LOS ANGELES – Once the NCAA Tournament field was announced on Memorial Day, UTSA head baseball coach Pat Hallmark put pen to paper to determine what the Roadrunners would need to do to win the NCAA Austin Regional.
“I just sit down and ask myself and write what success is going to look like,” Hallmark said. “That’s where it all starts. Just like any person that’s in charge of a business or an entity, I just started writing it down, ‘how do we win this thing?’”
UTSA (47-13) won three games against Power 4 opponents, including back-to-back victories against No. 2 national seed Texas on its home field in Austin. The Roadrunners arrived in Los Angeles on Thursday set to face No. 15 national seed UCLA in a best-of-three NCAA Super Regional with a trip to the College World Series on the line.
UTSA’s preparation doesn’t look much different this week than it has all season. Dating back to the fall of 2024, the Roadrunners have worked hard to meet the biggest moments when they presented themselves. When it comes to facing the Bruins the best thing UTSA can do is to be prepared to handle adversity.
“The physical side of it does not change,” Hallmark said. “The mental side is a little different because the stage is bigger. We have to prepare for something good to happen to the other team. A big part of that is controlling what you can control. Minimizing is a huge part of the mental side because you’re not going to shut these people down completely.”
UCLA’s 2025 roster includes a number of players who were part of the nation’s No. 1 overall recruiting classes in 2021 and 2023. What Hallmark understands is that in order for the Roadrunners to win, they have to expect the Bruins to have success throughout the game.
“You’re not going to get no-hitters against these guys,” he said. “You can’t let anxiety creep in. All you can do is take a deep breath and enjoy competing against worthy opponents. It’s not always fun. But there’s satisfaction and admiration to competing against a worthy opponent. Just keep coming. Prepare for them to get base hits.”
The Roadrunners boast a deep roster that allows them to tailor their approached based on what their opponent is doing. It’s a luxury that Hallmark doesn’t take for granted.
“Our team is a rare team for a mid-major,” Hallmark said. “We can match people up. We do have a little bit of lefty-righty matchup combination. I enjoy the preparation. I enjoyed this week of looking at who they could go to based on our lineup and then who I can go to based on who they go to.”
The NCAA Super Regional opens Saturday night at 6 p.m. CT on ESPNU. Hallmark believes UTSA’s appearance on this stage can become the norm, not the exception.
“What we’re doing this year does not have to be an anomaly,” Hallmark said. “I’m not ready to say we can do it every single year, but we can do this more than not.”