Softball | 3/1/2016 11:51:00 AM

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State softball team will take a break from tournament action this week for a Wednesday night match-up against the Texas Longhorns at Bobcat Softball Stadium. In Wednesday's contest against the Longhorns, players from both teams will be wearing gold laces for the Go 4 The Goal, Lace Up 4 Pediatric Cancer campaign. All fans are encouraged to join the Bobcats by wearing gold for the contest slated for 6 p.m.
 
The Bobcats enter into the single-game match-up with an 11-5 overall record. Texas State returns home after competing at the Grand Canyon Invitational last weekend where the Bobcats finished with a 2-3 tournament record.
 
At Grand Canyon, Kimberlin Naivar knocked out two home runs and Kelli Baker led the way with six hits. Baker also went a perfect 3-for-3 in stolen bases and she led the team with five RBIs.
 
Ariel Ortiz leads Texas State with a .404 batting average and 12 RBIs this season. Ortiz has six doubles to her name which brings her career total up to 22. Baker sits just behind Ortiz in batting average with a mark of .392 and she leads the team with 20 hits.
 
The Texas State pitching staff has a 1.98 ERA this season as Randi Rupp leads the way with an 8-3 overall record. Rupp ranks second in the Sun Belt Conference in ERA with a mark of 1.45 and strikeouts with 75. She has held her opponents to a .182 batting average this season.
 
Head coach Ricci Woodard is in her 16^th season at the helm of the Bobcat program where she is the winningest coach in school history with 527 victories.
 
A Look At The Competition - Texas
Texas comes to San Marcos with a solid 14-2 start in the 2016 season. At the Texas Invitational, the Longhorns were victorious against Illinois, Weber State and fellow Bobcat victim Abilene Christian. Their only two losses of the season came from Tulsa.
 
Junior Celina Felix leads the Longhorns at the plate with a .417 batting average, 20 hits, 15 runs, four home runs, 17 RBIs and a .729 slugging percentage. Senior Lindsey Stephens follows Felix with 19 hits, three home runs, 15 RBI and leads the team with seven doubles and 37 total bases.
 
In the circle, junior Tiarra Davis leads the pitching staff with a 9-1 record. The southpaw has tallied 46 strikeouts over 57.2 innings, surrendering only 16 runs. Paige von Sprecken has seen 36.1 innings and carries a 4-1 record. Both of their losses were to Tulsa at the Texas Invitational.
 
After starting the Texas softball program in 1996, Connie Clark is in her 21^st season as head coach of the Longhorn softball team. Clark has earned three Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year awards and has led the Longhorns to five NCAA Women's College World Series appearances. 
 
Final Details
First pitch against the Longhorns is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Bobcat Softball Stadium Wednesday evening. Live stats, live audio, and live video will be available at www.txstatebobcats.com. For more information on the Go 4 The Goal, Lace Up 4 Pediatric Cancer campaign, go to www.go4thegoal.org. Help the Bobcats help a child with cancer reach their goals by donating today and wearing GOLD.