Baseball | 4/3/2017 4:18:00 PM

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State baseball team will welcome Prairie View A&M and UTRGV for a pair of midweek home contests. The Bobcats (17-11) will first take on the Panthers (12-22) at 6 p.m. April 4 before entertaining the Vaqueros (18-14) at 6:15 p.m. April 5. This is the only week in 2017 that TXST will compete twice prior to the weekend.
 
The Bobcats have suffered losses in three of their last four outings after rattling off 13 wins in 15 games in March.

PVAMU has won five of its last six games, while UTRGV is 2-7 in its last nine outings. Texas State is 38-1 all-time against Prairie View A&M and has not lost to the Panthers since 1986. The Bobcats are 44-20 all-time against the Vaqueros and are 24-8 during the Ty Harrington era.

Series Info: Prairie View A&M/UTRGV at Texas State
Site: Bobcat Ballpark – San Marcos, Texas
Dates: Tuesday, April 4 - Wednesday, April 5
Time: Tuesday – 6 pm LIVE STATS | Wednesday – 6:15 pm LIVE STATS
Radio: KTSW 89.9 FM
All-Time Record: Texas State leads PVAMU 38-1
All-Time Record: Texas State leads UTRGV 44-20

PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
Tuesday: #32 RHP Cam Baird (0-2, 5.60 ERA) vs. #20 RHP Tyler Laux (0-4, 7.80 ERA)
Wednesday: TBD vs. #21 RHP Eddie Delgado (2-2, 7.33 ERA)

BOBCATS WRAP UP HISTORY-MAKING MONTH
Texas State finished the month of March with a 14-4 record. The .778 win percentage was the highest of any March in school history. The Bobcats also tied the school record for most wins in the month of March. The 1992 squad went 14-7 in March. During the 31-day span, TXST rattled off 13 wins in 15 games and took down three of the last 13 national champions (Rice, Texas, Coastal Carolina). The series win over the Chanticleers was noteworthy because the reigning NCAA champs are 6-0 in league play since falling to the maroon and gold.
 
TXST WELCOMED INTO NATIONAL DISCUSSION
The Bobcats received votes in the latest NCBWA rankings released March 27. TXST used a 15-game stretch where the club went 13-2 to enter the national picture. This was the first time in 2017 that Texas State received votes in any of the national polls. The NCBWA does not list how many votes a team receives.
 
TEXAS STATE HELPS RAISE COLON CANCER AWARENESS
The Texas State and Texas A&M baseball programs wore blue laces in their matchup March 28 at Bobcat Ballpark to help raise awareness for colon cancer and to help benefit Kiel Colon Cancer. The mission of the organization is to decrease the number of preventable deaths caused by colon cancer through education and awareness initiative, encouraging healthy lifestyle choices and supporting colon cancer research. The founder of the organization, George Kiel III, is a Texas State graduate and played on the men's basketball team. For more information, visit kielcoloncancer.org.
 
BOBCATS VANQUISH REIGNING NATIONAL CHAMPIONS
Texas State won two out of three games against Coastal Carolina to open Sun Belt Conference action March 17-19. The Chanticleers were ranked No. 20 in the nation at the time and are the reigning NCAA champions. The Bobcats won the first game 5-4 in 14 innings thanks in large part to a walkoff home run from sophomore Ryan Newman. CCU was narrowly able to even the series with a 4-3 victory March 18, but Texas State used a five-run seventh inning in the series finale to win 10-7 and snatch the series from the visitors. Newman and junior Luke Sherley both had six hits against Coastal Carolina, and they combined to score seven times. Junior Blake Walden threw 3.0 innings of relief to earn the victory on the mound in the opener, and sophomore Brayden Theriot tossed the final 3.2 frames to collect the win in the finale. The two relievers combined to allow no runs on two hits, while striking out three each. This was the first time Texas State ever hosted the defending national champions.
 
TXST ENDS 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.
  Texas State softball and baseball will support the Go4theGoal organization by participating in Lace Up 4 Pediatric Cancer games on April 5. Both games will be played in San Marcos with softball hosting Texas and baseball UTRGV. Both programs will wear gold shoe laces in support of the initiative. Fans are encouraged to wear gold to the games and will have a chance to donate to Go4theGoal's mission of improving the lives of children battling cancer by providing financial support, developing and implementing unique hospital programs, funding innovative research and granting personal wishes. For more information, visit GO4THEGOAL.ORG.

-TxStateBobcats.com-