March 11, 2006

Box Score

THIBODAUX, La. - Texas State scored five second-inning runs, while Dan Donaldson gave up only three hits and one run in seven innings of work as Texas State won its fifth straight with a 6-1 win over Nicholls State.

Texas State (8-11, 4-1) has notched four consecutive SLC wins in its five-game wining streak, while Nicholls State (4-13, 0-2) dropped its first two conference games for the second-straight season to the Bobcats.

For the second time in the series, the Bobcats opened scoring with a first-inning run on a Cody Merrell RBI single that scored Jared Bunn and put the `Cats on top 1-0.

Merrell finished the day 2-for-4 at the plate with a pair of runs driven in.

Nicholls would answer in the home-half of the first, tying the game when lead-off batter Patrick Harris reached on a single and later scored on a Bobcat throwing error.

Texas State took control of the scoreboard for good in the second inning, starting with Kyle Jones' lead-off walk. Jones then stole second and moved to third on Casey Guest's single through the right side.

Guest also finished the day with two hits, going 2-for-4 on the day.

With runners at first and third, Dawid Bednarek came to the plate and put down a bunt that rolled along the first-base line.

Colonel first baseman Brian Freeman scooped up the ball and chased Bednarek back toward the plate as Jones scored, but Freeman never tagged Bednarek and flipped the ball back to Jason Sullivan on the mound.

Bednarek, who never crossed over the plate toward the Bobcats' third-base dugout, raced toward first base and was called safe on the unorthodox bunt-single.

Thomas Field would then load the bases with another bunt-single, and on the next play, Heath Keel hit a hard, chopped ground ball at the mound.

Sullivan fired to the plate to punch out Guest for the inning's first out, but the attempted double-play throw to first popped out of Freeman's glove, enabling Bednarek to score from second and moving Field to third with Keel safe at first base.

With Texas State up 3-1, Keel and Field executed a double-steal to put the Bobcats ahead 4-1, and the `Cats plated their fourth run of the inning when Keel scored on an RBI single by Luke Cannon.

Cannon's single put the `Cats up 5-1 and extended his team-best hitting streak to ten games. Cannon scored the final run of the game on Merrell's RBI double, as Texas State left the second inning on top 6-1.

Donaldson took over from that point, tossing five more shut-out innings to get his first win in a Bobcat uniform. Donaldson struck out five in the win and was relieved by Jason Baca, who tossed the final two innings with no runs, two hits and two fanned Colonel batters.

Sullivan took the loss for the Colonels, falling to 0-2 in six innings pitched and only one earned run.

Seven Bobcats posted hits in the win, while six different Bobcats plated runs in the `Cats' fifth-straight win. Bednarek and Cannon joined Merrell as the only Bobcats to register RBIs in the win.

Nicholls was led offensively by Thomas Bourne, who went 2-for-4 in the Nicholls loss.

Texas State and Nicholls will finish the series Sunday at Didier Field in Thibodaux, with first pitch slated for 1 p.m.