CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders (7-8) are bringing a lot of momentum back home to the Island. They've won 4 of their last 5 games, including a comeback upset victory over Texas State. Now they face UTSA.
"I think we feel like we play well at our own place, and UTSA handled us a little bit last year," Scott Malone, Islanders baseball head coach, said. "I think our guys feel like hey we need to show well."
Last season in San Antonio the Roadrunners swept the Islanders in the 3-game series, but that same month in Corpus Christi the Islanders won 8-2. This year, the family dynamic is stronger than ever.
"The camaraderie. Everyone is for each other," Cole Modgling, Islanders outfielder, said. "Everyone is with each other and no one is butting heads. We're brothers. We're all good buddies."
Another strength is their pitching staff. Maddox Thornton played a big factor earning his third save in their 6-5 comeback victory over Texas State, and that team just beat Texas.
"I think that there's a lot of guys," Maddox Thornton, Islanders right-handed pitcher, said. "Chance Reisdorph, a couple pitchers, Matthew Watson and Riely Hunsaker. They all stepped up and performed when we needed them."
"Pitching is setting the tone," Malone said. "We're going out and getting good starts. Just you know everything is coming together. We're defending the field.">
Islanders fans can look forward to seeing right-handed pitcher Matthew Watson as Friday's starter against UTSA.
"Our starting pitching is going to be worth the ticket. It's worth the 5 dollar deal," Malone said. "You know like Matt Watson can really do it. He's a 93 mile per hour fastball. There will be MLB people here. It will be worth the price of admission."
The 3-game series against UTSA starts Friday at 7 p.m. at Chapman Field. It continues Saturday at 6:30 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m.
In their last five games, the Islanders have combined to out-hit their opponents 39 to 30 to tack on to their season-total of 144. That mark ranks them 16th overall in the NCAA with six triples putting them at 14th overall.
