Maroon & Gold Weekly Wrap-Up

Maroon & Gold Weekly Wrap-Up:

Baseball, Track & Field and Volleyball

Bats Stifled in Series Finale at Appalachian State

BOONE, N.C. – The Texas State baseball team’s bats were stifled in a 3-0 loss at Appalachian State in the series finale at Smith Stadium on Sunday.

The loss dropped the Bobcats to 18-10 on the season and 6-3 in the Sun Belt Conference while the Mountaineers improved to 11-15 overall and 4-5 in conference play.

Jaylen Hubbard and Jaxon Williams accounted for four of TXST’s five hits on the day. The first four base knocks all came without a runner on base as the Bobcats were just 1-for-17 with runners on base and were hitless with a runner in scoring position. Only other player with a base hit on the day was Cole Coffey.

Three times in the first five innings Texas State got a runner to third but were unable to bring them home. The best opportunity came in the third when John Wuthrich smoked a 2-1 offering that was caught by the leaping shortstop to prevent a hit.

APP’s Joel McDaniel hit a solo home run in the second for the team’s first run of the game. The Mountaineers added their final two runs in the fifth.

The ninth inning began with Coffey drawing a walk. Two batter latter, Hubbard singled through the left side on the first pitch he saw to put two on with one out. However, APP’s Kaleb Bowman induced a fly out and got a strikeout to end the game.

Connor Reich suffered his first loss of the season to drop to 4-1 on the mound. He struck out seven and walked just one, but the Mountaineers tagged him for three runs on four hits. Picking up the win was Brandon Boone (3-1) after pitching five shutout innings with seven strikeouts. Bowman earned his second save of the season after throwing the final two frames.

Also seeing action on the mound for the Bobcats was Brayden Theriot. The senior right-hander recorded two strikeouts and surrendered only a hit in two innings.

TXST returns to action on Tuesday at Bobcat Ballpark against I-35 rival UTSA. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Valentine Bashes Two Homers in 8-3 Win over Mountaineers

BOONE, N.C. – Senior outfielder Skyler Valentine bashes two home runs in helping the Texas State baseball team (17-9, 5-2 Sun Belt) to an 8-3 win over Appalachian State (10-14, 3-4 Sun Belt) at Smith Stadium on Friday. He is the first Bobcat to hit two homers in a game since Derek Scheible on Mar. 11, 2018 at UC Santa Barbara.

Picking up the win was Nicholas Fraze (4-2) after striking out six in six innings of work. He did give up three runs on four hits and three walks. Will Sprinkle (1-4) took the loss as he surrendered four runs on seven hits and three walks in 4.1 innings.

Every TXST starter had at least one hit in the game as it pounded out 15 in the contest. Both Dalton Shuffield and Valentine went 3-for-5 at the plate. Valentine led all players with three runs scored and three RBIs.

Also recording a multi-hit game was Felipe Rodriguez and Jaxon Williams with two apiece. Both John Wuthrich and Rodriguez finished with two RBIs.

Kyle Bradford pitched two scoreless inning of relief and allowed only one hit. Zachary Leigh threw the final frame and struck out all three batters he faced.

Williams started the scoring by send an 0-2 pitch over the left field fence for a solo home run, his third of the season. The Mountaineers responded in the bottom half of the inning when Luke Drumheller hit a solo blast of his own to tie the game.

Ryan Newman led off the second by doubling down the right field line and would move to third on a sacrifice bunt. Rodriguez hit a deep fly to left field that allowed Newman to easily score put Texas State ahead 2-1.

The lead was short lived as Luke Allison hit a two-run homer to left center to give APP a one-run advantage.

In the fifth, Jaylen Hubbard started things off with a double to left center. Two batters later, Valentine hit a two-run bomb over the left field wall to put the Bobcats in front for good. The Pearland, Texas native followed two innings later with a solo shot to extend the lead to 5-3.

TXST added three insurance runs in the ninth. Two came on a single to left center off the bat of Wuthrich. Rodriguez drove in the final run when he doubled over the left fielder’s head.

Leigh came on and struck out the side on 13 pitches to seal the victory for the Bobcats.

