April 20th, 2008
Bats bring Bobcats baseball streak to five

STAFF REPORT

Texas State scored 40 runs in three games this weekend at Bobcat Field against Central Arkansas, keeping itself in the thick of the Southland Conference’s West Division race with a three-game sweep.

The Bobcats closed out the series with an 11-5 crushing of Central Arkansas Sunday afternoon as Lance Loftin drove in three runs while Thomas Field and Paul Goldschmidt each notched two hits.

Sunday’s victory capped off a huge week of offense for the Bobcats, who chalked up wins of 13-7 against Central Arkansas on Friday and 16-6 against that same opponent on Saturday. Texas State has scored 68 runs in its last seven games, winning six of them. In none of those games did the Bobcats score fewer than eight runs.

Field led off the bottom of the first inning Sunday with a home run for the Bobcats, who scored three runs in that inning and never trailed. Loftin’s two-run homer keyed a four-run second inning as the Bobcats took a 7-0 lead.
 
Central Arkansas slammed Bobcats starter Zack Tritz for four runs on five hits in the third inning. Central Arkansas even brought the tying run to the plate with runners at first and third with two out, but shortstop Graham Martin flied out to end the threat.

Texas State earned a three spot in the fourth inning for a 10-4 lead. Bobcat relievers Aaron Taylor and Josh Walter delivered a combined 3 2/3 innings of shutout relief, enabling the home team to cruise in with an easy victory before 477 fans in attendance.

The Bobcats (13-5 Southland, 23-14 overall), winners of five straight, remained in second place in the Southland West, one game behind Texas-San Antonio (14-4, 28-12) and a game ahead of Sam Houston (12-6, 25-14). UTSA swept Stephen F. Austin over the weekend, while Sam Houston swept McNeese State.

All three West Division contenders will be tested next weekend. UTSA and Sam Houston will meet for three games in San Antonio, while Texas State plays Lamar in San Marcos. Lamar (12-6, 23-16) is in a rather thick division race of its own, trailing Northwestern State (12-5, 21-17) by one-half game in the Southland East.

The Bobcats won’t suffer a lack of competition this week, either. After they travel to Texas A&M Tuesday (6:30 p.m.), they will return home to play Baylor Wednesday (6 p.m).