BASEBALL: Bobcats Fall In Heartbreaking Extra-Inning Loss
Behind the work of Scott Grist on the mound and Granger Studdard at the plate and defensively, Texas State looked to be in line for a win to even the series at South Alabama Saturday night. However, the Jaguars tied the game in the ninth and used a walk-off hit in the 11th to outlast the Bobcats, 2-1, in the heartbreaking loss.
Now both teams stand at 5-3 in Sun Belt Conference play, and the Bobcats will look to bounce back at 11 a.m. Sunday. The Sunday game has been moved up an hour due to weather considerations.
Texas State’s Grist pitched a gem of a game, continually coming through with big pitches in big moments. He went 8.1 innings and only gave up six hits and one run. He walked one but struck out five, and three of his strikeouts came to end innings with runners on base. He did not give up a run until the ninth.
Meanwhile, Studdard showed what he could do defensively, getting his first start of the season at first base. He finished the night with 14 putouts and an assist. His assist came on beautiful double play in the bottom of the fifth inning. The Jaguars had sacrifice bunted the leadoff man to second base in the inning when Ryan Raspino, the USA shortstop, rifled a line drive at Studdard. He skied high to make the catch and sent it over to second base for the double play to keep the game tied at 0-0.
After the impressive defensive play, Studdard led off the sixth inning with a solo home run, the first of his sophomore season and seventh of his career. He knocked it to right field, carrying the defensive momentum from the fifth to the plate with him in the sixth.
Unfortunately for Texas State, that would be the only run the team scored all night. The Bobcats left nine runners stranded, ending six innings with runners on base, including the 10th.
In the ninth, Grist gave up a single to Adam Ballew, South Alabama’s leading RBI-hitter, after holding him to 0-for-3 to that point in the game. After the single, the Bobcats changed pitchers, and Daniel Martinez knocked a double that landed just fair to plate Ballew and tie the game.
Blake Whitter entered the game after that and intentionally walked the next batter, making use of the open base. From there, he induced a groundout on a nice play from Ben McElroy, entering the game late to take over at first base. With two runners on, Matt Sanchez made the next game-saving play, charging forward from his spot in centerfield to make the catch for third out and to close out the ninth inning.
Neither team scored in the 10th, thanks to the work of Cedric Vallieres at second base. He assisted on a putout and caught a line drive for two outs in the inning. The senior was not retired in his first three at bats of the night.
In the 11th, however, South Alabama used consecutive singles and a walk to load the bases. At that point, South Alabama’s designated hitter Ben Gann made his first hit of the night, dropping a single to shallow right field to plate the winning run.
Studdard went 2-for-5 in the game with a run and an RBI on his homer while Vallieres finished 1-for-4, but earned a walk and reached on an error. Freshman Derek Scheible had the other hit for Texas State as the Bobcats finished with four hits on the night. The defense did not commit an error for the second time this season.
Texas State will look to try and salvage the series Sunday with an 11 a.m. first pitch, moved ahead an hour due to weather considerations. After that, the Bobcats will return home to host No. 14 Texas at 6 p.m. Tuesday night before welcoming Georgia Southern to San Marcos for another
MEN’S & WOMEN’S TRACK: Bobcats Complete TCU Invitational
Battling rough weather throughout the track meet, Texas State returned to action at the TCU Invitational in Fort Worth this weekend. In the first meet of the outdoor season, the Bobcats were just getting warmed up.
The women’s sprinters made a good showing with Macahla Wesley and Marika Brown taking first and second respectively in the 200-meter dash. Wesley’s time of 24.14 is an outdoor best for the sophomore and leads the Sun Belt Conference in the early going. Brown is second in the conference with her 24.43. Wesley finished fourth in the 100m while Brown took sixth. The duo also has the top two times in the conference in the 100-meter dash as well.
Meanwhile, men’s sprinters Cody Schulz and De’Marcus Porter also put up conference leading times. Both finished the 200-meter dash in 22.02 seconds for the top two times in the conference. Porter also finished sixth in the 100-meter dash.
