SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State baseball team lost 12-5 to UTA in a Sun Belt Conference contest Friday night at Bobcat Ballpark.
 
The Bobcats (26-29, 12-17 SBC) officially clinched either the No. 8 or No. 9 seed in the upcoming 2017 SBC Championship, while the Mavericks (30-23, 20-9 SBC) secured the SBC West Division Championship and evened the weekend series at one game each.
 
Due to other happenings around the league, TXST will play Little Rock in the first round of the conference tournament. The Bobcats and Trojans will meet in a single-elimination game at 5:30 p.m. May 23 for the right to advance to the eight-team, double-elimination portion of the tournament. LR topped Texas State two games to one when the two teams met in Arkansas April 7-9. They have never met in postseason play.
 
In Friday's setback, UTA scored solo runs in each of the first three frames to take a lead it would not relinquish. The Bobcats inched within one run on two separate occasions and trailed 6-5 heading into the ninth, but the Mavericks plated six in the top of the final frame to seal the victory.
 
Sophomores Jonathan Ortega and Jacob Almendarez both finished 2-for-4, and junior Theodore Hoffman cranked his team-leading 15th home run of the season. Sophomore Jaylen Hubbard scored twice.
 
Junior Cam Baird (1-7) suffered the loss after conceding three runs on five hits across the first 3.0 frames. Sophomore Anthony Pagano logged the next 3.2 frames and gave up three runs on three hits. Junior Blake Walden did not give up a run through 1.1 innings of work, and the Bobcats used three more pitchers in the contest.
 
Omar Salinas and Noah Vaughan both finished 4-for-5 and combined for seven RBIs and seven runs scored. In the series so far, Salinas has hit three home runs and has scored seven times. UTA received home runs Friday from Salinas (2), Vaughan and Colton Turner. Brady Cox, Will Olson and R.J. Williams all finished with two hits, and Cox scored twice.
 
Trae Patterson (7-3) earned the win after allowing five runs on eight hits through the first 6.1 innings. Austin Gardner and Daniel James did not allow a base runner in the final 2.2 frames.
 
The series finale is set for 1 p.m. May 20. The game will be the regular-season finale for both clubs and will also serve as Senior Day for the maroon and gold. Quinn Atwood, Brandon Courville and Joe Powell will be honored prior to first pitch.
 
-TxStateBobcats.com-