SAN MARCOS, Texas – Two midweeks games on tap for the Texas State baseball team this week. First up will be a trip to San Antonio to take on I-35 rival UTSA (7-5) at Roadrunner Field on Tuesday at 4 p.m. The Bobcats (7-4) then welcome Incarnate Word (8-4) to Bobcat Ballpark for a 6:30 p.m. contest Wednesday.
 
Both games will be broadcast on KTSW 89.9 FM with Bill Culhane on the call for both games and Brant Freeman will join him for Tuesday game in San Antonio. Each contest will be streamed as well through the host schools' respective athletic websites.
 
Probable Starting Pitchers
Tuesday: Texas State RHP Garrett Herrmann (0-0, 2.25 ERA) vs. UTSA RHP Cameron Carver (0-0, 1.80 ERA)
Wednesday: Texas State TBA vs. Incarnate Word TBA
 
Scouting Texas State
Jaxon Williams leads the Sun Belt Conference with a .463 batting average, second in on-base percentage at .542 and is third with 19 hits. He is tied for fourth in the conference with 13 runs scored, matched on the TXST roster by Jaylen Hubbard, who tied for first in the nation with three triples. The senior third baseman is batting .405 with six RBIs and has drawn a team-high nine walks.
 
Pacing the Bobcats with eight RBIs each are Will Hollis, Ryan Newman, Skyler Valentine and Williams. Valentine has hit a team leading two home runs as well.
 
After his strong performance at the plate this past weekend in Minute Maid Park for the 19 Annual Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic, Dalton Shuffield raised his batting average to .294.
 
Felipe Rodriguez ranks second in the nation with five sacrifice bunts.
 
Herrmann is slated to make his second midweek start of the season. In his first appearance of the year, the junior right-hander struck out two in four innings while allowing a run on five hits.
 
Kyle Bradford, Brent Hebert and Brandon Lewis have all made a team leading five appearances on the mound. Bradford sports a 1.50 ERA with three strikeouts and has thrown in both of Texas State's shutouts this year. Hebert comes in with a 1-1 record, one save, a 2.57 ERA and five strikeouts in seven frames. Lewis has also thrown seven innings and leads the team with two saves while sporting a 5.14 ERA.
 
Scouting UTSA
Four players are hitting over .300 led by Bryan Sturges at .378 behind five doubles. Dylan Rock comes in batting .366 with a team-high 15 hits and is second with 10 runs driven in. Jonathan Tapia and Nick Thornquist are hitting .361 and .310, respectively. The duo, along with Ryan Stacy, have hit a home run this season.
 
Joshua Lamb has a team best 11 RBIs and Griffin Parker has plated 10. Bryan Arias, a two-time Preseason All-American selection, has hit five doubles and is a perfect 4-for-4 stealing bases.
 
On the rubber, Cameron Carver will be making his first start of the season. He has thrown 5.0 innings with a team best two saves while striking out four.
 
Hunter Mason has appeared in a team-high six games on the mound that includes one start. He is 1-0 with a 3.18 ERA and 13 strikeouts in 11.1 innings.
 
Scouting Incarnate Word
Entering Wednesday, six players are batting over .300 led by Taylor Smith's .400 average. He also has a team-high 16 hits, four doubles, two home runs and 13 strikeouts. The freshman catcher is second on the team with 11 RBIs.
 
Antonio Valdez is hitting .378 and has scored a team best 13 times. Justin Thompson enters having driven in a team leading 14 runs and is batting .364. Other hitting over .300 are Ryan Flores (.326), Ryan Gonzalez (.320) and Sean Arnold (.324).
 
Michael McElmeel has made a seven appearances on the mound this season, the most by a Cardinal pitcher. He has given up one run that was unearned in 5.0 innings and has struck out five. Cody Allen sports a 1.29 ERA in 7.0 innings and six strikeouts spanning six games.
 
The lone save this season has been earned by Bernie Martinez. He is 3-0 with a 1.86 ERA in 19.1 innings and has struck out 14.
 
All-Time Series
Texas State leads the all-time series over UTSA 57-36. Last season saw the Roadrunners win two of the three meetings. The only win for the Bobcats was a 5-2 contest at home on Mar. 13. When playing UTSA on the road, TXST is 26-17 all-time with the last victory coming on May 2, 2017 by the score of 11-8.
 
Against Incarnate Word, Texas State is 24-9 all-time. The Bobcats have won seven straight in the series including a 6-5 walk-off victory last season at Bobcat Ballpark. You have to go back to Feb. 8, 2000 to the last time the Cardinals defeated TXST by an 8-1 score. The Bobcats are 19-7 all-time when playing UIW at home.
 
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