Jordan Huckaby added onto his Thursday win in the hammer throw with a win in shot put, throwing for a personal best 17.09 meters (56-1) to set an early top throw in the SBC. Roman Rodriguez finished third at the meet and currently sits third in the conference with a throw of 16.02 meters (52-6.75).
The Bobcats kept stacking up wins at the meet with Chelsie Decoud winning high jump, matching her highest indoor jump this season with a height of 1.75 meters (5-8.75). Courtney Johnson wasn’t far behind in third with a height of 1.60 meters (5-3). The duo owns the top two spots in the conference.
Also in high jump, for the men, Alex Tripplett and Ben Hunt both cleared a top three height in the conference. They both cleared 1.89 meters (6-2.25).
In the relays, the women took first in the 4×400-meter dash and second in the 4x100m, putting together the fastest times in the conference. Alexus Hebert, Brown, Wesley and Allie Saunders ran the 4x100m while Briana Adams, Kimberly Krtinich, Abby Hani and Erika Martin ran the 4x400m for Texas State.
Sydni Willis set the top time in the conference in the 400-meter hurdles with a second place finish at the meet, turning in a time of 1:01.58. For the men, James Hilliard finished second in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 54.20, good enough for the third spot in the Sun Belt Conference.
Meanwhile, Antonisha Stewart and Victoria Johnson both finished in the top 10 in the 100-meter hurdles, putting up top five times in the conference of 14.69 and 14.91 respectively.
In the 800-meter run, Amber Gilmore and Esther Oyetunde put up top conference times. Gilmore ran a 2:16.62 for second in the conference while Oyetunde’s 2:17.47 puts her fourth in the SBC. Alec Saucedo and James Leonard represented the Texas State men in the 800m. Saucedo took fourth with a time of 1:57.97 to sit fourth in the Sun Belt. Leonard sits sixth in the conference with his time of 1:59.41.
Leonard and Saucedo switched places in the 1,500-meter run with Leonard beating out Saucedo. Leonard, a senior, finished fifth with a time of 4:02.25 for fourth in the SBC while Saucedo’s 4:03.64 is also top 10 in the conference.
Finally, on the women’s side, Julie Lange finished third at the meet in shot put with a distance of 14.73 meters (48-4). Her distance sits third in the SBC while Talore Kelly finished fourth with a distance of 14.26 meters (46-9.5), good enough for sixth in the conference.
Next up for the Bobcats will be dual meets. Texas State will compete at the Texas Relays in Austin March 25-28 while also hosting the Bobcat Invitational in San Marcos on March 26-28.
WOMEN’S GOLF: Lewthwaite Posts Another Top-10 Finish In Tuscon
TUSCON, Ariz. – The Texas State women’s golf team posted another top-10 finish, placing sixth at the Mountainview Collegiate in Tuscon, Ariz., Saturday. Individually, Lejan Lewthwaite posted another top-10 finish, tying for eighth after a final round 2-over-par 74.
“We certainly wanted to win in Arizona,” head coach Mike Akers said. “We were in position to win and simply didn’t make putts today. I am pleased to break school records and we can take some big positives away from this event. This is the time of year to peak and we are definitely starting to show signs of low scores.”
The Bobcats shot a final round 297, a day after breaking the school record with a 9-under-par 279. That opening round score was the lowest both in terms of total score and in relation to par.
Lewthwaite finished the event with a three-round score of 213. It is her lowest of the season and second lowest of her career. She carded a three-round total of 212 at the Johnny Imes Invitational her freshman year. At this event a few years ago, Krista Puisite set the three-round school record with a tournament total of 209.
“LJ had a great tournament,” Akers said. “Her swing looks great right now. The rest of the team is also improving and getting the correct mindset.”
The Bobcats will now have a week off before playing at the Web.com Intercollegiate in Jacksonville, Fla., from March 30-31.
