|
Baseball Hosts Pan-American, Central Arkansas
April 14, 2008
SAN MARCOS - The Texas State Bobcats will look for added strength this week when a quick turnaround puts the team on a five-game slate. The `Cats will host Texas-Pan American in mid-week action before a three-game Southland Conference rift with Central Arkansas at Bobcat Field. Tuesday and Wednesday's games will begin at 6 p.m. and will be broadcast on 89.9 KTSW FM. Texas State is 18-14 overall and 10-5 in league play after a 1-3 series against Southeastern Louisiana. The Lions were able to halt a league-leading offense over the weekend and as a result the `Cats shift into a second-place tie with Lamar. The team still boasts a .350 batting average against SLC opponents, and a .318 overall mark. Elliott Babcock went 11-21 over the past week, adding three doubles and two triples for eight RBI to his resume. The senior has hit safely in the past ten outings and posts a .340 batting average. Texas Pan-American will enter the pair of games riding a three game sweep over Texas Southern (17-11, 17-12, and 14-11). The Broncs have contested their share of SLC opponents this season, but own just two wins over the league, taking a 12-6 victory from Sam Houston State and a 3-2 win at Lamar. UTPA will enter the series with a 12-22 overall record. Jordan Rutenbar leads Pan-Am at the plate with a .352 batting average, totaling 43 hits and 12 extra-base hits for 26 RBI. The Bronc pack is batting .288 collectively. The `Cats own a 41-19 series record over UTPA after taking a 12-5 victory in Edinburg last season. The `Cats will have just one day off before taking on Central Arkansas Friday night at 6p.m. Saturday and Sunday's first pitch is scheduled for 2p.m. and 1p.m., respectively. Central Arkansas has four-straight wins entering the weekend series after an SLC sweep over Nicholls State and a 7-4 win over Arkansas-Little Rock. The Bears are 17-19 overall and 6-9 in league play. The Bears gained notoriety earlier this season after knocking off No. 8 Mississippi.
UCA is powered by Chris Houk and his .320 batting average. Houk has 26 RBI to date, thanks to a team-best 40 hits, 12 doubles and five home runs to date. As a team, the Bears have the lowest batting average in the SLC, .256. This will be the second series with UCA and the `Cats took two games last year in Conway, Ark. Live stats will be available for all games on www.TxStateBobcats.com. |
