Bobcats Wrap Up Weekend Sweep Over Richmond

“You would like to think that it’s a personality trait that guys constantly believe that they’re in something,” Texas State coach, Ty Harrington, said.

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State baseball team captured both games of a doubleheader Sunday to earn a weekend sweep over Richmond at Bobcat Ballpark.

The Bobcats (6-6) collected 6-5 and 13-2 victories to climb back to .500 this season, while the Spiders dropped to 3-7 following the first-ever meetings between the two schools.

Junior Theodore Hoffman and sophomores Jonathan Ortega and Ryan Newman powered the TXST offensive attack on the day. They all hit clutch home runs and combined to finish 15-for-28 at the plate.

Hoffman went 7-for-11 overall with three RBIs and four runs scored, Ortega was 4-for-8 and also posted three RBIs and four runs, and Newman finished 4-for-9 with five RBIs and four runs scored.

The Bobcats are in the midst of a 13-game homestand. Next up for the maroon and gold will be a midweek tilt against UTSA at 6 p.m. March 7.

TEXAS STATE 6, RICHMOND 5 (10 innings)

Richmond held the lead for the majority of Sunday’s first game, but it was Texas State who would come from behind to earn the series-clinching triumph.

The Spiders plated three runs in the top of the second and added an insurance tally in the seventh to find themselves on top 4-2. Ortega blasted a full-count pitch over the left field wall to give TXST a 5-4 lead in the home half of the eighth, but the visitors would equalize in the top of the ninth thanks to a pair of errors.

The game-winning sequence began in the bottom of the 10th when Newman lined a two-out single up the middle. He advanced to third on a double down the left field line from Hoffman, and junior Jared Huber brought him home a RBI walk-off single through the right side past a diving first baseman.

Hoffman went 3-for-5, and Ortega finished with two hits, three RBIs and two runs scored. Sophomore Wes Engle picked up a no-decision after allowing four runs on nine hits in the first 6.1 innings. He also did not issue a walk and struck out four. Junior Blake Walden (3-0) earned the win after tossing the final 2.0 frames.

He did not allow an earned run and only gave up one hit. Junior Braden Pearson logged 1.2 innings and only gave up one hit and no runs.

Richmond was able to outhit Texas State by a narrow 11-10 margin. Vinny Capra and Jonathan De Marte both went 3-for-5 for the Spiders.

Capra finished with three RBIs and two runs scored, and De Marte drove in a run. He was also the pitcher of record as he threw 1.2 innings and was saddled with the loss after allowing the game-winning run.

Daniel Brumbaugh saw 1.0 inning on the mound and gave up three runs on five hits. Starter Robbie Baker lasted 7.0 frames and conceded just two runs on three hits while striking out seven and walking one.

TEXAS STATE 13, RICHMOND 2

Richmond led 2-0 after the first inning of the series finale, but that would be all the damage the Spiders would inflict as the Bobcats erupted for 13 runs across their final six turns at the plate to complete the sweep.

Texas State manufactured its first four runs in the third inning. The maroon and gold then added a trio of tallies in the fourth thanks to back-to-back homers from Newman and Hoffman.

This was the second time in 2017 that the duo went yard on consecutive plate appearances. TXST added four more in the seventh and wrapped up the day with another two markers in the eighth. 

Hoffman had a career-high four hits (4-for-6) at the plate with three RBIs and a career-high-tying three runs scored. Newman finished 2-for-4 with three runs scored while tying his career best with four runs driven in.

Sophomore Jaylen Hubbard was 2-for-5 with a run, and he also matched a career high with four RBIs. Ortega finished 2-for-3 with two runs.

True freshman Nicholas Fraze (1-1) earned the first win on the mound of his young career. He pitched 5.1 innings and allowed two runs on eight hits. Sophomores Connor Reich and Brayden Theriot, along with true freshman Zachary Leigh, combined to hold the Spiders scoreless in the final 3.2 frames.

Capra, De Marte and Kyle Schmidt each had two of Richmond’s ten hits. Starting pitcher Jacob Lamb (1-1) lasted just two frames and took the loss. He allowed three runs (one earned) on two hits while walking five and striking out just one.

The Bobcats outhit the Spiders (12-10) and had three fewer errors (4-1).

TEXAS STATE COACH TY HARRINGTON

Opening Statement…

“We were just good enough to win the first game today. Obviously, we had to come from behind. I thought we had the momentum on our side, but (Richmond) came out in the second game and scored early. We were having to play catch-up a little bit in both games. Our team stayed in there pretty confidently, and we were able to do what we needed to do offensively. I thought we were pretty good this weekend offensively. We kept a lot of pressure on (Richmond). We had good swings. We had (15) extra-base hits, and I was proud of that. (Nicholas) Fraze started off the second game a little shaky. He reclaimed his fastball and was able to do a good job. I was proud of him. Connor Reich came in when it was still a five-run game and slowed the game down. He got us out of a little bit of a mess. As a whole, I was pleased and proud of the efforts offensively. I thought that we had some good pitching performances this weekend, which we need. I was excited for our guys. They put the work in this week. I grinded on them hard all week after Tuesday night’s bad game. Our whole staff did. I hope they get the sensation of what it’s like when you really have to get after it preparation-wise. They were able to take it to the field and get the result this weekend.”

On the resilience of the team when falling behind…
“You would like to think that it’s a personality trait that guys constantly believe that they’re in something. If you’ve been in this game long enough, you’ll always think you still have a chance. It’s a personality trait that good baseball players have, and hopefully these guys will carry that with them and gain some confidence, too.”

Score by Innings                      R  H  E

———————————————

Richmond………… 030 000 101 0 –  5 11  1

Texas State……… 011 000 030 1 –  6 10  2

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Win – Walden, B. (3-0). Loss – DE MARTE, J. (0-1). Save – None.

Score by Innings                    R  H  E

——————————————-

Richmond………… 200 000 000 –  2 10  4

Texas State……… 004 300 42X – 13 12  1

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Win – Fraze, N. (1-1). Loss – LAMB, J. (1-1). Save – None.