The series at Appalachian State continues tomorrow with first pitch scheduled for 12 p.m. CDT.

Bobcats Add Sam Houston State to Schedule for April 3

SAN MARCOS, Texas –Texas State baseball head coach Ty Harrington announced the addition of Sam Houston State to the schedule that will take place Apr. 3 at 6 p.m. at Bobcat Ballpark. The game will be the make-up contest for the canceled Baylor home date back in February.

Next Wednesday game will be the 100th meeting between the programs. The Bobcats lead the all-time series by a slim margin of 51-48.

The Bearkats are currently 15-7 on the season and were receiving votes in this week’s NCBWA Top 30 poll. Prior to facing TXST, they will host McNeese this weekend and Rice on Tuesday.

Season ticket holders can attain entrance to the game by presenting their unused ticket(s) for the originally scheduled game vs Baylor on Feb. 19.  If these tickets have already been discarded, please contact the ticket office at 512-245-2272 and they will be able to provide you with replacements.

Tickets for the game against Sam Houston State on Wednesday, Apr. 3 can be purchased online at txst.com/tickets or by calling the Texas State Ticket Office at 512-245-2272. Tickets can also be purchased at the ticket windows at Bobcat Ballpark beginning at 4:30 p.m. on Apr. 3.

Season picks up for Bobcats at Texas Relays and Bobcat Invitational

SAN MARCOS, Texas – A busy weekend has the Texas State track and field teams competing March 27-30 at the 92nd Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays at Mike A. Myers Stadium in Austin, Texas, in conjunction with the Bobcat Invitational on March 28-30 at the Texas State Track and Field Complex.

Texas Relays

Heat Sheets | Live Stats

Texas Relays will feature 7,201 athletes across 950 teams that represents 37 total states and 23 countries. The Bobcats will travel a small group and will open with the multi-events on March 27. Meet information and a full schedule of events can be found here.

Bobcat Invitational

The remainder of the team will participate in the Bobcat Invitational. Entrees will close later today, and updated heat sheets will be made accessible here. Live stats will be provided by BW Sports Timing. For more information concerning the Bobcat Invitational, click this link and continue to follow along at Txstatebobcats.com.

Bobcats Setting the Tone
The Bobcats enter the weekend with 32 top 10 marks in the Sun Belt Conference, including four league-leading marks. Senior T’Mond Johnson holds two of the four marks with one in the men’s discus throw at 53.77 meters (176-5) and in the men’s shot put at 19.43 meters (69-3). Johnson’s shot put mark currently ranks No. 3 in the country.

Senior Kyle Denomme paces the conference in the 800-meter run with a time of 1:52.31, and junior Naomi Ferdinand is the standard in the women’s long jump with a leap of 6.06 meters (19-10.75).

TXST Volleyball host 19th annual Bobcat Golf Classic

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State volleyball team will be hosting its 19th annual Bobcat Golf Classic at 1 p.m. on April 19 at the Bandit Golf Club in New Braunfels, Texas with a purpose to help benefit the Bobcat Volleyball program.

The golf scramble will be a four-person team with a shotgun start. The costs are $500 per team or $125 per individual ($75 for TXST students). The deadline to sign up is on April 12. Other contests will be played including a $10,000 cash prize for a hole in one, men’s longest drive, women’s longest drive, closest to the pin, and other door prizes.

If you cannot play golf during the day, feel free to join the team for dinner, the silent and live auctions, and a mixer around 5 p.m. under the pavilion at the Bandit with a cost of $10 per person.    

Baseball Welcomes Rice to Town Tuesday

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State baseball team welcomes Rice to Bobcat Ballpark on Tuesday for the third and final meeting between the programs this season. First pitched is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Entering the game, the Bobcats are 15-9 overall after a three-game sweep of ULM over the weekend. The Owls are 9-17 on the season and snapped a seven-game losing streak on Sunday with a victory against UTSA.

A video stream and live stats will be available for the game. Bill Culhane will be on the radio call on KTSW 89.9 FM.

