TROY, Ala. – Texas State tallied seven hits Friday night, led by sophomore Granger Studdard and his three base knocks, but it wasn't enough to beat Troy in a defensive battle. The Bobcats fell, 3-1, to drop to 18-22-1 on the season and 10-9 in Sun Belt Conference play.
 
Studdard went 3-for-4 Friday with an RBI to lead the Bobcat offense and added a nice sliding catch in the outfield. Cory Geisler scored the only Texas State run of the game after his hit. Cedric Vallieres, Tanner Hill and Derek Scheible added a hit apiece in the game for the Bobcats.
 
In the sixth inning, Geisler led off with a single to right field. His opportunistic base-running led him to second base on a passed ball, then he moved to third on a sacrifice from Vallieres. Studddard knocked his teammate in with a single to left field for Texas State's only run of the game. Studdard used the entire field, knocking his first hit through the right side, his second to left field and his final hit up the middle.
 
Troy took the early lead with a run in the second inning. The leadoff man knocked a single, and the Trojans followed that with a walk and two base knocks to score the runner and the first run of the game. The Bobcats were able to end the inning with a double play, the only one of the game for either team.
 
In the third, Troy knocked two hits and two hit batters took their free bases en route to the second run of the game. From there, the Bobcats held Troy without a run, even cutting the deficit in half in the sixth, until the eighth inning. A hit by pitch put the leadoff man on base, and he went to second base on a groundout. The runner advanced to third base on a passed ball.
 
With a runner at third and one out, Troy called on the team's top hitter, Trevin Hall, who sat out the game to that point with an injury. He battled through an eight-pitch at bat to send a base knock through the left side to plate the runner and give Troy a bit of insurance headed to the ninth with a 3-1 lead.
 
Studdard started the ninth with a leadoff hit up the middle to give the Bobcats hope, but three consecutive fly outs ended the game.
 
Lucas Humpal went seven innings and only gave up two earned runs. He struck out six, but walked five and gave up seven hits. Troy starter Grant Bennett turned in a strong night with his third complete game of the year, only giving up a run and striking out seven without a walk. Tyler Giovanoni and Braden Pearson finished off the game for the Bobcats. Giovanoni notched a strikeout in the appearance.
 
Texas State and Troy are scheduled to play game two of the series at 1 p.m. Saturday with Scott Grist on the mound for the Bobcats and Lucas Brown on the bump for Troy. Continue to follow www.txstatebobcats.com and @txstatebaseball on Twitter for any schedule changes due to weather throughout the weekend.