Bobcats Travel to No. 3 Texas A&M

by, Joshua Flanagan, TXST Assistant Sports Information Director

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Texas State makes it consecutive midweek games against nationally-ranked opponents, this week traveling to No. 3 Texas A&M. This will be the second consecutive meeting against the Aggies for Texas State in which Texas A&M has been ranked No. 3. Last season, the Bobcats pushed the Aggies to 11 innings in one of the most exciting games of the season.

Series Info: Texas State at No. 3 Texas A&M

Site: Blue Bell Park – College Station, Texas

Dates: Tuesday, April 19

Time: 6:30 p.m.

Probable Pitching Matchup

#34 LHP Jonathan Hennigan (2-1, 3.63 ERA) vs. #22 RHP Tyler Ivey (2-2, 2.82 ERA)

The Series

Texas A&M has a 41-13 advantage over the Bobcats and have beat Texas State the last two meetings. However, the Bobcats did take down the Aggies, 4-1, on April 23, 2013. Head Coach Ty Harrington stands at 4-16 against Texas A&M, and the last time the Bobcats beat the Aggies on their field was 2001 in a 7-4 victory.

Last Meeting

The Bobcats forced No. 3 Texas A&M to 11 innings last season, falling by just one run, 8-7. Granger Studdard and Ben McElroy both knocked in two RBIs while joining up with Tanner Hill and Colby Targun to each tally two hits apiece in the game. The Bobcats stormed back from a 7-3 deficit, scoring four runs in the seventh inning to tie the game.

On the Aggies

Put simply, Texas A&M is a powerhouse right now, sitting third in the national rankings. The team is nationally ranked in batting average (3^rd), fielding percentage (9^th), hits (4^th), shutouts (6^th), slugging percentage (3^rd) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (9^th). The team’s leading hitter, Boomer White, is eighth nationally in batting average and hits while J.B. Moss sits fourth in the nation in runs.

They have won seven in a row coming into this game, including a sweep of Mississippi State this past weekend who entered the game ranked eighth in the country.

White is hitting .430 while Hunter Melton is at .383 and Moss is at .361. In all, 13 Aggies are hitting .294 or better so far this season with seven tallying 35 hits or more so far this year. They have 37 home runs this season and 427 hits to just 285 for opponents.

Texas A&M isn’t just strong offensively though. While the Aggies hit .334 as a team, their defense and pitching staff are holding opponents to .236 with a 3.11 ERA. They’ve tallied 329 strikeouts to just 106 walks while Tyler Ivey, Tuesday’s starter, has 43 strikeouts to 15 walks this year. Opponents are hitting .236 against him.

On the Bobcats

The Bobcats have dropped four games in a row and six of the last seven. With No. 3 Texas A&M on Tuesday and on the road at No. 24 UL Lafayette over the weekend, Texas State has to find a way to stop the slide.

Texas State has shown a powerful offense this season with 34 home runs, just three less than Texas A&M, including Tanner Hill’s 13 which sits him sixth in the country. In fact, the Bobcats lead the conference in home runs, slugging percentage, total bases and at bats while sitting second in hits, triples and total plate appearances, so they certainly have the firepower to compete against the Aggies.

With 371 hits, 222 runs, 197 RBIs and 105 extra-base hits, the Bobcats have eight players hitting .294 or better and five Bobcats with 30 hits or more, led by Jonathan Ortega and his 52 hits.

On the mound Tuesday night will be Jonathan Hennigan, who is ranked in the top 10 in the Sun Belt Conference in earned runs allowed and hits allowed. He is second on the team in strikeouts with 39 this year and has an ERA of 3.63 with an opponents’ average of .245.

A Look Ahead

After Texas A&M, the Bobcats travel to No. 24 UL Lafayette and play a midweek at Texas after that.