Rally-Cats complete another comeback win against Arkansas State

Texas State completed another comeback victory as the Bobcats knocked off Arkansas State 8-7 in extra innings.

Head Coach Steven Trout knew the game was going to be close considering how well the Red Wolves competed against the Bobcats.

“It’s always a tough game with these guys (Arkansas State),” Trout said. “You can always throw out the records because they always play us really well. … That was the key to the night was our ability to respond to the situation.”

It was a night of big comebacks for Texas State as the Bobcats came back from four different deficits throughout the game, including trailing 3-0 after two Arkansas State home runs in the first inning only to score four runs in the bottom of the first.

It is that resiliency that has been a defining characteristic for the Bobcats who have pulled off multiple comebacks during the season.

“When you put in the work and the effort, it’s really hard to give in,” Trout said. “Baseball is a crazy sport and the game is challenging mentally but when you put in the amount of work these guys put in, you are going to play to the last out because you believe in your work. They are a resilient group who believe in one another.”

After Arkansas State scored on a controversial call in the 10th inning where the base runner was originally called out at home plate but later determined safe, center fielder Ben McClain knew the team wasn’t going to be down on themselves as they headed into the dugout in the bottom of the tenth inning.

“Honestly it was nothing but confidence,” McClain said. “We are 100 percent confident in one another. There was no disbelief that we were going to lose that game.”

McClain was responsible for both the game tying run in the ninth inning and the game winning run in the tenth inning.

In the ninth, McClain saw the ball get passed the catcher and slide underneath the tag to help Texas State tie up at 6-6.

“Right before that pitch, Coach said if there is a passed ball I need you to get in there,” McClain said. “He knows that I’m a good runner and I’m aggressive so he had given me the green light. As soon as I saw it tipped off the glove, I knew I needed to get in there and slide no matter what.”

After the Bobcats tied the game up in the tenth inning on a RBI single by Kameron Weil, McClain sealed the win with a RBI single on the next at-bat with two outs.

“It was a clicker,” Mc-Clain said. “He did feed me a fastball down the middle … the biggest was to stay relaxed, have a good approach, and stay up the middle.”

Texas State returns to play today against Arkansas State in the series finale.

First pitch is at 1 p.m. at Bobcat Ballpark.

Head Coach Steven Trout captures his 100th career win as head coach. Trout is the fastest coach in Bobcat history to reach 100 wins, completing the milestone in 167 games. Daily Record photo by Gerald Castillo