Texas State saw a 10-run lead nearly erased Friday night against Louisiana.
But the Bobcats escaped M.L. “Tigue” Moore Field at Russo Park in Lafayette, La. with a 13-9 win over the Ragin’ Cajuns.
Texas State (29-13, 13-6 Sun Belt) put up the first run of the game in the second inning. Sophomore shortstop Dalton Shuffield drew a walk and then moved to third on a failed pickoff. Redshirt senior center fielder Skyler Valentine ripped an RBI double into the left-center gap to give the Bobcats a 1-0 advantage.
The Bobcats exploded for nine runs in the fifth inning. The big frame began with a leadoff double from senior third baseman Jaylen Hubbard. Junior second baseman Jaxon Williams followed with a walk. Junior center fielder Will Hollis scored Hubbard with an RBI double.
Texas State loaded the bases and received another RBI when Shuffield hit a single through the left side. Valentine drew an RBI walk to push the Bobcat advantage to 4-0.
Senior first baseman Ryan Newman hit a two-run RBI, senior catcher Felipe Rodriguez hit a 3-run home run and an RBI single from Hollis gave Texas State a 10-0 lead.
Louisiana (20-25, 8-11) responded with three runs in the bottom of the fifth. The Ragin’ Cajuns used an RBI single from sophomore third baseman O’Neal Lochridge and an RBI double from junior center fielder Brennan Breaux to cut the deficit to 10-3.
The Ragin’ Cajuns got to within 10-9 with two runs in the sixth and four runs in the seventh.
But Texas State put the game away with three runs in the ninth. A throwing error and a two-run double by Hollis secured the 13-9 victory.
Senior pitcher Kyle Bradford earned the win in relief. He threw 1.2 innings and recorded a strikeout, while allowing two unearned runs. Junior pitcher Zachary Leigh secured a team-high third save of the season, where he tossed 2.2 scoreless innings and tallied three strikeouts.
Junior pitcher Brandon Young took the loss for Louisiana after giving up five runs on six hits in 4.1 innings.
Hollis and Hubbard amassed three hits and two doubles each to lead Texas State. Hollis brought home four runs.
The three-game series between Texas State and Louisiana continued on Saturday. The game ended after press time.
