TXST BASEBALL
In the preview of the future Pac-12 Conference, the Bobcats rallied behind starting pitcher Jesus Tovar in a 5-0 win over the Gonzaga Bulldogs.
With the win, Texas State takes the weekend series over their future conference members, winning two out of the three games.
“Winning on Sundays is everything,” Tovar said. “Winning in general is everything to us. So coming out to get that series victory today after not performing so well yesterday feels good.”
Texas State improves to 5-2 for the season while Gonzaga falls to 26.
The Bobcats entered Sunday coming off a 5-1 loss to the Bulldogs on Saturday as Gonzaga evened the three-game series following the Bobcats win on Friday.
With Tovar taking the start, the senior from El Paso threw eight innings, allowing just three hits, one walk, no runs and striking out six batters.
For Head Coach Steven Trout, he felt comfortable going into Sunday with his senior getting the start.
“With Jesus Tovar on the mound, we thought we had a really good chance,” Trout said. “The matchup was perfect with the wind today and the guy just filled up [the zone]. He kept them off speed and had a lot of ground balls. You saw how well we can play defense at times with [Chase] Mora, Brady [Boles] and those guys in the infield. But I thought [Tovar] was fantastic.”
The Bobcats got on the board in the third inning when freshman Jackson Cotton hit a solo home run into left field. Later in the fourth, freshman Tanner Carson connected with a two-run RBI single, extending the lead to 3-0.
“Every day they’re just continuing to grow up in front of our eyes,” Trout said. “[Jackson Cotton] has been pretty good. Kinda got off to a slow start but then he’s been one of our best hitters since he walked through the door. So those guys are going to continue to get a lot of at bats and are going to be big reasons why we win a championship this year.”
The Bobcats later added a run from a bases-loaded walk by junior outfielder Samson Pugh, then another in the bottom of the sixth to go up 5-0 over Gonzaga.
Sophomore pitcher Cade Smith closed out the ninth inning to seal the win for the Bobcats.
The showdown with Gonzaga offered a preview of what to expect from the Bobcats’ new conference in the Pac-12, which will also see Oregon State, Washington State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Dallas Baptist come the 2027 season. The Bobcats are scheduled to play Washington State this next weekend in a four-game series.
Trout praised the Gonzaga pitching staff and the program overall while being excited about the future of the Pac-12.
“Those are really good arms, I’ll tell you what,” Trout said. “They kept rolling out 94, 95, 97 [mph pitches]. I know what the record is, but we’re going to look up in April and that team’s going to be good because they can really pitch it. I think they’re pretty good on offense too. They squared up some balls today. … It was a wellcoached team, a physical team with really good arms. I’m excited for just the talent we’re going to play against.”
Game Preview
The Bobcats return home Tuesday against archrival UTSA. The Roadrunners enter the week coming off a threegame sweep of the Dallas Baptist Patriots to improve their overall record to 7-0.
UTSA is also coming off an historic season last year where the Roadrunners advanced to their first-ever Super Regional after beating Texas in the Austin Regional.
This is the 106th alltime meeting between the Bobcats and the Roadrunners with the series dating back to 1992 when both teams were members of the Southland Conference. Texas State is looking to snap a three-game losing streak to UTSA.
First pitch is set for 6 p.m. at Bobcat Ballpark.
Freshman Jackson Cotton celebrates after hitting a solo home run in the bottom of the third inning. The Bobcats are back to play Tuesday night against UTSA. Daily Record photo by Gerald Castillo
