SAN ANTONIO – Us. We. Ours.
Three small words have become the cornerstone of the UTSA Softball program under the leadership of second-year head coach Vann Stuedeman, who is leading a Roadrunners’ resurgence. Following an 8-7 win over American Athletic Conference foe Wichita State on Saturday, UTSA is now just one victory away from matching last season’s win total with 25 games remaining in the regular season.
“I really feel like in this day and age, it’s really all about, ‘What’s in it for me as an individual?’” Stuedeman said. “And I think it’s important that we understand this is a team sport and we need each other to be successful. It’s a focus on: It’s not about me. How can we make it a we? And this is our team and nobody else’s.”
The players on the 2025 edition of the team have embraced the moniker, regularly wearing t-shirts that say UWO.
Freshman infielder Sabrina Wick, who serves as the team’s leadoff hitter this season, knows that in order for the Roadrunners to achieve their goals, it will take everyone on the roster, regardless of the playing time an individual receives.
“For me, I’d say it’s the bare minimum,” Wick said. “It’s a really big standard for us. We value it and we bring it up every single day in practice. And it’s not just about the nine on the field, everyone’s role is really important whether they are on the field or not. You can’t play this game one-on-one, you have to play it together. With us being so close as a team, it’s really helpful because if you have a team that’s separated, you’re not going to get anywhere.”
In assembling the 2025 roster, Stuedeman brought together a mix of newcomers and veteran experience. It’s a squad that features diverse talent up and down the lineup. All those factors have combined to spell success. The Roadrunners recorded the best start in program history this season and boast two wins this year against Power 4 opponents.
“It’s helping each other out,” said freshman pitcher Kaylie Olivarez, who leads the American Athletic Conference in strikeouts per seven innings. “With our pitching staff, it can’t be one of us, it takes all of us to accomplish our goals. It’s just setting each other up for success. We all bring different aspects to the team and putting them all together just helps the whole team and makes us better.”
It’s a mindset that Stuedeman knows will serve her student-athletes long beyond their playing days.
“It’s a big message that we are trying to teach that takes you beyond softball,” she said. “As we all know, as employees, it’s other duties as assigned. Being somebody who is willing to do something that maybe isn’t in your job description, that’s what we’re trying to teach here.”
With a focus on Us, We, Ours, the Roadrunners are making investments in themselves that will allow them to continue their trajectory as a program.
“Yes, we want to invest in ourselves and our game first, and that’s important,” Stuedeman said. “But we need to invest in each other. We talk about how teaching is a higher level of learning, so everybody is a bit responsible for the person around them.”
UTSA closes its three-game AAC series with Wichita State on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Roadrunner Field.