Maroon & Gold Weekly Wrap-Up

Maroon & Gold Weekly Wrap-Up:

Baseball, Track & Field and Men’s Basketball

Newman’s Grand Slam Run-Rules ULM for Series Sweep

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Senior first baseman Ryan Newman blasted a grand slam with two outs in the seventh inning for the Texas State baseball team (15-9, 4-2 Sun Belt) to run-rule ULM (7-16, 0-6 Sun Belt) 13-1 Sunday afternoon at Bobcat Ballpark. The victory also gave the Bobcats a series sweep over the Warhawks, the first Sun Belt Conference sweep at home since Appalachian State last season.

Connor Reich (4-0) pitched all seven innings for TXST to earn the complete game victory. He recorded a season-high eight strikeouts while giving up just one run on four hits and did not allow a walk for the third time this season. Taking the loss was Jacob Barton (1-4) after he struck out four and surrendered four runs on three hits and five walks.

Posting two base hits apiece were Dalton Shuffield, Jaxon Williams and Newman. Scoring three runs was Jaylen Hubbard, who also had two of the team’s five stolen bases. Newman had a game-high five RBIs while Travon Benton, Hubbard and Valentine all drove in two runs each. Will Hollis recorded a hit and a walk to extend his reached base streak to 18 games.

The Bobcats offense was stagnant for the first four innings as they were held hitless. They were able to score a run in the second when Barton walked the bases loaded and Benton hit a slow roller to second that brought home Hubbard.

After the Warhawks tied the game in the top of the fifth, Felipe Rodriguez led off the bottom half of the inning with a single through the left side. Shuffield followed by bunting for a base hit. Williams laid down another bunt for a hit and the ULM third baseman threw the ball wide to allow Rodriguez to score.

Following a stolen base by Williams to put two in scoring position, Hubbard sent a 1-1 pitch back up the middle for a two-RBI single. Two more runs were scored on singles by Benton and Newman to give TXST a 6-1 advantage.

Texas State tacked on a run in the sixth on a Valentine single.

Benton drew a walk to begin the Bobcats’ half of the seventh. Following a ULM pitching change, Rodriguez laid down a sacrifice bunt to move the senior outfielder into scoring position. Shuffield brought him home on a single to center field to make it a seven-run advantage.

A single by Hollis and a walk to Hubbard loaded the bases and forced another Warhawk pitching change. On the third pitch of Valentine’s ensuing plate appearance, he was plunked to bring home a run and keep the bases juiced. Newman then blasted a 2-0 pitch over the right field fence for his run-rule walk-off grand slam.

The Bobcats will meet Rice for the third time this on Tuesday with first pitch slated for 6 p.m. at Bobcat Ballpark.

Bobcats turn in a big performance at the Roadrunner Invitational

SAN ANTONIO – The Texas State track and field teams had a strong performance to start the 2019 outdoor season by registering 32 Sun Belt Conference top 10 marks, including four league-leading marks this weekend at the Roadrunner Invitational at the Park West Athletics Complex.

Senior T’Mond Johnson logged two Sun Belt leading marks, including a first-place finish in the men’s shot put with a launch of 19.43 meters (63-9), a mark that ranks No. 4 in the program’s record book. Johnson also placed third in the discus throw with a 53.77-meter hurl (176-5).

Junior Naomi Ferdinand took first-place in the women’s long jump thanks to a 6.06-meter leap (19-10.75) to pace the conference and senior Kyle Denomme timed out at 1:52.31 in the men’s 800-meter run for third-place to set a new standard in the league.

The Bobcats will have a big weekend ahead with a few athletes competing in Austin, Texas at the 92nd Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays beginning on March 27, while majority of the team will prepare for the Bobcat Invitational on March 28-30 at the Texas State Track and Field Complex.

Bobcats edged by FIU in CIT, 87-81

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Senior guard Tre’Larenz Nottingham matched a career-high 27 points Saturday night at Strahan Arena, but a late run by Florida International (20-13) put the historic Texas State men’s basketball team’s (24-10) season to rest with an 87-81 loss in the Collegeinsider.com Tournament.

