Bobcats sweep Penguins in series opener

Texas State kicked off the 2024 season with a series sweep over the Youngstown State Penguins winning the third and final game of the series 11-1.

The Bobcats and Head Coach Steven Trout completed the sweep after beating the Penguins 20-2 in the season opener on Friday and 6-1 on Saturday.

“Anytime you sweep somebody, it’s hard to do,” Trout said. “We talk about it all the time that winning a series is key but going for the sweep allows you to head up throughout the season. It was a good job just finishing with the 11 a.m. start, especially when we have five of these games this year. … Always room for improvement but pretty happy with the win.”

It was not the best of starts for the Bobcats and starting pitcher Peyton Zabel in the top of the first inning when Penguins got a lead-off double and three walks, one leading to the Penguins lone score of the game.

Despite being in a bases loaded situation, Zabel got the final out on a strikeout to keep the damage at a minimum.

“I felt fine,” Zabel said. “I just have to execute at a much higher level, and we know that. So we are going to go back to work this week and really dial in what I was struggling with. I thought the offense picked me up really well, and we played good defense. You have to find ways to win even if you don’t have your best stuff. No excuses, just have to get better.”

Despite Zabel’s rough first inning, Trout knew the senior just needed a reset.

“He’s an older guy who has been through the battles,” Trout said. “He came out and was off line for a little bit. For him, he has to remember to attack. Sometimes when he gets behind he starts feeling for his pitches. When he rares back, starts delivering on his pitches and gets after it, he is at his best. He just needed to reset himself.”

The Bobcats offense picked up Zabel in the bottom of the first by drawing two walks and hit by pitch to load the bases with no out.

Sophomore second baseman Chase Mora scored the Bobcats first run of the game by forcing a walk to allow the base runner from third to score, tying the game at 1-1.

August Ramirez scored another run for Texas State in the next at-bat after being hit by the pitch to put the Bobcats up 2-1. Following a strikeout and a fly out into right field, catcher Aaron Lugo broke the game open with a single into right field to score two more runs as Texas State led 4-1.

“It’s a momentum game,” Trout said. “You are always trying to keep momentum in our dugout. We tell them that anytime they score, we score. Even if they put up five runs and you only score one, they realize they don’t have all the momentum. Just keep fighting to win pitches and innings.”

Zabel rebounded from a rough first inning and threw three scoreless innings allowing just two hits, one run and throwing six strikeouts.

“It’s about the next pitch,” Zabel said. “Regardless of the outcome of the next pitch whether it is a ball or a strike, just focus on the next pitch and how to make this pitch the best pitch of the day.”

After Texas State tacked on another run in the second inning with a Alec Patino sacrifice fly into right field, the Bobcats broke the game open in the bottom of the fourth when Ramirez hammered a two-run RBI double into center field to extend the lead 7-1.

The Bobcats added two more runs before in the bottom of the seventh as Cameron Thompson smashed a solo home run into left field, and Texas State scored on a balk.

The seventh inning saw the Bobcats push their lead out to 10-1 when freshman center fielder Ryne Farber hit a RBI double into right center to score another run with runners on second and first.

Shortstop Davis Powell closed out the game with a fielder’s choice allowing the runner from third to score as the Bobcats defeated Youngstown State via the mercy rule 11-1.

After a slow offensive performance against the Penguins on Saturday, switching up the plan of attack on offense was the key in the Bobcats putting up 11 runs.

“The weather wasn’t in our favor, so we had to change up the game plan,” Ramirez said. “We came into today, and I thought we hit the ball real well and our approach was better. … Knowing we had the guys behind us whoever was coming in were going to smack the ball [helped].

The Bobcats non-conference schedule will not get an easier for Texas State as the ‘Cats go on the road for the first time this season against the No.5 ranked TCU Horned Frogs who are coming off a College World Series appearance last season.

Texas State split last season’s match up with TCU as the Bobcats won the first game 8-4 and the Horned Frogs won the second game 8-2.

First pitch is scheduled at 7 p.m. Tuesday night at Lupton Stadium in Fort Worth.

cmcwilliams@sanmarcosrecord.com Twitter: @ColtonBMc