Press Release:
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Texas State baseball team saw its time in the Guardian Credit Union Sun Belt Conference Baseball Championship presented by Troy University come to an end Friday night with a 12-6 loss to Louisiana at Riverwalk Stadium.
The Bobcats conclude the season with a 36-23 record while the Ragin’ Cajuns improve to 38-21 overall.
Zeke Wood (2-4) struck out five in 3.1 innings in his final start in a Texas State uniform and was credited with the loss. Steven Cash (1-1) worked an inning of relief and JT Etheridge threw two scoreless frames to earn his first save of the season.
As a team, the Bobcats struck out a season-high 17 with Jack Stroud setting a career-high with seven punch outs. Cameron Bush recorded two strikeouts and recording one apiece was Rhett McCaffety, Nathan Medrano and Peyton Zabel.
Kameron Weil went 3-for-4 with a double and scored twice. Also recorded two base knocks on the evening was Jose Gonzalez and Chase Mora. Both of Mora’s hits were doubles and he also drove in two runs. Finishing with a double on the night was August Ramirez, as well.
The Ragin’ Cajuns struck first on just three pitches thrown. Max Marusak leadoff the game with a double, advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt and came home on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Carson Roccaforte.
With runners on the corners and two gone in the bottom of the frame, Mora ripped a 1-1 pitch down the third baseline for an RBI double to tie the game at 1-1.
The Bobcats had an opportunity to take the lead in the second. With two outs, Ben McClain was hit by a pitch, Kameron Weil was walked and then Davis Powell was plunked to load the bases. However, a groundout back to the pitch ended the frame with no one coming across.
Louisiana retook the lead with two runs in the third as both came with two outs and behind two TXST errors. Another three runs would be scored by the Cajuns in the fourth to extend their lead to five.
Weil hit a double down the left field line with two gone in the fourth. After Davis Powell was issued a free pass, Gonzalez sent a single through the right side to cut the deficit to 6-2.
In the next frame, Louisiana got an RBI double courtesy of CJ Willis to increase its advantage back to five.
Mora sent the first pitch of the bottom of the fifth down the left field line for his second double of the game. Ramirez followed with a double down the right field line drive in a run. After a passed ball, Ramirez would score on a double play to make it a 7-4 contest.
The Cajuns though would answer back in the sixth with another run.
Weil started the bottom of the frame with a single to left center. Gonzalez would be hit by a pitch and Pena sent the first pitch to him to left to load the bases. Mora would drive in a run on a fielder’s choice to again pull TXST to within three. Ramirez nearly tied the game as he sent an 0-1 offering deep to right field that was caught nearly at the wall to end the inning.
After Louisiana again scored a run in the top of the seventh, Peyton Lewis leadoff with a single back up the middle in the bottom half of the inning. Ryder Hernandez reached on a fielder’s choice and moved up to second on a bad throw from second base. He would come around to score on a single through the right side by Ben McClain to make it a 9-6 ball game.
The Cajuns would put the game away with three insurance runs in the top of the ninth.
5/25 Pena Walks It Off in the 12th to Extend the Bobcats’ Stay in Montgomery
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Sophomore Daylan Pena crushed a 1-0 offering over the left field wall to walk-it off in the 12th inning as Texas State (36-22) advanced on in the Guardian Credit Union Sun Belt Conference Baseball Championship presented by Troy University with a 6-5 victory over Georgia State (30-29) Thursday afternoon from Riverwalk Stadium.
It was the longest game for the Bobcats since Mar. 9, 2019 at Bobcat Ballpark against Connecticut that also went 12 frames. The contest was also the longest postseason game in program history.
Triston Dixon (6-1) earned the win after throwing four scoreless innings out of the bullpen with six strikeouts while only giving up two walks and one base knock. Ryan Watson (7-2) served up the walk-off hit as he recorded an out.
Starting on the rubber for TXST was Tony Robie. The junior right-hander struck out two in 6.2 innings and allowed four runs on nine hits. Jack Stroud punched out two in 1.1 innings and gave up an unearned run out of the bullpen.
At the dish, Kameron Weil went 4-for-6 as all of his hits were singles. He also scored twice and swiped his 10th base of the season. Pena finished 3-for-6 with two runs scored while Jose Gonzales had two base knocks and drew the team’s lone walk of the game.
The Panthers struck first their first time at the dish when Max Ryerson hit a solo shot to left field.
In the bottom of the frame, Weil reached on a bad throw from the pitcher and Davis Powell was plunked. Pena would then single through the left side to load the bases. The first pitch to Chase Mora saw him send it back up the middle for an RBI single. Rashawn Galloway hit a chopper to third that saw the throw go wide of the first baseman and allowed all three runners to score to put the Bobcats ahead 4-1.
The next inning saw Weil single through the right side, steal second and advance to third on a wild pitch. He would come home when Gonzalez singled to center to increase the advantage to four.
GSU would tack on a run in the fifth when Ryerson hit a seeing-eye single back up the middle. The Panther senior would drive in his third run of the game on a single to left in the seventh. They would add on two more to tie the game thanks to a dropped fly ball that would have ended the inning.
With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Weil and Powell hit back-to-back singles and Gonzalez was intentionally walked to load the bases. Pena got his barrel on a 1-1 pitch that went right to the left fielder for the final out of the inning and send the game to extras.
The first two batters reached for the Panthers in the 10th. A sacrifice bunt attempt went right to Dixon, who got the lead runner out at third. The senior right-hander then recorded a strikeout and induced a foul out to Manning to escape the jam.
With one gone in the 12th, Pena crushed the second pitch to him to advance the Bobcats to Friday in the Sun Belt Championship.
5/24 Offense Stifled in Sun Belt Championship Opening Loss to Louisiana
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Texas State (35-22) saw its offense get stifled Wednesday night in a 6-1 loss to No. 4 seed Louisiana (37-20) from Riverwalk Stadium in the Guardian Credit Union Sun Belt Conference Baseball Championship presented by Troy University.
Levi Wells (8-4) struck out eight over five innings but allowed five runs on seven hits to take the loss. Jackson Nezuh (9-5) punched out five in 5.2 scoreless innings and Cooper Rawls tossed the final 3.1 innings to earn his second save of the season.
Out of the bullpen, Triston Dixon went two innings and struck out two. Cameron Bush set the Ragin’ Cajuns down in order in the eighth.
The only hit on the night came from Kameron Weil. Reaching base three times was Daylan Pena as he was walked twice and hit by a pitch once. Cade Manning also got on base two times with a free pass and was plunked.
With two gone in the first, walks by Jose Gonzalez and Chase Mora sandwiched Pena getting hit by a pitch. The Bobcats were not able to get any of the runners home as a strikeout ended the frame.
TXST would then get two on in the fourth via a free pass and hit by pitch. A fly out and strikeout would end the inning to again keep the Bobcats off the scoreboard.
A walk and single put two on for the Cajuns in the bottom of the frame. A 2-2 offering from Wells saw John Taylor appear to go around on a check swing for the third strike that would have ended the inning, but the third base umpire said he held up. Two pitches later, Taylor sent a shot over the right field wall to put Louisiana ahead 3-0.
The next inning saw the Cajuns add two more runs on a double with the bases loaded. A relay throw from Weil to Mora to Peyton Lewis at the plate nailed a third runner trying to score to end the frame and limit the damage.
In the seventh, the first three batters reached with Alex Gonzales and Ben McClain drawing walks and Weil beating out an infield single to load the bases. The Cajuns would get a double play but saw a run would score to cut the deficit to 5-1.
Louisiana would increase the lead back to five on a Carson Roccaforte RBI double in the bottom of the inning.
