Bobcats Return to SBC Action

by, Joshua Flanagan

SAN MARCOS, Texas – After six games outside of the Sun Belt Conference, Texas State returns to SBC action this weekend against visiting Little Rock, ranked fourth in the league. Be sure to stay up with Bobcat Baseball throughout the weekend atwww.txstatebobcats.com and on Twitter @TXStateBaseball for any updates or schedule changes due to weather. The teams will be starting with a Friday doubleheader at 3 p.m. with the Saturday game to follow at 3 p.m. to conclude the series.

Series Info: Texas State vs. Little Rock

Site: Bobcat Ballpark – San Marcos, Texas

Dates: Friday, April 14 – Saturday, April 15

Time: Friday – 3 p.m. & Approximately 6:30 p.m. | Saturday – 3 p.m.

Probable Pitching Matchups

Friday Game 1: #21 RHP Lucas Humpal (5-2, 2.30 ERA) vs. #44 RHP Matt McDowell (1-1, 4.60 ERA)

Friday Game 2: #27 RHP Jeremy Hallonquist (3-2, 2.87 ERA) vs. TBA

Saturday: #9 LHP Cory Geisler (3-0, 1.47 ERA) vs. #10 RHP Cory Malcom (2-3, 7.12 ERA)

The Series

The Bobcats and Trojans have only met since both have been in the Sun Belt Conference, starting with Texas State’s inaugural season in the conference in 2014. Since then, the Bobcats have gone 2-4 in six games against Little Rock, taking one of each three-game series the teams have played. Texas State’s last home win against Little Rock was a 6-2 victory on May 10, 2014.

Last Meeting

Texas State salvaged the series last season with a 10-4 victory on Sunday after dropping the first two games. Jeremy Hallonquistimproved to 4-0 on the year with three strikeouts while Colby Targun, jared Huber and Ben McElroy each knocked two hits apiece. Targun tallied four RBIs while McElroy added two walks along with Luke Sherley, both scoring twice.

On the Trojans

Little Rock is, like the Bobcats, one of the best offensive teams in the Sun Belt. The Trojans are second in the conference in batting average and third in slugging percentage and on-base percentage. The team also boasts two of the top three most consistent bats in the conference in Ryan Scott (.465) and Dalton Thomas (.398).

Despite the strong offense though, Little Rock stands at 15-17 on the year and 8-7 in conference play to sit fourth in the SBC. The team’s pitching staff has a collective 5.67 ERA with 170 walks to 227 strikeouts while opponents hit .280 against Little Rock. The Trojans have given up 18 home runs and 60 doubles.

Before losing Little Rock’s latest game against Central Arkansas, the Trojans took two games off Georgia State, but lost four games before that. While the Bobcats swept Appalachian State, Little Rock lost twice in Boone, N.C. but both teams were swept by South Alabama.

On the Bobcats

Texas State almost outlasted No. 19 Rice in this past week’s midweek, keeping the game tied 1-1 until the seventh inning. Now the Bobcats are looking to bounce back in their return to conference action after six games out of conference. Currently, the Bobcats are 9-3 in SBC play and sit second in the conference. Texas State will have to win at least two games this weekend to ensure sole possession of second place once the weekend is finished.

Some of the top bats on the squad have come back down to earth a bit with Jonathan Ortega and Granger Studdard leading the way at .333. Third on the team is Dylan Paul at .317, who fans have seen more from defensively with time at first base lately. Those are the only regular contributors hitting above .300 for the Bobcats, but four others are hitting .289 or better.

The three senior starters on the mound have been strong all season for the Bobcats. Lucas Humpal stands with a 2.30 ERA while Jeremy Hallonquist is at 2.87. Cory Geisler, with four starts on the year, has just a 1.47 ERA with 28 strikeouts to 10 walks and a mere .183 opponent batting average. Humpal is holding opponents to .191 while the squad has a .238 opponent average with a team ERA of 3.76. The Bobcats have struck out 245 with just 119 walks in 308.2 innings so far this year.

A Look Ahead

The Bobcats will return to the road after this weekend’s series with road games at nationally-ranked Texas A&M, UL Lafayette and Texas over the next week and a half.