SAN MARCOS, Texas – Texas State (4-6) returns to compete in the Shriners Hospital for Children College Classic this weekend at Minute Maid Park, home of the Houston Astros. The Bobcats will face No. 8 Texas Tech (5-3), No. 9 TCU (6-2) and Rice (3-4) with all three games starting at 7 p.m.
 
All three games will be televised on ATT SportsNet SW and streamed on Astros.com, MLB.com and the AT&T SportsNet app and the MLB app. AT&T SportsNet SW is available in the Astros five-state viewing area. Fans are asked to check local listings for more information.
 
Bill Culhane will be on the call on KTSW 89.9 FM on Friday and through TXStateBobcats.com for both Saturday's and Sunday's games. Live stats will also be available for all three contests.
 
PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS
Fri: TXST: Zachary Leigh (0-1, 4.50 ERA) vs. TTU: Brandon Birdsell (1-0, 7.20 ERA)
Sat: TXST: Trevis Sundgren (0-1, 6.30 ERA) vs. TCU: Russell Smith (1-0, 2.16 ERA)
Sun: TXST: Zeke Wood (0-1, 5.59 ERA) vs. Rice: TBA
 
ABOUT TEXAS STATE
Coming into the weekend, Texas State split midweek games with a win over New Mexico State and falling to No. 19 Texas. It is the first time since 2017 that the Bobcats have started 4-6. That year saw them follow the start by winning 12 of their next 14 games.
 
Justin Thompson is lone TXST regular hitting above .300 with a .371 average. He also leads the team with 13 hits, 13 RBI, .421 on-base percentage and .485 slugging percentage. Will Hollis has recorded 10 hits to come in with a .285 batting average.
 
Cameron Gibbons paces the Bobcats with six runs scored and is one of three with a stolen base this season along with John Wuthrich and Hollis.
 
Leigh, Sundgren and Wood are all going to be making their third start of the season. Leigh leads the team with 12 strikeouts.

ABOUT TEXAS TECH
The Red Raiders enter on a five-game winning streak having swept a weekend series from Houston Baptist and two midweeks against Texas Southern. All five games were played in Lubbock. TTU opened the season with losses to Arkansas, Mississippi State and Ole Miss at Globe Life Field in Arlington.
 
Leading the hitters is Jace Jung with a .464 batting average, five home runs, 15 RBI, .590 OB% and 1.036 SLG%. Cal Conley has driven in 10 runs on a team-high 15 hits while Dru Bakers has scored 12 runs while batting .382.
 
Slated to start on Friday is Brandon Birdsell. The right-hander is 1-0 with a 7.20 ERA with four strikeouts in five innings. Opponents have hit .316 against him but he has yet to allow an extra-base hit.
 
ALL-TIME VS. THE RED RAIDERS
Texas Tech leads the all-time series over Texas State 7-6. The last meeting between the programs came on Apr. 18, 2011 in San Marcos with the Red Raiders winning 8-5. Prior to that contest, the Bobcats had won four in-a-row.
 
ABOUT TCU
TCU enters the weekend on a five-game winning streak. The Horn Frogs beat Stephen F. Austin 9-3 on Tuesday and swept a weekend series over Liberty over the last week. They will play Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Friday to open the tournament.
 
Phillip Sikes leads TCU with a .381 batting average, three doubles and 11 RBI. Luke Boyers paces the squad with 11 runs and hits while hitting .379. Both Connor Shepherd and Brayden Taylor are batting .350.
 
Left-hander Russell Smith is scheduled to take the mound on Saturday. The 6-foot, 9-inch hurler is 1-0 with a 2.16 ERA and 12 strikeouts over 8.1 innings while holding the opposition to a .235 average.
 
ALL-TIME VS. HORN FROGS
TCU leads the all-time series with Texas State 24-13. The Bobcats have won the last two matchups with both coming in 2012. They won 8-4 in San Marcos and 1-0 in Fort Worth. When facing the Horn Frogs at a neutral site, TXST is 2-3 with all the games coming at Dell Diamond in Round Rock, Texas.
 
ABOUT RICE
Rice is coming off a 10-0 win on Wednesday at home over Prairie View A&M. The previous weekend saw the Owls get swept on the road against Louisiana and open the season winning two of three against Houston Baptist. Rice plays Sam Houston State (Friday) and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (Saturday) before closing with Texas State.
 
Braden Comeaux is hitting .346 to lead Rice. He has driven in three runs and scored thrice. Bradley Gneiting comes in with a .320 batting average with two doubles, one home run and a team-high seven RBI.
 
It is still to be determined who will start on the mound for the Owls on Sunday.
 
ALL-TIME VS. THE OWLS
Rice holds a 61-19 advantage in the all-time series with Texas State. However, the Bobcats have won the last five meetings including a season sweep in 2019. Last year saw TXST claim a 9-2 victory in San Marcos.
 
The teams have met twice before at a neutral site. The first came in the NCAA Tournament in the Lubbock Region on May 24, 1997 with the Owls winning 13-9. The second contest was in 2019 at the Shriners College Classic that saw TXST win 1-0.
 
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