Probable Starting Pitchers

Tuesday: TXST RHP Garrett Herrmann (2-1, 4.00 ERA, 17 K) vs. Rice RHP Kel Bordwine (1-2, 5.75 ERA, 13 K)

Scouting Texas State

Following the sweep of the Warhawks, Texas State is now 7-4 when playing in the friendly confines of Bobcat Ballpark. The Bobcats are 3-2 in midweek games this year after falling at Incarnate Word last Tuesday.

Will Hollis ranks first in the Sun Belt Conference with a .532 on-base percentage, is third in walks with 21 and fourth with a .380 batting average. The junior outfielder has reached base in 18 straight games and has a five-game hitting streak, the longest active streak on the team. He has also driven in 16 runs, scored 12 times and has a team-high seven doubles.

Jaylen Hubbard is batting .333 with a team best 31 hits and four triples. He has scored 25 runs while recording 13 RBIs. Jaxon Williams comes in hitting .312 with a team leading 28 runs scored. Both he and Hubbard have stolen four bases as well.

The fourth Bobcat hitting over .300 on the season is Dalton Shuffield at .307. He is a perfect 6-for-6 stealing bases.

Ryan Newman paces the team with 18 RBIs after hitting a run-rule walk off grand slam on Sunday against ULM. Skyler Valentine leads TXST with three home runs and is second with 17 RBIs.

Scheduled to start Tuesday’s game on the rubber is Garrett Herrmann. The junior right-hander will be making his fifth start of the season, all of them coming in midweek games. He is 2-1 with a 4.00 ERA and 17 strikeouts in 18.0 innings. Last time Herrmann faced Rice, he held them scoreless for 5.2 innings with a career-high 10 strikeouts.

Kyle Bradford has made a team-high 12 appearances, tied for the fourth most in the conference. Brandon Lewis (0-1, 2 SV, 4.50 ERA) has thrown 14.0 innings over nine appearances while Brent Hebert (1-1, 1 SV, 1.69 ERA) has worked 10.2 frames in eight games out of the pen.

Scouting Rice

Rice is 3-5 in midweek contests with wins over Houston (5-3), Lamar (12-5) and Prairie View A&M (25-5). Tuesday’s game is the Owls second straight midweek not at Reckling Park. Last Tuesday, they fell 8-3 at Texas A&M.

Andrew Dunlap is one of four players batting .300 or better for Rice at a team-high .329. He also paces the team with six home runs, 29 RBIs and 11 hit by pitches. Also hitting over .300 is Braden Comeaux (.317, 17 R, 3 SB), Cade Edwards (.320, 7 2B, 17 RBI) and Bradley Gneiting (.310, 35 H, 15 RBI).

Trei Cruz enters with a .293 batting average. The sophomore shortstop has scored 21 times while hitting five homers, three triples and driven in 24 runs. He has committed a team-high 11 errors as well.

Rice’s probable starter is Kel Bordwine. The sophomore right-hander is 1-2 with a 5.75 ERA, 13 strikeouts and an opponent’s batting average of .308 in 20.1 innings. He will be making his fourth start of the season and nine appearance overall.

Kendal Jefferies has pitched in a team leading 10 games and compiled a 1-1 record, two saves and 19 strikeouts in 21.0 innings. Making nine appearances on the year is Dalton Wood. He has thrown 11.2 innings in that time for a 6.94 ERA and seven strikeouts.

All-Time Series

Rice leads the all-time series 54-16 but Texas State has won the last three meetings including two this season. On the first of the month, the Bobcats defeated the Owls 1-0 in the opening game of the 2019 Shriners College Classic in Minute Maid Park and followed with a 5-0 win on the 13th at Reckling Park.

The two victories gave TXST just its second season series victory over Rice with the only other occurrence being in 1988. That year saw the Bobcats win both games of a doubleheader played in San Marcos.

When playing the Owls at home, Texas State is 8-13 all-time. The Bobcats have won the last two contests at Bobcat Ballpark including a 6-2 victory last season.

For all things Texas State baseball, be sure to follow the team on Instagram and Twitter.

Live Stats: http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=249869

Video: https://txstatebobcats.com/watch/?Live=1787&sport=1&type=Live

TXST Game Notes: https://txstatebobcats.com/documents/2019/3/25/25_Rice.pdf