UTSA earns two seed in conference tournament

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UTSA baseball closed out the regular season this weekend with their final trip to Ruston, Louisiana as members of Conference USA. The Roadrunners took two of three in the series against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs that ran from Thursday to Saturday.

The first game of the series was not short on runs. It also wasn't short on time either. UTSA and Louisiana Tech combined for 34 runs and 37 hits in a game that went 11 innings. The Roadrunners and Bulldogs both scored 14 runs in the first nine innings. UTSA scored four runs in the top of the 11th to go up 18-14. Louisiana Tech tried to rally in the bottom of the 11th but UTSA got the third out after the Bulldogs had cut the Roadrunner lead to 18-16.

Taylor Smith tied a UTSA program record with three home runs in the first game of the series at Louisiana Tech. Smith was the first Roadrunner to hit three home runs in a game since Chase Keng back in March of 2021.

On Friday UTSA clinched the series victory with a 5-3 win. It was the 12th time this season UTSA won a weekend series. Smith continued his hot run at the plate with two home runs in the Friday win. UTSA picked up their 38th win of the season on Friday, moving to within one win of tying the all-time program record of 39.

Louisiana Tech was able to avoid being swept by UTSA when they won the third game of the series on Saturday. The Bulldogs took an early lead and then held on to beat UTSA 7-5.

The Roadrunners finished the regular season with a 38-17 overall record. UTSA was 21-8 in Conference USA. At Roadrunner Field the Roadrunners had a record of 25-8. The Roadrunners were 13-9 on the road.

By finishing 21-8 in conference play UTSA earned the two seed in the conference tournament this week at Rice's Reckling Park in Houston.

UTSA will open the Conference USA tournament on Wednesday at 12:30 p.m. against the seven seeded Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders. UTSA swept a three game series against Middle Tennessee at Roadrunner Field on the weekend of Apr. 14-16.

The winner of UTSA-MTSU will play the winner of three seed Charlotte and six seed Louisiana Tech on Thursday at 12:30 p.m. The loser of UTSA-MTSU will play the loser of Charlotte-LA Tech in an elimination game on Thursday morning at 9 a.m.

On the other side of the bracket the one seed Dallas Baptist will play the eight seed Rice at 4 p.m. on Wednesday and four seed Western Kentucky will play five seed Florida Atlantic at 7:30 p.m. The winner of DBU-Rice will play the winner of WKU-FAU on Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. The loser of DBU-Rice will play the loser of WKU-FAU in an elimination game on Thursday at 4 p.m.

For UTSA the two seed is their best seed in a conference tournament since 2008 when they were the one seed in the Southland Conference tournament in Huntsville. That year the Roadrunners went 1-2, losing to eight seed Texas A&M Corpus Christi twice and beating five seed Northwestern State.

This will be the Roadrunners 21st time making a conference tournament. Historically the Roadrunners have done well in conference tournaments. The Roadrunners have won at least one game at 17 of their previous 20 tournament appearances. UTSA's highest seed has been one, twice in 2007 and 2008. The Roadrunners lowest seed has been as an eight seed twice in 2017 and 2019. UTSA has made it to a conference championship game or series six times, winning three times and being a runner up three times.

UTSA won the Southland tournament twice in 1994 and 2005. In 1994 the Roadrunners were the three seed in a six-team tournament. In 2005 UTSA was the four seed in a six-team tournament. UTSA won the WAC in 2013, their only year in the league, as the four seed. The Roadrunners beat seven seeded Dallas Baptist in the conference championship game. That remains the last time UTSA won a conference

The Roadrunners were runner-ups in the Southland tournament in 1997 and in their first year in Conference USA in 2014 as well as last year. UTSA needed just one win to claim the title in 1997 but lost twice to Texas State. In 2014 the Roadrunners needed to beat Rice twice to win the conference. Rice needed just one win and they got it by beating the Roadrunners 11-5. Last year the Roadrunners lost to Louisiana Tech in a winner-take-all one game championship series.

For much of this season it looked like UTSA might reach 40 wins for the first time in program history and be in line for an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. The Roadrunners struggles in recent weeks has dropped them into a position where it is likely that their only way into the NCAA tournament will be by claiming the auto-bid that comes with winning the Conference USA tournament. UTSA needs just two wins to reach 40 wins in a season for the first time.

FORUMS: UTSA Boulevard | Roadrunner Way