Baseball Season Ends In Tournament Semis

Texas State is now 7-7 all-time in the Sun Belt Championship and has won at least one game in all four postseason events since joining the league in 2014.

Statesboro, Ga. – The Texas State baseball team saw its season come to a close in an 11-5 loss to Georgia Southern in the semifinals of the 2017 Sun Belt Conference Baseball Championship Saturday night at J.I. Clements Stadium.

The No. 8-seeded Bobcats ended the campaign with a 29-30 record, while the host Eagles (38-20), seeded No. 5 in the tournament, moved into the final and will take on No. 3 South Alabama at noon May 28.

TXST took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first thanks to the 16th home run by junior Theodore Hoffman, but the Eagles countered with a two-run shot in the bottom of the frame and scored all 11 runs in the first five frames.

Texas State was able to counter with one marker in the third and two in the seventh, but the maroon and gold could do no further damage.

Hoffman finished 3-for-4 with three RBIs and one run scored. Sophomores Ryan Newman and Jonathan Ortega both had two hits.

Hoffman finished the year tied for the sixth-most home runs in a single season by a Bobcat. He also finished sixth on the single-season charts in both hits (87) and total bases (153).

Ortega had 22 stolen bases, which was the fourth-most in a single season in school history.

Junior Cam Baird (1-8) started on the mound and allowed five runs (two earned) on six hits through the first 1.2 innings.

Sophomore Brandon Lewis conceded three runs on one hit across the next 1.1 frames, while sophomore Brayden Theriot gave up three runs (one earned) on two hits in the next 2.0 innings.

Junior Blake Walden logged the final three innings and did not give up a run. Theriot and Walden both struck out four and walked one.

GS starter Chase Cohen failed to make it out of the first inning, as he gave up two runs on three hits on just two outs.

Brian Eichhorn (3-5) tossed the next 6.1 innings, allowing three runs on seven hits. Ryan Frederick pitched the last two frames.

Logan Baldwin went 4-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs, while Jordan Wren finished 2-for-4 with an RBI. Steven Curry did not record a hit, but he scored twice.

Tyler Martin and Ryan Cleveland both drove in two runs.

The Eagles outhit Texas State 11-10, and the Bobcats committed three errors to none from the home team.

Texas State is now 7-7 all-time in the Sun Belt Championship and has won at least one game in all four postseason events since joining the league in 2014.

The Bobcats have advanced to the semifinals in three of the last four years, and this season marked the first year they finished with a winning record in the postseason since 2013.

Score by Innings                    R  H  E

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Texas State……… 201 000 200 –  5 10  3

Georgia Southern…. 231 230 00X – 11 11  0

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Win – Eichhorn, B. (3-5). Loss – Baird, C. (1-8). Save – None.