contest.
As part of the Salute to Educators, several of our players' Most Valuable Professors will be in attendance Thursday night and will be honored at halftime. SA United youth soccer club will be in attendance and participate in several activities throughout the game, including halftime competition.
UTSA Athletics will also be hosting a School Supply Drive at Thursday’s game, all fans are encouraged to bring school supplies to make donations to Haven for Hope.
Following the Action
Thursday’s AAC opener at Park West can be viewed live on ESPN+ with Karl Schoening (play-by-play) and Katie Goodman (analyst) on the broadcast call. UTSA Athletics will also provide Live Stats.
About the Roadrunners
Seventh-year head coach Derek Pittman led the Roadrunners to their second-consecutive win last weekend in Conway, Arkansas, putting up a 3-0 road result against the Central Arkansas Bears, led by a brace from Edmond, Oklahoma freshman Addy Johnson – who earned AAC Freshman of the Week for her efforts. Also earning AAC weekly Honorable Mention, the third goal was manifested by Ontario, California senior defender Sasjah Dade, who led the UTSA defense to its fourth shutout of the season. Sporting a perfect home record in 2024, the Roadrunners have proven dangerous at Park West while sporting a 19-5-5 (.741) record since 2020’s disrupted season. Johnson and Dade became the seventh and eighth different Roadrunners to score, joining Tyler Coker, Bri Carrigan, Izzy Lane, Zoë May, Olivia Alvarez and Kameron Kloza – with five scorers new to the squad this season. On the season, UTSA’s aggressive approach on both ends has led to a 113-64 shot advantage (60-26 SOG lead).
An AAC weekly Honorable Mention last week, sophomore goalkeeper Jasmine Kessler has 21 saves on the year and an .840 save percentage, registering a 0.62 goals-against-average with three solo clean sheets and one combined – ranking her second in the AAC and 55th nationally in GAA, while AAC third and NCAA 67th in save percentage.
As a team, UTSA’s .531 SOG% ranks second in the AAC and 46th nationally, logging an AAC second and NCAA 43rd-best .571 shutout percentage – thanks to a .571 GAA as a team (AAC second, NCAA 37th) and .846 save percentage (AAC third, NCAA 50th).
About UAB
Playing under second-year coach Lisa Mann, the Blazers are off to a 3-2-1 record with an early victory over ETSU, and momentum of back-to-back victories over Ole Miss and Southern Miss heading into Thursday’s matchup.
A possession-heavy style of play, the Blazers have just 43 shots on the year with 24 shots on goal, amounting to seven total goals. With only grad student Anika Toth between the pipes, UAB has a 1.17 GAA and Toth has 23 saves with a .767 save percentage for her fifth season at keeper for the Blazers.
The UAB offense is paced by junior midfielder Abbey Burns, who has four of the Blazers’ seven goals. Sophomore midfielder Sydney Bolinger also has a pair under her belt. The Blazers are working to fill the loss of the top two scorers from a year ago, Jolie St Louis (transfer) and Carlyn Presley (professional club).
Series history
Thursday will be the ninth meeting in the overall series, with UAB holding a slight edge at 3-2-2. This is the third matchup at Park West and UTSA seeking its first series win at home (0-1-1). Last season, the Roadrunners and Blazers battled to a 1-1 draw in Birmingham during both squads’ first season in The American. St. Louis pushed UAB ahead with a 49th-minute score, but now-senior forward Jordan Walker delivered the equalizer in the 62nd minute via an Avery Chaney assist. The Roadrunners were held to five shots in the 2023 road tilt (three on target), while the Blazers got of just eight attempts (four on target). Kessler recorded three saves.
UTSA’s last series win set the Roadrunners on the path to the 2022 Conference USA tournament title, as UAB fell 1-0 in overtime in the opening-round tournament meeting. Every other meeting since the 2021 spring season has been a draw.
UP NEXT: The Roadrunners catch another timely break with no Sunday game, before heading out to Greenville, North Carolina next week to face East Carolina (3-0-3) – the preseason No. 3 team in the initial AAC poll. The Roadrunners will conclude next week with the final non-conference game, hosting Abilene Christian (2-0-4) on Sunday at Park West.
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