When the Cowboys come to town and take a shot at robbing the locals, Texas State baseball can hang with the best gunslingers in the Southland, and Saturday's 16-6, seven inning win over McNeese State is proof of that offensive firepower.
Coach Ty Harrington has only been under 30 wins as head honcho since he took the reins in 2000, and that new millennium season ended at 34-29, 16-11 in conference play, with a Southland Conference Tournament ring to go with it. With a baker's dozen games left to play, these Cats are on the way to making this what might be the winningest season in Texas State baseball history since the program began in 1985; then Southwest Texas State University was a Gulf Coast Conference member.
Saturday's starter on the bump for the San Marcos favorites, Zach Tritz, came out tentative and unable to spot fastballs, with poor command of his breaking pitches. Most of McNeese's hitters bat above .300 on average, but six runs on nine hits seemed a tab unusual for the Cowboy offense, mostly because Tritz didn't give them much to work with. The right handed Bobcat starter threw enough junk that the good majority of it simply was unhittable. By the fifth inning, the 'Cats led 11-6, forcing the visitors to press a bit -- swinging at balls way out of the zone and watching fast balls on the black zip by. McNeese State sits near the bottom of the SLC standings with an 8-15 mark, 19-20 overall.
Despite McNeese's offensive woes, the leather was useful behind the right handed starter from Austin, Texas, Matt Click. Left fielder Andy Riché made a spectacular leap at the wall and got a glove on a Keith Prestridge fly ball, which turned into a two-run big fly after it squirted out of Riché's mitt and sat atop the wall before falling behind it. Later, Riché poked one to center where a diving Bret Atwood made a Superman grab to keep the two base runners in their places, and Kyle Livingstone, who's been splitting time at second with Adam Witek, made a leaping snag over his shoulder to end the top half of the seventh. But the fanciest move on the afternoon came in the form of a 4-6-3 Cowboy double play, when Matt Fontenot scooped a bouncing ball on a slide, fired to second where Shon Landry swiped, spun around and fired to first. Kubitza was safe on the play but because catcher Ben Theriot was called out for interference, both men went back to the bench.
Coach Harrington came out to argue the call but kept his cool, a wise decision on the veteran coach's part. McNeese State head coach Terry Burrows, however, was tossed in the second inning after his protest of a called strike check swing lead to a few too many choice words. Burrows seemed to look to fire his team up with the protest -- it was only strike two on the batter -- but he took the argument so far as to require crew chief Mark Lewis and third base umpire Scott Johnston to restrain the rowdy Cowboy.
To add to the the flying sparks, Paul Goldschmidt provided the first bit of fuel with an RBI single in the first. But McNeese had the first real boom of the game when catcher Taylor Freeman hit a two run home run to right center in the third to take back the lead, 2-1.
But this group of Bobcats seems to thrive on this type of adversity, almost as a way to give them something for which to play; they like the thrill of the chase. The Cats clawed back with a Paul Goldschmidt sac-fly, scoring Spenser Dennis from third, and the Bobcat slugger extended his RBI total to 68. That number is the top spot in the college baseball nation.
In the fifth and seventh innings, Texas State went offensively ballistic. Tyler Sibley rocked an 0-1 pitch to left center field for a three-run blast in the fifth, and the rest of the scoring went station-to-station to total six runs. In the seventh, Spenser Dennis did what he does best and handled a first pitch fastball through the left side to score Paul Goldschmidt as the fifth and final run of the frame to end the game on the mercy rule.
Texas State beat Baylor University at Baylor Ballpark last week, the second win over the ninth-ranked Bears this season. Despite a close loss to Texas at home, and a five-run loss to TCU, many fans argue that the 2009 Bobcats have earned the right to be heard in the NCAA Top 25 voting process. Paul Goldschmidt's status as the national leader in RBI, combined with Kane Holbrook's perfect 9-0 record, Spenser Dennis's batting average that fluctuates between .450 and .500, the win-loss record alone, as well as what should be a sufficient RPI rating are some of the stances fans take on the issue.
