CLEARWATER, Fla. – On Saturday, UTSA Baseball clashed with East Carolina in a matchup of the American Conference’s top two seeds. The Roadrunners prevailed by a final score of 4-2, securing their spot in Sunday’s league championship game. Drew Detlefsen excelled at the plate while UTSA’s pitching staff strung together another stellar outing. Pat Hallmark’s squad will await Saturday night’s action to find out who will occupy the other dugout in the winner-take-all affair on ESPNEWS.
FIRST INNING
Senior Gunnar Brown earned his 10th start of the season, taking to the mound first. A two-out single was no issue for the Roadrunner defense as Brown notched a pair of strikeouts to send his offense out for the first time. Drew Detlefsen came up with one away, lifting his first offering high and over the left-field wall for UTSA’s first home run of the weekend. No further damage came to bear, but the American Conference Player of the Year left his mark and built an early 1-0 lead.
SECOND INNING
A trio of ‘Runners reached safely, with a hit batter and two walks loading the bases. An ensuing flyout with one away sent Diego Diaz sprinting home, but the throw was in time for a run-saving double play. UTSA headed to the third still up one after stranding a pair.
THIRD INNING
Three walks and an RBI single drove in ECU’s first run as the Pirates knotted the affair at one apiece. Sam Simmons took over on the bump and closed out the frame still tied with a swinging strikeout. Both Caden Miller and Detlefsen earned free trips after being hit, placing two aboard with no outs. After the sophomore made his way to third on a fly ball, Miller headed home on an RBI fielder’s choice courtesy of Andrew Stucky. The tally gave the ‘Runners the lead once again at 2-1 through the game’s first third.
FOURTH INNING
ECU drew even once again at 2-2 with three singles in the top half. The high seed answered in the bottom of the frame, kickstarted by a walk to a pinch-hitting Broc Parmer. Then, Jordan Ballin was hit by a pitch before a sacrifice bunt moved both runners into scoring position. Aidan Eshelman followed up with an RBI groundout before Detlefsen came through with another big at-bat. The standout laced one down the right-field line for a single that brought Ballin home and pushed UTSA in front by a 4-2 margin.
SIXTH INNING
With one away, Lane Haworth backed up to the warning track and leaped up for a fly ball at the wall. The junior made the play and quickly lobbed it over to Caden Miller at first base for the inning’s final two outs in thrilling fashion. Despite two hit batters and a single, UTSA was unable to capitalize on the momentum at the plate.
EIGHTH INNING
Following a one-out walk, Sam Simmons was done for the day as Connor Kelley made his second straight bullpen appearance. The junior quickly retired two batters, striking out a pair ahead of the Roadrunners’ final trip to the plate. Two free passes were not enough to do any more damage, sending things to the final stanza with the ‘Runners still up a pair.
NINTH INNING
A leadoff groundout preluded a pair of strikeouts from Kelley as the junior sat the final Pirate of the day down swinging. The punchout was his fourth of the day and UTSA’s 11th, sending the league’s top seed to the weekend finale with a final score of 4-2.
NUMBERS OF NOTE
- UTSA improved to 8-5 all-time against East Carolina, climbing to 2-0 in neutral contests.
- The ‘Runners picked up their fourth-ever win in the American Conference Championship, jumping to 4-4 since their debut in 2024.
- Sunday’s bout will be the first American Championship Game to feature UTSA.
- UTSA improved to 33-12 when drawing at least four walks, tallying five on Saturday.
- Drew Detlefsen notched two hits on Friday, boosting his season total to 96. The senior is three away from tying the program single-season record of 99, which was set by Michael Rockett in 2009.
- For the second straight day, Detlefsen was the only Roadrunner with multiple hits.
- The Roadrunners were hit by seven pitches on Saturday, marking their second-highest total of the season. UTSA’s high came on Feb. 17 against UIC, when nine batters were struck.
- Sam Simmons matched his season high with 4.2 innings tossed in the win, improving to 8-4 with just one run and three strikeouts on Saturday.
- With the loss, ECU snapped a five-game winning streak that had matched its season high.
- Through 18 innings, UTSA’s opponents have totaled 11 hits, and just two runs in the tournament.
UP NEXT
UTSA still awaits its opponent in Sunday’s American Conference Championship Game. First pitch is slated for 11 a.m. CT (Noon local) as the Roadrunners look for their first conference tournament championship since clinching the 2013 WAC title. The Navy & Orange will square off with either East Carolina, UAB or Wichita State. All the action from BayCare Ballpark will be streamed live on ESPNEWS and available via utsa.statbroadcast.com.
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