Baseball | 3/16/2017 11:33:00 AM

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State baseball team opens Sun Belt Conference action this weekend as the maroon and gold hosts defending national champion and No. 20-ranked Coastal Carolina March 17-19 at Bobcat Ballpark. The March 18 game will be shown regionally on Spectrum Sports (channel 323 in Texas), with Travis Recek (play-by-play) and Jeff Power (color analyst) on the call.
 
The Bobcats (10-7) have won seven of their last eight contests, while the Chanticleers (11-7) have won seven of their last nine outings. The series will feature the only two Sun Belt teams who enter the weekend sporting double-digit victories. CCU has played just one road game this season, while 15 of Texas State's 18 tilts have been at home. The series will be the first meetings between the two programs.

Series Info: #20 Coastal Carolina at Texas State
Site: Bobcat Ballpark – San Marcos, Texas
Dates: Friday, March 17 – Sunday, March 19
Time: Friday – 6 pm LIVE STATS | Saturday – 4:05 pm LIVE STATS | Sunday – 1 pm LIVE STATS
TV: Spectrum Sports (Saturday only)
Radio: KTSW 89.9 FM
All-Time Record: First Meeting
 
Probable Pitching Matchups
Friday: #41 RHP Connor Reich (1-1, 5.17 ERA) vs. #18 RHP Alex Cunningham (2-0, 3.51 ERA)
Saturday: #18 LHP Wes Engle (2-0, 4.03 ERA) vs. #41 RHP Andrew Beckwith (0-1, 7.84 ERA)
Sunday: #36 RHP Nicholas Fraze (2-1, 5.95 ERA) vs. #25 RHP Jason Bilous (2-0, 4.29 ERA)

SPECTRUM SPORTS TO BROADCAST 5 HOME TXST BASEBALL GAMES
Spectrum Sports and Texas State Sports Properties recently announced that five home Texas State baseball games have been selected to air on Spectrum Sports in Texas this season. The first game was against Rice, and TXST defeated the Owls 13-4. The Bobcats' March 18 game against Coastal Carolina will also be shown regionally, followed by a March 21 contest against Texas. The other two opponents chosen for TV were Texas A&M (March 28) and UTA (May 18). Texas State games on Spectrum Sports are available on channel 323 in Texas. More information is available at myspectrumsports.com. Texas State Sports Properties oversees all aspects related to Texas State Athletics' rights, as well as the Texas State Bobcat Sports Network. In addition to Texas State, Learfield manages the multimedia rights for 120 collegiate properties and titles the prestigious Learfield Directors' Cup with award co-founders NACDA and USA Today. Learfield's multimedia rights encompass numerous content distribution platforms to deliver the passion of college athletics across radio, television and digital networks to fans globally. For more about the company, its 41-year history and comprehensive portfolio, visit learfieldsports.com.
 
BOBCATS END DROUGHT AGAINST RICE
Texas State defeated Rice 13-4 on March 15 at Bobcat Ballpark. The Bobcats picked up their first midweek victory of the season and also snapped an eight-game losing streak to the Owls that dated back to the 2012 season. Texas State plated solo tallies in each of the first two innings, and the visitors tied the game at 2-2 with runs of their own in the top of the third and fourth frames. The maroon and gold busted the game open with a seven-spot in the home half of the fourth and added another four runs the rest of the way to secure the nine-run triumph. The runs in the fourth inning were the most scored in a single frame this season. TXST outhit Rice 14-9 and also did not commit an error in the field. Sophomore Jacob Almendarez led the Bobcats at the plate with a 3-for-5 effort. He scored once and tied his career high with two runs driven in. Juniors Luke Sherley and Derek Scheible, along with sophomores Ryan Newman and Jaylen Hubbard all had two hits. Junior Cam Baird earned the starting nod on the mound and left after allowing just two runs on five hits in 3.2 frames. He struck out four and walked two. True freshman Broc Bosse (1-0) earned the first win of his career after sitting down both batters he faced in relief.