The Bobcats held a 74-66 advantage with less than five minutes remaining to play before the Panthers went on a massive 21-7 run to seal the game. The Bobcats shot 50 percent from the floor (15-of-30) and 72 percent from the charity stripe (15-of-21). They won the rebounding battle 42-32 with 26 offensive rebounds that transferred into 25 second-chance points. However, FIU was able to stick around due to good free throw shooting, a few Bobcat turnovers, and a pair of triples from junior forward Devon Andrews. Andrews and senior guard Brian Beard Jr. dropped a game-high 29 points apiece for FIU and combined for 15-of-21 at the free throw line. Junior forward Osasumwen Osaghae pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds for the Panthers.

In what was his final game with the Maroon and Gold, Nottingham made four 3-pointers, bringing his season total to 87, No. 2 in the program’s single-season record book. Junior guard Jaylen Shead followed with 16 points and three dimes, and sophomore guard Shelby Adams had a season-high 12 points and was one rebound shy of logging a double-double. Junior forward Eric Terry also turned in 12 points to mark the 10th time the Bobcats concluded a game with four players scoring in double figures this year.

A tightly contested first half began with the Bobcats converting on their first three field goal attempts. They would then go scoreless for over four minutes, while the Panthers went on a 6-0 run to take an 18-9 lead at the 14:11 mark. Terry put an end to that run with a bucket in the paint to ignite a Bobcat 10-2 run to cut FIU’s lead to 20-19. Both teams exchanged buckets, but a pair of 3-pointers from Nottingham and Shead, along with another basket from Nottingham gave the Bobcats their first lead of the night at 33-32 with 3:53 remaining in the half. The Panthers responded and outscored the Bobcats 12-4 before Shead ended the period with a triple as time expired and the Bobcats went into the break down 44-40.

The buzzard-beater seemed to lift the Bobcats as they took a 50-49 lead with before hitting the first media timeout and grew their lead to as many as nine points. It looked to be all Texas State after Nottingham hit what was his final 3-pointer of the night to put the home team ahead 74-66 with the clock reading 4:49. However, FIU battled back with an 8-0 run highlighted by Andrews’ triple to tie the game at 74. After both clubs exchanged free throws, Nottingham scored on a layup before Andrews dropped another Bomb from deep to give FIU a 79-78 advantage with 2:40 left in regulation. TXST responded quickly with a layup from Shead to go ahead 80-79, but the Panthers closed the game out with an 8-1 run, shooting 4-of-6 at the stripe to seal the game.

The Texas State men’s basketball program silenced many critics this year by winning 24 games and tied for second place in the Sun Belt Conference (12-6) after being picked to finish No. 8 in the preseason poll. This year marks the second in three seasons that the Bobcats finished with 20-plus wins and logged its highest win total since the 1993-94 season when the Bobcats posted a 25-7 record. Head coach Danny Kaspar recorded his most successful season at the helm of the program and moved to No. 3 for most wins by a head coach in the program’s history at 98.   

Bobcats Hang on to Defeat ULM 6-5

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State baseball team (14-9, 3-2 Sun Belt) hunt on to beat ULM (7-15, 0-4) 6-5 Saturday afternoon at Bobcat Ballpark after a late comeback attempt by the Warhawks.

Picking up the win was Hunter McMahon (3-2) after throwing five innings with five strikeouts. He did give up a run on three hits and walked five. Brayden Theriot earned his second save of the season and the ninth of his career when he struck out the final batter of the game. Ty Barnes (1-1) suffered the loss when he surrendered three runs on four hits in five innings.

Will Hollis went 2-for-3 with a run scored for his fourth consecutive multi-hit game and extend his reached base streak to 17 games. The Bobcats hit a season-high three home runs with one each coming off the bats of Jaylen Hubbard, Felipe Rodriguez and Skyler Valentine.

