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Bobcats Face-off With Lions in Weekend Series
April 10, 2008
SAN MARCOS - The Texas State Bobcat baseball team will look to offset a pair of midweek losses this weekend when they travel to Hammond, La. for a three-game Southland Conference tilt with Southeastern Louisiana. Boasting a 9-3 league mark, Texas State heads the West division and sits third overall in the SLC action. The Bobcats started their week against back-to-back ranked opponents, Texas and Houston. Tuesday night the team took on the No. 12 Longhorns and the `Cats could not shake the solid defensive effort, and fell 5-3. Eager to close out on top with No. 19 Houston, Texas State took control of a see-saw battle in the seventh inning, but an eight hit-eight run rally in the eighth frame put the Cougars out of reach Wednesday night, for a 15-9 loss. The pair of defeats sends Texas State into the weekend with a 17-12 overall mark. The Lions are coming off a 7-0 shutout against Alabama on Wednesday night and will enter the weekend with a 16-14 overall showing. The Crimson Tide had help from a Lion offense that went 0-for-12 with runners in scoring position and a mound that saw eight different arms. In league play, Southeastern is at an even 6-6, after taking a crucial closing contest against Texas-San Antonio in their last meeting. SLU has taken at least one win from each of their league counterparts this season. In conference play, Texas State boasts the preeminent offense, leading the league in batting average, slugging percentage, runs, hits and RBI. The .356 collective showing at the plate is composed of eight starters batting over .300, three of which perform at .425 or higher. Sophomore Paul Goldschmidt is the power behind a .462 batting average to the lead the team and takes the second place spot in league action. Goldschmidt has hit 11 homeruns on the season, five in conference play, a tying league best. Lance Loftin and Laurn Randell record a .436 and .425 average against league opponents, with Loftin slugging .718 percent. Both have recorded 17 hits and combine for 21 RBI and ten extra-base hits.
The Bobcats command at the plate will be countered with a ninth-place league batting average of .286 from the Lions. Southeastern matches Texas State with 13 SLC homers, and has posted 115 hits and 24 doubles for 75 RBI and 178 total bases. The Lion pack is led by Cass Hargis, who has a .367 batting average. Hargis has scored 13 runs, posted 18 hits and seven multi-base hits for 12 RBI in league play. On the mound, SLC strikeout leaders Mike Hart and Wade Miley will face-off. Miley has put out 42 batters in league play and 64 overall for nearly ten strikeouts per game. Hart has retired 36 Southland opponents at the plate and 54 overall in his time spent on the mound. Hart will be joined by Steven Siers and Zach Tritz over the weekend. In Siers' last conference start against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, the hurler gave up just seven hits and grabbed his second win of the season after just one unearned run plated in his seven innings on the mound. Tritz heads the win column in conference play and is the only six-win pitcher without a loss. The Bobcats will enter the weekend series with a 28-15 game advantage over Southeastern Louisiana. In last season's meeting the `Cats took two of three contests, shutting out the Lions in game one and edging out a 5-4 closer. The trio of games can be followed through the host schools website, www.LionSports.net. |
