SAN ANTONIO — UTSA will compete in the American Athletic Conference Championship, which will be contested on Monday-Wednesday, April 14-16, at Southern Hills Plantation Club (par 72/6,289 yards) in Brooksville, Florida.
The Roadrunners will line up against Charlotte, East Carolina, Florida Atlantic, Memphis, North Texas, South Florida, Tulane, Tulsa, UAB and Wichita State in the 54-hole, stroke-play event.
The field will play 18 holes with tee times starting at 7 a.m. CT each day.
ESPN+ will provide live coverage of Wednesday’s final round with John Liddle, Lauren Withrow and Maria Trivelpiece calling the action.
UTSA junior Daniela Abonce will set out to defend her conference crown captured a year ago on this same course. The Veracruz, Mexico, native fired a 9-under-par 207 to become the sixth Roadrunner to win a league title. After opening the event with a 6-under 66 — the best score in a conference tournament in program history — and a 72, she carded a 3-under 69 in the final round for a one-shot victory ahead of Tulsa’s Lovisa Gunnar.
Behind Abonce’s individual victory, the Roadrunners finished fifth in their inaugural AAC Championship with a 7-over 871 (282-302-287).
UTSA owns four conference team titles in program history, which dates back to 2005-06.
The Roadrunners captured a pair of Conference USA team and individual titles under head coach Summer Batiste, a two-time Conference USA Coach of the Year. The Roadrunners won back-to-back crowns in 2018 and 2019 behind individual medalists Julie Houston and Ana Gonzalez.
UTSA also claimed back-to-back conference crowns in 2011 and ’12 as members of the Southland Conference. The Roadrunners have three total runner-up finishes, in 2009 in the Southland and in 2014 and ‘22 in C-USA. In fact, UTSA has finished in the top five in the team standings at 16 consecutive conference tournaments.
Six Roadrunners now have captured individual conference titles following Abonce’s win in 2024. Allie Jordan claimed the first in program history with the 2009 Southland Conference title and Shannon Jungmann won the 2012 Southland crown. Fabiola Arriaga was victorious in UTSA’s first Conference USA Championship appearance in 2014, before Houston and Gonzalez went back-to-back in 2018-19.
Abonce paces UTSA with a 74.0 stroke average in 27 rounds this season. She has turned in a half dozen par-or-better rounds headlined by a 5-under 67 logged in the final round of the Jim West Challenge last October. She has posted five top-20 finishes including a tie for third at the Badger Invitational to start the campaign, while her best 54-hole total of 6-under 210 led to a share of 12th at the Chevron Collegiate earlier this spring.
Morgan Ellison stands second on the squad with a 74.15 scoring mark through 27 rounds. The senior from Peachtree City, Georgia, owns seven par-or-better rounds and eight top-30 finishes, including a career-best eighth-place tie at the Coach Mo Classic in her last outing. She also has turned in an even-par 216 twice this season, at the Jim West Challenge and the Chevron Collegiate.
Lauren Rios has played in all four spring events, accumulating a 74.58 stroke average through 12 rounds. The junior out of Coppell, Texas, posted her top finish with a tie for 20th at the Coach Mo Classic, while her best 54-hole tally was a 3-over 219 (71-72-76) at the Chevron Collegiate.
Olivia Williams totes a 75.33 scoring average and four par-or-better scorecards in 27 rounds this season. The junior out of England recorded her best finish of the campaign by tying for fifth at the Diane Thomason Invitation last fall, while her top 54-hole score was an even-par 216 at the Chevron Collegiate.
Maria Bastarrica has played in all nine tournaments during her sophomore season, logging a 77.11 average. A native of Spain, she registered her top finish of 25th at the Diane Thomas Invitational and her best 54-hole tally of 222 at the Red Raider Invitational.
Sydney Bisgrove saw action in all five fall events. The true freshman from Calgary, Alberta, enjoyed her best finish at the Dale McNamara Invitational, tying for 25th with a 225 (76-74-75), while her top score was a 1-under 71 in the opening round of the Red Raider Invitational.
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