Also seeing action out of the bullpen for TXST was Kyle Bradford and Brandon Lewis. Bradford tossed 2.2 innings with four strikeouts while Lewis worked one inning.

The Warhawks tallied the first run of the game in the third when Ryan Humeniuk scored Chad Bell grounded into a double play with the bases loaded and no outs.

Hollis led off the bottom of the fourth with a single to right field on the first pitch he saw. Hubbard followed by smashing a 1-1 pitch into the netting above the left field fence for a two-run homer and give the Bobcats a 2-1 advantage.

Rodriguez smacked a solo blast down the left field line in the fifth to make it a two-run advantage. It was his first home run since the 2017 season.

In the next half inning, ULM loaded the bases with one out after two singles and a walk. Humeniuk hit a slow grounder to Jaxon Williams, who tried to flip the ball to Dalton Shuffield but the ball sailed over the sophomore’s head and allowed a run to score. The runner from second tried to score on the misplay but Shuffield threw home to Rodriguez, who went to Hubbard at third and the senior third baseman tagged him out. TXST escaped the inning without any more damage by inducing a fly out for the third out.

Ryan Newman started off the seventh by lacing a 0-1 offering to left center and he hustled around for his first triple of the season. Travon Benton sent the next pitch to right field for a RBI single. After a Rodriguez sacrifice bunt, Shuffield ripped a double to right center to plate a run to increase the lead to 5-2.

Valentine added a key insurance run in the eight when he smacked his team leading third homer of the season.

The Warhawks were able to load the bases with two outs after two singles and a walk. Following a pitching change to bring in Theriot, Brendan Jordan hit a 3-2 pitch that fell in left center for a single and bring home two runs. Masen Prosoki followed with a single through the left side to cut the lead down to 6-5. Theriot then struck out Braedon Barrett on three pitches for the series clinching victory.

Sunday’s series finale is slated for a 1 p.m. first pitch.

Late Inning Runs Propel Bobcats Past Warhawks 5-1

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Combining to score four runs in the bottom of the seventh and eighth innings, the Texas State baseball team (13-9, 2-2 Sun Belt) defeated ULM (7-14, 0-4 Sun Belt) 5-1 Friday night in the series opener at Bobcat Ballpark.

Nicholas Fraze (3-2) picked up the victory after throwing 7.0 innings, tying his season-high. He struck out four while limiting the Warhawks to one run on three hits. Taking the loss was Trey Jeans (0-4) after he gave up two runs on four hits and three walks while striking out four in 6.1 innings.

Both Kyle Bradford and Zachary Leigh threw an inning of relief and gave up a hit apiece. Leigh did record a strikeout, which came on the final batter of the game.

Will Hollis went 2-for-3 with a RBI to extend his reached base streak to 16 games. Dalton Shuffield also had two base knocks while stealing his sixth base of the season. Both Jacob Almendarez and Jaxon Williams drove in a run and scored once.

Following back-to-back walks, Hollis smacked a 0-2 offering off the left center field fence that just barely missed leaving the yard. He had to settle for a RBI double to put TXST ahead 1-0.

ULM tied the game in the third when Joey Jordan sent the first pitch of the frame off the videoboard in right field for a solo home run.

After a one out walk to Almendarez in the seventh, the Warhawks brought in Landon Longsworth from the bullpen. Felipe Rodriguez sent hit sixth offering to left center for a single to put two runners on. Shuffield followed with a bloop single that brought home a run. Jaxon Williams ripped a single of his own to right center to also plate a run and put the Bobcats up 3-1.

Texas State extended its lead to four in the eighth on a Ryan Newman sacrifice fly and successful safety squeeze by Almendarez.

Leigh got himself into a one out jam in the ninth. He escaped with Newman making a quick stop on a hard hit ball down the right field line and then getting Blake Buckman striking out looking.

TXST continues its series with ULM at Bobcat Ballpark on Saturday with the first pitch scheduled for 2:30 p.m.

