MEMPHIS – On Friday, UTSA Baseball visited Memphis for the first of three games at FedExPark Avron Fogelman Field. The Roadrunners jumped ahead early before the bats went quiet in an eventual 6-4 defeat. Despite 14 free trips to first base, UTSA failed to muster five runs for just the eighth time this spring. Two eighth-inning Tiger runs proved to be the difference as the Navy & Orange dipped to 33-16 overall with a 15-7 American Conference mark.
FIRST INNING
Following an uneventful Roadrunner trip to the plate, Gunnar Brown earned the nod on the mound for his eighth overall start and fifth straight in a series opener. The senior mowed down the Tigers in order with a pair of strikeouts, maintaining an early 0-0 stalemate.
SECOND INNING
Both Jacob Silva and Christian Hallmark earned free trips aboard before Jordan Ballin notched the game’s first hit on a perfectly-placed bunt single. A bases-loaded wild pitch brought Silva around before a sacrifice fly in foul territory sent Hallmark racing down the third base line. The sophomore narrowly avoided the tag, pushing his side ahead 2-0 before Drew Detlefsen stepped back up to the plate. The left fielder ripped a 1-0 pitch to the right-center gap, easily notching the game’s third run and capping the frame up 3-0. While Memphis recorded its first hit, Brown remained solid on the bump, keeping the hosts off the board early on.
THIRD INNING
In the bottom half, Memphis responded with a leadoff double before a walk put two on the basepaths. A two-out drive made its way over the right-field wall for a game-tying home run, ending the game’s first third at a 3-3 deadlock.
FIFTH INNING
With two away, Jordan Ballin reached courtesy of a base on balls before making his way to scoring position with a wild pitch. On the 10th offering of Aidan Eshelman’s at-bat, the freshman sent one high to the pitcher, but a fielding miscue gave Ballin more than enough time to make his way home. The two-bag error put UTSA back in front 4-3 before Connor Kelley made his way out of the bullpen. A double off the wall preceded an RBI single for the game’s second tie at 4-4.
SEVENTH INNING
A one-out error put a runner aboard before a stolen base sent a Tiger into scoring position. Kelley kept the threat at bay, finishing the frame with back-to-back strikeouts. Both batters went down swinging as the junior sent the game to its final stages still locked at four runs apiece.
EIGHTH INNING
Two singles bookended UTSA’s fifth error of the night, with the final knock driving in a pair of one-out runs. The inning quickly came to a close after the two-RBI single, but Memphis took a 6-4 edge into the game’s final frame.
NINTH INNING
A Jordan Ballin walk with two away brought the game-tying run to the plate, but no further damage was done. On a ground ball up the middle, the Tigers opted for the force out on the lead runner, ending the affair by a 6-4 final score and extending their winning streak to four.
NUMBERS OF NOTE
- UTSA fell to 5-2 all-time against Memphis, dropping to 2-2 on the road.
- The ‘Runners are now 1-13 when trailing after eight innings this season, notching their only win on March 29 over East Carolina.
- Gunnar Brown finished his night on the mound with 4.0 innings pitched, allowing three earned runs on four hits with five strikeouts.
- Entering Friday, UTSA’s season high in free bases (walks and hit batters) was 15, coming at Baylor on April 14. The squad amassed 14 free trips to first in the loss to Memphis.
- Five Roadrunner errors were their most in a game this season.
- On Friday, UTSA walked one batter, allowing fewer than two for the 10th time this season.
- In games lasting nine of fewer innings, the Roadrunners’ previous 2026 high in free bases was 13, occurring on five occasions.
- The Navy & Orange stranded 14 runners on base in the loss. They have only surpassed that mark twice in 2026 (15 on Feb. 21 versus Dallas Baptist and 16 on April 14 at Baylor).
- For the fifth straight game in conference play, UTSA failed to hit a home run.
- Three hits were tied for the second-fewest by UTSA in a game this season.
- Andrew Stucky’s four-walk day doubled his previous campaign high of two.
- The ‘Runners retained their two-game lead on the rest of the American Conference courtesy of losses from UAB (12-10) and East Carolina (13-9).
UP NEXT
On Saturday at 2 p.m., the two sides will meet once again for the midpoint of the series. UTSA looks to force a Sunday rubber match while Memphis hopes to secure its fifth straight win. All the action from FedExPark Avron Fogelman Field will be streamed live on ESPN+ and available to follow via utsa.statbroadcast.com.
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