Texas State clinches series win over No. 11 Arizona

Texas State came away with a series win over No. 11 Arizona this weekend, taking a pair of victories on the road.

The Bobcats began the weekend suffering a 7-2 loss on Friday. The Wildcats (9-3) opened with a pair of runs in the bottom of the second and extended their lead to 7-1 in the bottom of the seventh. Senior shortstop Dalton Shuffield got a run back for the maroon and gold in the top of the eight with an RBI triple, but the visitors couldn’t generate enough offense to complete a comeback.

Senior right-handed pitcher Zeke Wood received his first loss of the season, surrendering four hits, three walks and five earned runs while striking out six in 4.0 innings of work.

Texas State bounced back the next day. Shuffield picked up another RBI in the first inning by grounding out to second base, scoring senior right fielder John Wuthrich from third base. Sophomore RHP Levi Wells shut the Wildcats out over the next five frames, fanning eight batters while giving up four hits and two walks. It allowed the Bobcats to open up a 4-0 lead over Arizona by the top of the sixth.

The hosts countered with two runs in the bottom of the seventh, but senior RHP Tristan Stivors closed out the final three innings on the mound for Texas State and kept the Wildcats off the board. The Bobcats brought in an insurance run in both the eighth and ninth innings to seal the 6-2 victory. Wells was credited with his first win of the season while Stivors earned his third save. Senior centerfielder Isaiah Ortega-Jones finished the game going 2-3 at the plate with two RBIs.

The maroon and gold went into the final game of the weekend on Sunday looking to break the tie. Sophomore RHP Tony Robie got the team off to a solid start, holding Arizona to three hits, three walks and three runs over the first five innings. Texas State exploded at the plate in the top of the fifth, bringing in five runs to take a 6-3 lead. Junior RHP Triston Dixon kept the hosts from scoring the next three innings, giving up just two hits and striking out two. The Bobcats added another insurance run in the top of the ninth and Stivors kept the Wildcats off the bases in the final frame to clinch the 7-3 victory. 

Robie moved to 2-0 on the season with the win. Senior second baseman Cameron Gibbons finished the game batting 2-4 and tied Wuthrich with a team-high two RBIs in the game. The series win was the first in program history against a ranked team on the road.

Texas State (10-2) will look to keep up its hot start as it takes on the top-ranked team in the nation in Texas (11-1) for a home-and-home series. The teams meet in San Marcos on Tuesday, facing off inside Bobcat Ballpark at 6 p.m. They’ll then play again in Austin on Wednesday with the game starting at 6:30 p.m.