SAN MARCOS, Texas – A season long eight-game homestand at Bobcat Ballpark begins for the Texas State baseball team (9-4) this weekend with a three-game series against Bethune-Cookman (5-8). Friday's first pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. with a 2 p.m. start on Saturday. The finale on Sunday is slated to begin at 12 p.m.
 
The games will be broadcast on KTSW 89.9 FM on Friday and Sunday while Saturday's game is an online audio stream only. Live stats will be available for all three contests.
 
PROBABLE STARTING PITCHER
FRI: TXST Sr., RHP Zachary Leigh (1-1, 2.50 ERA) vs. BCU Jr., RHP Nick Rogers (0-2, 1.15 ERA)
SAT: TXST Jr., RHP Trevis Sundgren (1-1, 3.06 ERA) vs. BCU So., LHP Alec Mendez (2-0, 0.45 ERA)
SUN: TXST Fr., RHP Reece Gould (1-0, 1.80 ERA) vs. BCU Fr., RHP Alejandro Valiente (2-1, 2.20 ERA)
 
SERIES VS. WILDCATS
This weekend will be the first-ever meeting between the Bobcats and Wildcats. It will also be the first time that TXST has played a team from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.
 
ABOUT TEXAS STATE
Texas State is coming off a 12-2 run-rule victory in eight innings over Baylor on Tuesday. That game saw Wesley Faison hit two home runs and John Wuthrich hit one as well. It was the third largest win over the Bears and second largest when playing them in Waco.
 
Faison leads the team with a .400 batting average, five homers, 12 RBI, .800 slugging and .444 on-base percentages. Will Hollis (.315), Dalton Shuffield (.333) and John Wuthrich (.325) are all hitting over .300. Wuthrich has scored a team leading 13 runs with Hollis right behind him with 12. Also coming around to score double-digit times is Justin Thompson (10).
 
Zachary Leigh (1-1, 2.50 ERA) and Trevis Sundgren (1-1, 3.06 ERA) maintain their Friday and Saturday slots in the rotation, respectively. Reece Gould (1-0, 1.80 ERA) is scheduled to take the rubber on Sunday for his second start of the season.
 
 
ABOUT BETHUNE-COOKMAN
Bethune-Cookman began the year with a three-game sweep of Alabama A&M but are just 2-8 since then. Their most recent loss came on Wednesday to Stetson by a 5-0 score. This weekend will be the first road games of the season for the Wildcats.
 
Hitting just .197 as a team, Chase DeBonis leads BCU with a .286 average. He shares the team lead of eight RBI with Matthew Garcia, who has hit the squad's lone home run. Also hitting over the Mendoza line are Ryan Ayrey (.206), Josten Heron (.250), Shamir Morales (.219) and Garcia (.240).
 
The Wildcats will be using the same rotation for the fourth consecutive weekend with Nick Rogers (0-2, 1.15 ERA, 12 K) starting on Friday. Left-hander Alec Mendez (2-0, 0.45 ERA, 18 K) takes the rubber on Saturday and freshman right-hander Alejandro Valiente (2-1, 2.20 ERA, 16 K) gets the ball in the series finale.
 
Both Matthew Henson (0-0, 0.00 ERA, 4 G) and Carlos Lequerica (0-0, 4.50 ERA, 5 G) have recorded a save apiece. Jordan Pinto (0-0, 4.00 ERA) has made a team-high six appearance on the mound and has thrown nine innings with five strikeouts.
 
As a team, BCU sports a 2.25 ERA and have held opponents to a .191 batting average with just 14 extra-base hits. Part of that can be attributed to the Wildcats committing 28 errors (.949 fielding %) leading to 22 unearned runs.
 
YOUNGEST HEAD COACHES FACEOFF
This weekend will feature two of the 25 youngest Division I head baseball coaches. Bethune-Cookman's Jonathan Hernandez (July 18, 1985) is the 21st youngest and Texas State's Steven Trout (Oct. 4, 1984) is the 25th youngest.
 
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