SAN ANTONIO—The UTSA softball team has a busy week ahead of them, as they’ll first host Southeastern Louisiana at 4 p.m. on Thursday, before hosting the 2026 Birds Up Bash from Friday through Sunday at Roadrunner Field. Saint Francis, UT Arlington, North Dakota and New Mexico State will all compete at the event.
UTSA will begin the tournament playing North Dakota at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, before facing New Mexico State at 7 p.m. On Saturday, the ‘Runners will again battle the Aggies at 4:30, ahead of a 7 p.m. bout with Saint Francis. Lastly, UTSA will play the Red Flash at 11:30 a.m. Sunday, before the finale against UT Arlington at 2 p.m.
Select games featuring UTSA will be broadcast live on ESPN+, and live stats can be found at utsa.statbroadcast.com. Tickets are available for purchase at www.goutsa.com/sbtickets. A tournament central page can be found at http://www.goutsa.com/birdsupbash.
The Roadrunners (5-9) enter the weekend after going 3-3 across last week, with a win over Houston Christian, ahead of victories against UMass Lowell and Northern Colorado at the Roadrunner Classic.
Freshman Arlette Heranndez has been the squad's most dominant arm, compiling a 4-2 record over 12 appearances with a 2.73 ERA across 43.2 innings of action. She’s fanned 40 on the campaign and twirled three complete games. At the plate, UTSA boasts a .308 batting average, up from .259 a season ago. Senior Madison Hornback leads the way, hitting .379, with junior Taryn Madlock not far behind at .372, and sophomore Sabrina Wick at .362.
The Lions (13-3) have been red hot to start the season and are riding a nine-game winning streak before a Wednesday night tilt against No. 3 Texas. Their staff maintains a 1.63 ERA and a 0.96 WHIP left by Cera Blanchard, who's gone 5-0 thus far. Hallie Bruns is 4-0 for SLU, and Macie Larue joins the pair in being undefeated at 2-0. Ka’Lyn Watson paces the team at the plate, with a .351 batting average to go with three home runs, and is tied with Maria Detillier at 10 RBIs.
The Red Flash (0-14) is searching for its first victory of the season, but despite the results, Olivia Hood has provided a bright spot as the reigning Northeastern Conference Rookie of the Week. She went 7-for-12 at the Battle of the Bay, with three RBIs, two doubles and a walk. On the season, Aliya Garroway owns a .417 batting average with a 1.099 OPS. Morgan Pasternak has driven in 14 runs on the season, as she and Sofia Zielenski have each launched three long balls.
The Mavericks (6-9) have had a streaky start to the campaign, with Mia McNulty owning a .395 batting average and Marley Neises not far behind at .391. McNulty has had five home runs on the season, and Neises has driven in 18 runs for the squad.
The Aggies (6-11) are fresh off a 6-5 victory over No. 21 Arizona State, and will look to keep the momentum going at the Birds Up Bash. Faith Aragon has been incredible for NM State with a .521 batting average, and Devin Elam has also dominated, posting a 1.404 OPS with 14 RBIs. Kendal Lunar ties Elam for the team lead in RBIs, and has also recorded three home runs on the season.
The Hawks (8-7) are riding a five-game winning streak, sweeping Green Bay, Murray State, and IU Indy at last week’s Murray State Invitational. UND has a staff ERA of 4.33, as Tegan Livesay, Unity Nelson, and Tehya Armstrong all picked up wins. Makenna Alexander has been the team’s most efficient hitter, maintaining a .333 batting average, and she’s driven in seven runs, one less than Hailey Bethine, who has the squad lead.
Keep up with UTSA Softball all season long on goutsa.com, and by following the program on Facebook at /UTSASB, X (Twitter) @UTSASoftball, and on Instagram @utsasoftball.
-UTSA-