Baseball | 3/14/2016 3:29:00 PM

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Texas State heads south for the midweek game this week to face I-35 Rival UTSA in the first of three meetings throughout the 2016 season.
 
Game Info: Texas State at UTSA
Site: Roadrunner Field – San Antonio, Texas
Date: Tuesday, March 14
Time: 6 p.m.
 
Probable Pitching Matchup
#13 LHP Brandon Lewis (1-0, 5.25) vs. #12 LHP Karl Craigie (2-0, 7.20)
 
The Series                                                                                                  
Texas State owns a 53-31 record over UTSA with Head Coach Ty Harrington standing at 31-21 over the Roadrunners, but UTSA has won the two most recent games, including a 10-8 victory in San Marcos last season. The last time the Bobcats beat the Roadrunners on the road was May 5, 2013, an overwhelming 12-3 victory.
 
Last Meeting
The Roadrunners took two of three against Texas State last season, winning one in San Marcos and one in San Antonio with the Bobcats winning a home game in the first meeting of the season. The most recent meeting was a scorefest with UTSA coming out on top in a 10-8 Roadrunner win. The Roadrunners scored nine unanswered runs to open the game before the Bobcats went on to score eight runs combined in the bottom of the fourth, fifth and sixth innings. UTSA was able to put an insurance run across the plate in the eighth for the final score of 10-8.
 
Cory Geisler started the game for the Bobcats and struck out five Roadrunners in just three innings of work. Tanner Hill led the Bobcats at the plate with a 3-for-5 performance, knocking in two RBIs and scoring twice. Jared Huber went 2-for-4 with a walk, RBI and a run while Luke Sherley scored twice.
 
The Bobcats put together a big five-run inning in the fourth. Ben McElroy knocked in Hill, and Derek Scheible followed with an infield single to the pitcher to score Huber. An error after that allowed McElroy to score, then Colby Targun brought in Scheible and Sherley with a two-RBI single up the middle.
 
On the Roadrunners
UTSA started the season strong with three wins in the team's first four games, but head into this midweek game in a slump. The Roadrunners have dropped three consecutive games and four of the team's last five. Their only win in that stretch of five games with a weather-shortened five-inning win at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
 
The Roadrunners can always hit and 2016 is proving to be no different. As a squad, UTSA is hitting .281 with 143 hits, 33 doubles, six triples and nine home runs. They've also drawn 58 walks and stolen eight bases. Skyler Valentine leads the team at the plate with a .322 batting average, 19 hits, 13 runs and 12 RBIs. Mason George and Matt Hilston have also scored 13 runs while Tyler Straub also has 12 RBIs. Geonte Jackson is hitting .310 with 10 RBIs while HIlston also has 10 RBIs. In addition to Valentine and Jackson, C.J. Pickering is hitting .304 while Straub and George are hitting .295 and .294 respectively. Five Roadrunners are hitting .304 or better, but only 12 players have taken a swing this season.
 
On the mound, it's been a different story for UTSA. While hitting .281, the Roadrunner pitching staff is allowing a .285 batting average to opponents with a 5.58 ERA. The Bobcats will be facing Karl Craigie who has two wins this year, but has given up eight runs on 16 hits in 10 innings with an ERA of 7.20.
 
On the Bobcats
Texas State heads into the midweek amid a seven-game winning streak, the longest for the team since 2014. The Bobcats haven't had an eight-game winning streak since 2012. They were able to sweep UL Monroe this past weekend with a win at Baylor in the midweek and a weekend sweep of Incarnate Word before that.
 
The bats are popping for the Bobcats with the team hitting .302 while the pitching staff is holding opponents to just a .234 batting average. Texas State is averaging 10.6 hits per game, led by freshman Jonathan Ortega with 25 hits, 16 RBIs and a .379 batting average. He also leads the team in doubles with six, but he's not the only bat going for the Bobcats. Jaylen Hubbard is hitting .381 in 21 at-bats with three doubles, four runs and six RBIs. Eight Bobcats are hitting .302 or better with Granger Studdard and Tanner Hill hitting .298 and .297 respectively.
 
Studdard knocked his first home run of the season this past Saturday to join the team's home run hitters: Hill, Ryan Newman, Ortega, Luke Sherley and Derek Scheible who have combined for 12 homers led by Hill and his four.
 
On the mound, the Bobcats have a team ERA of 3.39. Relievers Chase Hodson, Pasquale Mazzocoli and recently Cory Geisler lead the bullpen's efforts while Brandon Lewis will get his fourth start of the season. He's thrown eight strikeouts to three walks in 12 innings of work and picked up his first career win last week at Baylor. The Bobcats have tallied 121 strikeouts to 96 for opponents led by Lucas Humpal and his 27 Ks. The team's strikeout-to-walk ratio stands at 121-51.
 
A Look Ahead
The Bobcats will stay at home for the team's third consecutive home series this weekend, this time welcoming Sun Belt Conference opponent Appalachian State. After that, Texas State travels to Edinburg, Texas, to face UT Rio Grande Valley before returning home to host South Alabama in a three-game home stand.