Box Score: https://txstatebobcats.com/boxscore.aspx?path=baseball&id=5755

Bobcats Host ULM This Weekend

SAN MARCOS, Texas – After playing the last five games on the road, the Texas State baseball team returns to Bobcat Ballpark this weekend when it hosts ULM in the first Sun Belt Conference series of the season.

Friday’s game is scheduled for a 6 p.m. start and Saturday is slated to see the first pitch at 2:30 p.m. The series finale on Sunday will begin at 1 p.m.

Coming into the weekend, the Bobcats are 12-9 overall and 1-2 in the conference while the Warhawks are 7-13 on the season and 0-3 in Sun Belt play.

A video stream and live stats will be available for all three games. Brant Freeman will be on the radio call on KTSW 89.9 FM for all the contests.

Probable Starting Pitchers

Friday: TXST RHP Nicholas Fraze (2-2, 6.28 ERA, 35 K) vs. ULM LHP Trey Jeans (0-3, 4.34 ERA, 20 K)

Saturday: TXST RHP Hunter McMahon (2-2, 3.34 ERA, 24 K) vs. ULM RHP Ty Barnes (1-0, 11.05 ERA, 8 K)

Sunday: TXST RHP Connor Reich (3-0, 2.12 ERA, 27 K) vs. ULM TBA

Scouting Texas State

Texas State is coming off a 6-1 defeat at Incarnate Word on Tuesday in which the Bobcats were held to four hits, matching their season-low. At home this season, TXST is 4-4 after dropping two of three against UConn two weeks ago.

Will Hollis leads the Bobcats and is seventh in the Sun Belt with a .361 batting average. The junior outfielder is also second in the conference in on-base percentage (.524) and tied for fourth in walks (19). He has driven in a team-high 15 runs and is tied for the team lead with Cole Coffey with six doubles. Hollis heads into the weekend with a 15-game reached base streak.

Jaylen Hubbard is batting .333 with a team-high 28 hits and four triples. He has scored 21 runs while driving in nine. Jaxon Williams is the only other Bobcat hitting over .300 at .321. He is second in the Sun Belt with 25 runs scored and is tied for the team lead with two home runs.

Also belting two homers on the year is Skyler Valentine. The senior outfielder comes in with 14 RBIs. Coming in with double-digit RBIs on the year as well are Chase Evans (10) and Ryan Newman (12).

Kyle Bradford has made a team-high 10 appearances, tied for the fifth most in the conference. He has a 1.42 ERA with seven strikeouts and thrown 12.2 innings. Both Brent Hebert (1-1, 1.69 ERA) and Brandon Lewis (0-1, 4.15 ERA) have pitched in eight games out of the bullpen.

Scouting ULM

ULM has lost four straight after falling 5-4 on the road at Southern Miss on Tuesday. The Warhawks are 2-8 in their last 10 games and come in with a 0-5 record in true road games.

Trent Tinglestad leads the team and is fifth in the Sun Belt with a .377 batting average. The junior outfielder also paces ULM in hits (26), runs scored (18), doubles (6), RBI (19) and walks (21).

The only other Warhawk batting over .300 is Andrew Beesley (.333). He has driven in 18 runs, recorded 25 hits and is 8-for-9 stealing bases.

Chad Bell enters with a team-high three home runs while Ryan Humeniuk is 9-for-12 stealing bags.

Brock Figueroa has the lowest ERA on the staff at 2.25. He is 1-0 with two of the team’s three saves in eight innings over five appearances. Mike Dunn has made a team-high nine relief appearances while going 1-0 with a 6.94 ERA and 11.2 innings.

Both Kolton Childress and Landon Longsworth have pitched in eight games out of the bullpen. Childress is 1-0 with a save, 3.46 ERA and team-high 21 strikeouts. Longsworth sports a 3.38 ERA and has struck out nine in 8.0 innings.

All-Time Series

Texas State leads the all-time series 43-34. Last season saw ULM win two of three games in Monroe, Louisiana. The lone win for the Bobcats was an 8-2 contest in the series opener.

