Box Score

COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Texas State left 11 men on base Tuesday night as the Bobcats fell to Texas A&M, 9-2. The loss drops Texas State to 24-21 on the season while the Aggies improve to 28-18.
 
Texas State tallied nine hits, but six of them came from leadoff man Cory Geisler, Garrett Mattlage and Tyler Pearson. Pearson hit a triple late on which the Bobcats couldn't capitalize. Outside of that trio, Ben McElroy in a pinch hitting situation, Cameron Friess and Cody Perkins each added a hit.
 
Texas State put the first three batters of the day on base starting with a Geisler single up the middle. After he stole second, Colby Targun earned a walk and Mattlage followed with a bunt single to load the bases. Unfortunately for the Bobcats, a foul out, strikeout and pop up left three stranded in the top of the first.
 
Texas A&M countered in the bottom of the inning with four singles and a fielder's choice to score the first run of the game. Pearson was able to get the Bobcats out of the inning, catching a high bouncer, tagging home plate for the force and throwing to first to complete a double play.
 
In the second inning, the Aggies used three consecutive hits and two sacrifice fly balls to score three runs. Aggie catcher Troy Stein led off with a triple and second baseman Ryne Birk brought him in with a single. Outfielder Krey Bratsen followed with a base knock of his own. Birk and Bratsen both came in on separate sac flies to push the Aggie lead to 4-0.
 
The bottom of the fourth inning started much like the second with a leadoff triple from Texas A&M. After that, Bratsen doubled to score the leadoff man in the inning and push A&M's lead to 5-0. The Bobcats caught Bratsen in a rundown on a pickoff play, and Targun followed with a double play, catching a liner in right field and rifling it to first base in time to end the inning.
 
Texas State jumped on the scoreboard with two runs in the fifth. Perkins led off with a single up the middle, and Targun and Granger Studdard followed with walks to load the bases for Friess. He came through with a bouncing single down the right line that went over the first baseman's head to plate Perkins and Targun for the only Bobcat runs of the night. The play pulled the Bobcats within three, 5-2.
 
The Aggies answered Texas State in the bottom of the fifth. Outfielder Jonathan Moroney knocked a double and scored when Nick Banks, the next batter, hit an RBI single to right field to push the TAMU lead to 6-2. Texas A&M added another run on an RBI double to centerfield from Stein to plate Banks and make it 7-2 in favor of the Aggies. Texas A&M would add two more runs in the eight to finish up the score at 9-2.
 
The Bobcats will look to rebound when they host Troy for another Sun Belt Conference series this weekend with the first game scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Friday. Saturday's 3 p.m. game will be televised on ESPN3 nationally, KBVO locally and CST across the southeast. Sunday the teams will play at 1 p.m.