MEN’S BASEBALL: Winning Streak Ends at South Alabama
After four consecutive wins, Texas State’s impressive winning streak comes to an end at the hands of the Jaguars of South Alabama. The Bobcats fell to South Alabama, 7-1, Friday night to drop to 9-11-1 overall and 5-2 in Sun Belt Conference play.
The Jaguars threw one of the best pitchers in the SBC in Kevin Hill. He went eight innings and only gave up two hits to the Bobcats. He walked four with 10 strikeouts. One of the hits was from Cedric Vallieres in the opening inning.
After that, Hill only allowed four base runners, all on walks, before he gave up another hit in the eighth inning. Matt Sanchez broke the streak with a single up the middle.
Texas State scored in the ninth inning to keep the game from being a shutout. David Paiz knocked a single to right field and went to third on a double down the right line from Granger Studdard. A sacrifice fly from a pinch hitting Dylan Paul brought in Paiz, but a strikeout after that ended the game.
In the ninth, the Bobcats put two hits on South Alabama closer Cody Van Aken after hitting just two hits in eight innings against Hill.
South Alabama jumped on the Bobcats early, scoring a run in the bottom of the first with two outs. Centerfielder Cole Billingsley hit a bunt single with two gone and stole second. The team’s leading RBI hitter, Adam Ballew, followed with a single to the outfield to plate Billingsley and claim an early lead.
The Jaguars added three runs in the third and three more in the fifth to drop Texas State to 4-9 this season when opponents score first.
Keith Brenner and Braden Pearson made good showings for the Bobcats in relief. Pearson did not give up a hit in the inning he pitched. Brenner, in 2.1 innings to close out the game, only gave up one hit and a walk in nine batters faced. It was easily his best performance of the season.
Texas State will look to bounce back in the second game of the series at 6:30 p.m. Saturday night.
WOMEN’S GOLF: Breaks Records In Tuscon
The Texas State women’s golf team shattered multiple program records on Friday, during the first two rounds of the Mountainview Collegiate in Tuscon, Ariz. The Bobcats shot a first round 9-under-par 279, which was the lowest, both in terms of raw score and in relation to par.
The record continues a run of good fortune for the Bobcats at this tournament who set two records at the time in terms of lowest round as a team, and had the individual 54-hole record fall by Krista Puisite the last time at this event in 2013.
Lejan Lewthwaite tied the program record for lowest single round in relation to par, by carding a 5-under-par 67 in the morning. She had eight birdies, including three straight from holes 16-18. Lewthwaite is currently two shots out of the lead, after backing her 67 up with an even-par 72.
Texas State is currently tied for second as a team through 36 holes. The Bobcats are just one shot off the lead held by Ohio State.
The final round of the Mountainview Collegiate will be held on Saturday morning. Live scoring is available on birdiefire.com.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: Bobcats Announce Addition Of Jasmine Vasquez
SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State women’s basketball team announces the addition Jasmine Vasquez to the 2015-16 Bobcat roster. Vasquez transfers from Tulsa where she competed for two years for the Golden Hurricanes.
“I’m very excited about Jasmine Vasquez because of her ability to play multiple positions,” stated head coach Zenarae Antoine. “She has the ability to create mismatch problems for our opponents and she has the desire to win a championship with hard work and dedication.”
While at Tulsa, Vasquez played in 52 games including 30 as a freshman where she ranks seventh on the Tulsa freshman all-time list. Coming out of high school, she was three-star recruit by ESPNU HoopsGurlz and had an 85 position ranking by ESPNU. She was also ranked No. 167 nationally by Olson’s Collegiate Girls Basketball Report.
“Jasmine is a pleasant young woman who comes from a good family and I am excited that she has found a home with us at Texas State,” added Antoine.
This week’s information for our Bobcat Weekly Wrap Up is provided by Texas State Athletics where this originally published, and is reprinted here through a partnership between Texas State University and Corridor News.