When playing the Warhawks in San Marcos, TST is 23-15 all-time. The Bobcats are 7-2 at home against ULM since joining Sun Belt including a series sweep in 2016.

Live Stats (Fri.): http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=249866

Video (Fri.): https://txstatebobcats.com/watch/?Live=1784&type=Live

Live Stats (Sat.): http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=249867

Video (Sat.): https://txstatebobcats.com/watch/?Live=1785&sport=1&type=Live

Live Stats (Sun.): http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=249868

Video (Sun.): https://txstatebobcats.com/watch/?Live=1786&sport=1&type=Live

TXST Game Notes: https://txstatebobcats.com/documents/2019/3/21/22_24_ULM.pdf

Pearson honored to NABC Division I All-District Team

KANSAS CITY, Mo.– Junior guard Nijal Pearson was named to the 2018-19 National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division I All-District First Team for District 24. The NABC Division I All-District teams are selected and voted on by member coaches of the NABC in Division I and represents the finest basketball players across America.

Pearson is the third Bobcat to be selected to the District 24 team since being added in the 2013-14 season, and the first to receive first-team honors. Emani Gant (2014-15) and Kavin Gilder-Tilbury (2016-17) both were listed on the second-team.

Pearson has had a successful junior season, averaging 16.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game this season. The Beaumont, Texas native has tallied 542 total points this season and is the fourth player in program history to record back-to-back 500-point seasons and first in the Division I era.

Pearson ranks No. 5 on the all-time scoring list for Texas State with 1,521 points and No. 2 with 175 career made 3-point field goals. His total of 80 3-pointers this season ranks No. 3 in the school’s single-season record book. Pearson was selected to the All-Sun Belt Conference First Team earlier this month.

Texas State is preparing to make its second appearance in the Collegeinsider.com Tournament and will host Florida International at 6 p.m. on March 23 in Strahan Arena.

Bats Stifled in 6-1 Loss at UIW

SAN ANTONIO – The Texas State baseball team’s (12-9) bats were stifled by Incarnate Word’s (12-9) pitchers throughout the night on Tuesday in a 6-1 defeat at Sullivan Field.

Picking up the win was Tyler Miller (3-3) after throwing two scoreless innings with a game-high three strikeouts. Garrett Herrmann (2-1) suffered his first loss of the season after giving up five runs on six hits and striking out one.

Will Hollis paced the Bobcats with a 2-for-3 night at the plate to extend his reached base streak to 15 games. Also recording a hit were Skyler Valentine, a single, and Jaxon Williamson, a home run.

Both Kyle Bradford and Anthony Pagano threw 1.2 innings out of the bullpen. Pagano did not allow a baserunner in his time on the mound while Bradford gave up a run and two hits with a strikeout. Brent Hebert tossed 1.1 innings and struck out two.

UIW tallied the first run of the game when Ridge Rogers singled to center field that plated Ryan Flores.

The deficit was quickly erased when Williams sent the first pitch he saw with one out in the top of the fourth over the left center field fence for a solo home run.

In the bottom half of the inning, the Cardinals loaded the bases on two singles and a walk. The next three batters all singled to bring home four runs in total. Hollis prevented any more damage by making a sliding catch and then throwing a runner out at second.

UIW extended its lead in the fifth a sacrifice fly by Jordan Gonzalez to put the home team ahead 6-1.

The Cardinals threatened again in the seventh after getting runners on the corners with one gone. Pagano was able to induce a ground ball to Cole Coffey at first, who threw to second to Dalton Shuffield and he went back to Coffey at first for a double play.

With two outs in the ninth, Hollis singled to right field and Valentine followed with a chopper over the third baseman for an infield single. A passed ball allowed both runners to move into scoring position. Coffey was then issued a free pass to load the bases. The chance for a rally was ended with a grounder back to the pitcher, who flipped to first for the final out.

This weekend the Bobcats host their first Sun Belt Conference series of the season when ULM comes to town. The opener takes place at 6 p.m. Friday night at Bobcat Ballpark.