SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State baseball team lost 6-2 to Oklahoma State in the first game of the new season Friday night at Bobcat Ballpark.
 
The Bobcats (0-1), playing in front of 2,213 fans, outhit the reigning Big 12 Conference champions 9-7 but were unable to secure enough timely hits to counteract the visiting bats.
 
Senior Dylan Paul posted hits in each of his first three at-bats to finish 3-for-4 on the day. Junior Jacob Almendarez recorded the lone RBI for TXST and went 2-for-4. The runs were scored by senior Luke Sherley and junior Jonathan Ortega.
 
Sophomore starting pitcher Nicholas Fraze (0-1) conceded two runs on just one hit in 5.1 innings of work. He was one off his career high with six strikeouts, while also issuing five walks. Junior Braden Pearson saw time on the mound after missing most of last year with an injury, and redshirt freshman Noah Walker tossed the final two innings in his first collegiate appearance.
 
Neither team found daylight until the sixth, when OSU (1-0) used a pair of errors and a home run from Colin Simpson to find a 3-0 lead. The Cowboys tacked on two more in the seventh before the maroon and gold was able to move one across in both the eighth and ninth frames.
 
Jonathan Heasley (1-0) pitched six scoreless innings for the visitors to earn the win. He struck out six and walked just three, while conceding four hits. Simpson led the way offensively for Oklahoma State with three hits, three RBIs and one run. Ryan Cash was 2-for-4 with two runs and one RBI.
 
The two sides will be back at it again with a 4 p.m. first pitch Feb. 17.

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