The Bobcats follow up their eleventh straight win Sunday, Apr. 25 against McNeese, looking for the sweep. First pitch is marked for 1:00 p.m., and will be aired live on 89.9 FM KTSW, and also at TxStateBobcats.com. The Bobcats head to Austin the following Tuesday to play the Texas Longhorns at 6:30 p.m., to see if cattle might be roped in just as well as the Cowboy.
Saturday's starter on the bump for the San Marcos favorites, Zach Tritz, came out tentative and unable to spot fastballs, with poor command of his breaking pitches. Most of McNeese's hitters bat above .300 on average, but six runs on nine hits seemed a tab unusual for the Cowboy offense, mostly because Tritz didn't give them much to work with. The right handed Bobcat starter threw enough junk that the good majority of it simply was unhittable. By the fifth inning, the 'Cats led 11-6, forcing the visitors to press a bit -- swinging at balls way out of the zone and watching fast balls on the black zip by. McNeese State sits near the bottom of the SLC standings with an 8-15 mark, 19-20 overall.
Despite McNeese's offensive woes, the leather was useful behind the right handed starter from Austin, Texas, Matt Click. Left fielder Andy Riché made a spectacular leap at the wall and got a glove on a Keith Prestridge fly ball, which turned into a two-run big fly after it squirted out of Riché's mitt and sat atop the wall before falling behind it. Later, Riché poked one to center where a diving Bret Atwood made a Superman grab to keep the two base runners in their places, and Kyle Livingstone, who's been splitting time at second with Adam Witek, made a leaping snag over his shoulder to end the top half of the seventh. But the fanciest move on the afternoon came in the form of a 4-6-3 Cowboy double play, when Matt Fontenot scooped a bouncing ball on a slide, fired to second where Shon Landry swiped, spun around and fired to first. Kubitza was safe on the play but because catcher Ben Theriot was called out for interference, both men went back to the bench.
Coach Harrington came out to argue the call but kept his cool, a wise decision on the veteran coach's part. McNeese State head coach Terry Burrows, however, was tossed in the second inning after his protest of a called strike check swing lead to a few too many choice words. Burrows seemed to look to fire his team up with the protest -- it was only strike two on the batter -- but he took the argument so far as to require crew chief Mark Lewis and third base umpire Scott Johnston to restrain the rowdy Cowboy.
To add to the the flying sparks, Paul Goldschmidt provided the first bit of fuel with an RBI single in the first. But McNeese had the first real boom of the game when catcher Taylor Freeman hit a two run home run to right center in the third to take back the lead, 2-1.
But this group of Bobcats seems to thrive on this type of adversity, almost as a way to give them something for which to play; they like the thrill of the chase. The Cats clawed back with a Paul Goldschmidt sac-fly, scoring Spenser Dennis from third, and the Bobcat slugger extended his RBI total to 68. That number is the top spot in the college baseball nation.
In the fifth and seventh innings, Texas State went offensively ballistic. Tyler Sibley rocked an 0-1 pitch to left center field for a three-run blast in the fifth, and the rest of the scoring went station-to-station to total six runs. In the seventh, Spenser Dennis did what he does best and handled a first pitch fastball through the left side to score Paul Goldschmidt as the fifth and final run of the frame to end the game on the mercy rule.
Texas State beat Baylor University at Baylor Ballpark last week, the second win over the ninth-ranked Bears this season. Despite a close loss to Texas at home, and a five-run loss to TCU, many fans argue that the 2009 Bobcats have earned the right to be heard in the NCAA Top 25 voting process. Paul Goldschmidt's status as the national leader in RBI, combined with Kane Holbrook's perfect 9-0 record, Spenser Dennis's batting average that fluctuates between .450 and .500, the win-loss record alone, as well as what should be a sufficient RPI rating are some of the stances fans take on the issue.
The Bobcats follow up their eleventh straight win Sunday, Apr. 25 against McNeese, looking for the sweep. First pitch is marked for 1:00 p.m., and will be aired live on 89.9 FM KTSW, and also at TxStateBobcats.com. The Bobcats head to Austin the following Tuesday to play the Texas Longhorns at 6:30 p.m., to see if cattle might be roped in just as well as the Cowboy.
Mason Robinson- KTSW Sports Staff Writer
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