SAN MARCOS, Texas – The final weekend series before Sun Belt Conference play begins sees Texas State (7-5) host North Dakota State (1-11) for three-game series this weekend at Bobcat Ballpark. Friday's contest begins at 6 p.m., followed by a 2:30 p.m. start on Saturday and the first pitch on Sunday coming at 1 p.m.
 
The entire series will be streamed on ESPN+ with Brant Freeman and Ty Harrington on the call. Fans can also tune into KTSW 89.9 FM to hear the action.
 
PROBABLE STARTING PITCHER
Friday: TXST RHP Zeke Wood (1-1, 2.63 ERA) vs. NDSU RHP Cade Feeney (0-3, 9.75 ERA)
Saturday: TXST RHP Nathan Medrano (1-1, 3.29 ERA) vs. NDSU LHP Max Loven (0-1, 8.56 ERA)
Sunday: TXST RHP Levi Wells (2-0, 0.77 ERA) vs. NDSU RHP Tristen Roehrich (0-3, 6.59 ERA)
 
ABOUT TEXAS STATE
Entering the weekend, the Bobcats have dropped three of its last four games. The lone victory being a 3-0 contest at Grand Canyon last Saturday.
 
Jose Gonzalez continues to lead TXST with a .385 batting average, 15 hits and five home runs. He shares the top mark on the team of 18 RBI and 11 runs with Daylan Pena and Cade Manning, respectively. Pena has hit four homers with a .273 batting average. Hitting three round trippers apiece has been Ryder Hernandez, Chase Mora and August Ramirez, who is the only other Bobcat hitting over .300 at .321.
 
Getting the ball on Friday for the opener will be Zeke Wood, who is coming off throwing five shutout innings against the Lopes last week. Saturday's starter will be Nathan Medrano. The right-hander earned his first victory in a Texas State uniform after tossing six scoreless innings on the road. Sunday's starter is Levi Wells, who has struck out 15 in 11.2 innings of action.
 
A team-high seven relief appearances have been made by Tony Robie (1-0, 5.87 ERA). Triston Dixon (3.86 ERA, 2 SV) has come out of the bullpen six times. Pacing all relievers with a 1.08 ERA and 13 strikeouts is Jack Stroud. Also with a sub-4.00 ERA in relief is McCray Gann (3.37) and Reece Gould (3.38).
 
ABOUT NORTH DAKOTA STATE
The Bison come in having lost eight straight games. Their lone win of the season came on Feb. 19 at Sacramento State. NDSU is scheduled to play 34 consecutive road game to begin the season before its home opener on Apr. 18 against Mayville State.
 
Terrell Huggins leads the team with a .378 average, 17 hits and six doubles. His three homers are tied for the most on the squad with Peter Brookshaw (.275, 10 RBI) and Druw Sackett (.260, 11 RBI). Scoring a team-high 11 times has been Cadyn Schwabe, and he is also batting .348 with six stolen bases.
 
On the rubber on Friday will be Cade Feeney. He is 0-3 with a 9.75 ERA and 20 strikeouts over 12.0 innings and has seen opponents hit .393 off him. Left-hander Max Loven (0-1, 8.56 ERA) gets the ball on Saturday. Sunday will see senior Tristen Roehrich make the start. The right-hander is 0-3 with a 6.59 ERA and 15 strikeouts.
 
Making four relief appearances has been Joey Danielson (0-1, 4.15 ERA), Reese Ligtenberg (3.86 ERA) and Skyler Riedinger (0-1, 5.40 ERA). Nolan Johnson has earned the lone win of the season and enters with a 3.86 ERA and struck out five over 4.2 innings spanning three games.
 
SERIES VS. BISON
Texas State is 3-0 all-time against North Dakota State. Last the teams met was Mar. 21, 1988 in San Antonio that ended 13-5. On Mar. 8, 1985, the teams played a doubleheader in San Marcos. The Bobcats won the games by scores of 12-0 and 16-13.
 
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