UTSA Tops Baylor Baseball in Tuesday Night Tilt

[Calderone, Max]

BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS – Feb. 28, 2023

UTSA Tops Baylor Baseball in Tuesday Night Tilt
Stracener collects three hits, Andrade blasts first-career home run in 8-3 loss
For more information contact: Max Calderone, 254-265-1639, Max_Calderone at Baylor.edu<mailto:Max_Calderone at Baylor.edu>

WACO, Texas – Baylor baseball (2-6) lost its Tuesday night tilt against UTSA (7-2) by a score of 8-3 at Baylor Ballpark in Waco.

Sophomore INF Austin Stracener tallied a career-high three hits and junior LHP/OF Kobe Andrade blasted his first-career home run, but the Bears were unable to overcome the Roadrunners’ five-run fourth inning.

For the first time this year, Baylor pitchers were held under eight strikeouts as they punched out just five UTSA batters. The Roadrunners scored one run in the eighth and two in the ninth to seal the victory.

THE RUNDOWN
BU started things off with the game’s first run in the bottom of the first, as freshman INF Kolby Branch scored on sophomore INF Hunter Teplanszky’s sacrifice fly. Freshman RHP Blake Rogers, who was making his first-career start, cruised through the UTSA order his first time through, allowing just one hit through three innings.

However, in the top of the fourth, the Roadrunners made use of five hits, including four doubles, to score five runs and take the lead, 5-1, chasing Rogers from the ballgame.

Baylor would score the game’s next two runs on Branch’s RBI single in the bottom of the fifth and Andrade’s solo shot in the sixth, pulling within two runs at 5-3. But that’s all they would get, as UTSA reliever Daniel Shafer worked four innings of one-run ball to collect the unconventional save after a trio of insurance runs came in the last two frames.

HIGHLIGHTS
• Baylor still leads the all-time series over UTSA, 36-9, though this snapped the Bears’ three-game winning streak against the Roadrunners.
• Junior LHP/OF Kobe Andrade hit his first-career home run.
• Six of Andrade’s seven hits on the year have gone for extra bases (three doubles, two triples, one home run) as he leads the Bears with a .586 slugging percentage.
• Sophomore INF Austin Stracener collected his first-career three-hit game.
• Freshman INF Kolby Branch extended his on-base streak to eight games.
• Branch also drove in his 10th run of the season.
• Sophomore 1B John Ceccoli reached base for the sixth-consecutive game.
• Sophomore INF Hunter Teplanszky drove in a run for the second-consecutive game and third time this season.

STAT OF THE GAME
5 – Baylor pitchers struck out five Roadrunners; UTSA scored five runs in the top of the fourth; the Bears dropped a five-run ballgame with an 8-3 final score.

QUOTABLE
Head Coach Mitch Thompson
On contributions from Kobe Andrade and Austin Stracener…
"Everybody’s working hard, everybody’s disappointed in the start. Nobody wants to be 2-6. The hitters are working extra hard. We’re putting in the time, continuing to improve and learning from our at-bats. It was good to see Austin Stracener get three hits. Kobe Andrade knocked one out of the park, and that was good to see. But, we’ve gotta have more consistent contact.”

Junior LHP/OF Kobe Andrade
On hitting his first home run and his mentality heading into the weekend…
"It was a special one. I felt good at bat. I knew he was throwing sliders, so I got on the plate, took it away and good things happened. I knew he was going to throw a slider again and he left it just a little too up. [I want to] stay with my approach. We have a lot of leadership in this dugout. We might not have the experience, but we have leadership. That’s what I’m trying to take on, a leadership role. Trying to get these guys going whether we’re up 20 or down 20. We’ve got to stay with our approach that every at-bat matters. We need to just pull for each other as a team.”

WHAT’S NEXT
Baylor (2-6) welcomes Youngstown State (1-7) for a four-game set this weekend at Baylor Ballpark in Waco. The Bears and the Penguins will get started on Friday, March 3, at 6:30 p.m. CT in game one of the series.

To stay up to date on all things Baylor baseball, follow the team on its official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts: @BaylorBaseball.



-BaylorBears.com-


__________________________________

Max Calderone | Associate Director of Athletics Communications (BSB, FB, EQ)
Department of Athletics | Baylor University
C: 254-265-1639

[signature_31840291]<http://baylorbears.com/>

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