TXST TOPPLES NATIONALLY-RANKED FOE
Texas State earned a hard-fought 12-11 upset victory over No. 22 Oklahoma State on Feb. 25 at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium. The Bobcats never trailed in the game but had to fend off three separate Cowboy comebacks. Junior Blake Walden (2-0) earned the win on the mound after throwing the final 1.2 innings. He allowed one run on two hits. Sophomore Wes Engle took the ball first and left after 4.0 frames. He struck out five, walked four and gave up three runs on two hits. Senior Joe Powell, junior Braden Pearson, sophomore Brandon Lewis and true freshman Zachary Leigh all logged time on the mound between Engle and Walden. Junior Derek Scheible went 4-for-5 at the plate and tied the school record by scoring five times. He also registered a career-high four runs batted in to go along with a career high in hits. Junior Dylan Paul went 3-for-5 with three RBI and one run scored, and sophomore Jonathan Ortega finished 3-for-6 with an RBI. Sophomore Jacob Almendarez went 2-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored. Overall, Texas State outhit Oklahoma State 17-11.
 
BOBCATS BOAST TOP ATTENDANCE NUMBERS
Since the NCAA began tracking attendance figures in 2014, Texas State has boasted the second-best attendance in the Sun Belt Conference. From 2014-16, the Bobcats welcomed 120,802 (1,328/game) patrons to Bobcat Ballpark. During the first 13 home games of this season, TXST has an average attendance of 1,454, which is good for 29th in the nation.
 
THE 2017 SCHEDULE
The Bobcats are in the midst of a treacherous 2017 slate that features numerous dangerous opponents and allows Texas State fans plenty of opportunities to see some of the best college baseball teams in the nation. TXST is playing 23 road games and 33 contests in the friendly confines of Bobcat Ballpark. Of those 22 different opponents, seven received preseason national top-25 rankings from at least one of the five accredited ranking organizations (Coastal Carolina, Louisiana, Oklahoma State, Rice, Sam Houston State, Texas, Texas A&M). Also on the docket are seven programs that competed in the NCAA Championship last year (CCU, OSU, Rice, TAMU, SHSU, Louisiana, South Alabama), two College World Series participants (CCU, OSU) and the defending national champions (CCU). Of the first 30 games this season, 24 are scheduled to be played at home. Of the final 26 games, 17 will be played on the road.
 
A NEW FORMAT THIS YEAR
Beginning with the 2017 season, the Sun Belt Conference will conduct its baseball regular season with divisional play. Two divisions will be comprised of six teams each, and divisional champions will be awarded at the end of the year based on the winning percentage against all teams, regardless of division. The 2017 Sun Belt Conference Baseball Championship will be seeded with the division winners as the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds, with the No. 1 seed being awarded to the divisional winner with the best conference winning percentage. The number of teams playing in the conference championship will increase from eight to 10. This would cause two additional games to be played. The first round games will include the No. 8 seed vs. No. 9 seed and the No. 7 seed vs. the No. 10 seed, with both contests conducted as single-elimination games on Tuesday of tournament week. The conference tournament is set for May 23-28 at J.I. Clements Stadium on the campus of Georgia Southern.
 
BOBCATS SELECTED FOURTH IN SBC WEST DIVISION
Texas State was selected to finish fourth in the West Division of the 2017 Sun Belt Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, the league announced Feb. 8. The Bobcats collected 44 points to land one point shy of Little Rock, while Louisiana sat atop the division with 72 points. The Ragin' Cajuns also earned all 12 first-place votes. UTA was slotted second with 50 points, while Arkansas State (27 points) and ULM (14 points) were fifth and sixth, respectively. Coastal Carolina, the defending national champions, were projected as the favorites in the SBC East Division with 70 points and 10 first-place votes. South Alabama earned a first-place vote and was tabbed second with 56 points, while Georgia Southern picked up the final first-place vote and landed in third with 48 points. Troy (39 points), Georgia State (23 points) and Appalachian State (15 points) rounded out the bottom half of the East Division.