By Tyler Mayforth
Daily Record Sports
Austin —
Texas State head coach Ty Harrington didn’t have a starting pitcher for the Bobcats’ mid-week clash with Texas until an hour and a half before first pitch.
After a brief conversation with sophomore transfer Carson Smith, Harrington knew who’d get the ball against the third-ranked Longhorns.
“The kid wanted the moment,” Harrington said. “He got into it and pitched like he wanted to be in there.”
Seven innings later, Harrington was convinced of two more truths — Smith will be Texas State’s final weekend starter and his team still needs to figure out how to win in the eighth and ninth innings.
The Bobcats were three outs away, but a step short of knocking off Texas. Texas State couldn’t turn a double play quick enough in the bottom of the eighth and the Longhorns took advantage soon after, scoring two runs to take the lead and eventually the game, 4-3.
“We didn’t execute pitches in the eighth and that was probably the difference in the game,” Harrington said. “We had a chance to turn the double play and it was a little more slow developing than what we’d like and weren’t able to get it to the first baseman in time.”
Ironically, it was the Bobcats’ pitching and defense that allowed them to hold onto their slim edge.
Texas State (5-6) took a one-run lead into the seventh, but Texas (9-3) threatened to close the gap. The Longhorns put runners on the corners with one out and Jordan Etier, a known bunter, at the plate.
Etier showed bunt and Bobcat first baseman Kyle Livingstone charged hard from his perch on the bag. Livingstone, who drove in Texas State’s first run with a single in the fourth, gathered the ball and nabbed Kevin Lusson at the plate.
“We knew they were going to play small ball and I had a really good feeling they’d safety squeeze there, so I said in my mind ‘I’m going to go get this,’” Livingstone said. “I didn’t want them to tie the game up and he bunted it right to me, so I went on instincts and threw it home and (Bobcats freshman catcher Andrew) Stumph made a great tag and held onto the ball.”
Livingstone’s play saved a run and a possible win for the Bobcats’ sophomore pitcher.
Smith twirled a gem, tossing seven innings while limiting Texas to a single run and striking out eight. He had solid command of his mid-90s fastball and ankle-breaking change-up.
“I had to go attack their lineup like anybody else I’d face,” Smith said. “You have to respect them, but at the same time, you can’t put them above you. You have to go right at them.”
Once Harrington pulled Smith to begin the eighth, Texas State began to unravel.
Mitchell Pitts, who relieved Smith, allowed two consecutive singles to start the inning and Garrett Carruth added gasoline to the fire. Carruth didn’t control his pitches as he walked two and eventually gave up the game-winning hit to Paul Montalbano.
The loss left the Bobcats thinking what if, rather than what could have been.
“It’s good to have played them close, but it’s tough to have that empty feeling in your stomach,” Smith said. “It makes you want to beat them the next time you play them.”
Texas State gets its chance at redemption April 13 in Austin.
