Texas State drops series against South Alabama

In a pivotal Sunday afternoon showdown, Texas State fell to the South Alabama Jaguars in a 7-0 loss for the Bobcats.

As the Sun Belt Conference becomes a more rigorous road, head coach Ricci Woodard knows the team must switch up their plan of attack following Texas State’s second straight series loss.

'Games aren't going to get any easier,' Woodard said. 'We must do some things differently. We have to make some adjustments. We can't come out and get beaten in every area of the game and think we're going to win.'

South Alabama nabbed the early lead in the first following both a single and a Bobcats error as a sacrifice fly allowed the runner to score to give the Jaguars a 1-0 lead.

Texas State tried to respond in their first at-bat but were set down 1-2-3.

Following a scoreless second inning by both team, the third inning saw pitcher Jessica Mullins relieve starting pitcher Tori McCann, who finished the game throwing two innings and allowing just two hits, zero earned runs, and one walk.

'[McCann getting subbed] was the plan all along,' Woodard said. 'She was only going to go through the lineup one time, so it just went one batter earlier.'

Despite the Jaguars getting on base following a Texas State error, Mullins sat down the next three batters in order to maintain the one run deficit.

Despite second baseman Katarina Zarate drawing a walk and stealing a base, the Bobcats were unable to bring the freshman home as the score remained at 1-0.

Two fielding errors by Texas State soon had South Alabama in prime scoring position with runners on the corners and only one out.

A single up middle scored one run for the Jaguars as they extended the lead at 2-0.

Despite South Alabama having runners on first and second, Mullins struck out the next two batters to keep the game at a two-run deficit.

Facing two outs in the bottom of the fourth inning, third baseman Sara Vanderford battled it out with the pitcher in a 12 pitch at-bat to force a crucial walk.

Outfielder Anna Jones then hit a two out single to put runners on first and second.

But a strikeout ended the inning as the Bobcats were once again denied a run.

The fifth inning saw South Alabama draw two consecutive bunts followed by a double steal to give the Jaguars runners on second and third with no outs.

A RBI single towards right field scored one run for South Alabama and put runners once again at second third with no outs to extend the lead at 3-0.

Another fielding error by the Bobcats allowed two runs to come across as the Jaguars extended the lead to 5-0.

South Alabama tacked on another run with a fielder’s choice before Texas State ended the inning on a groundout as the Jaguars took a commanding 6-0 lead.

South Alabama tacked on another run in the seventh inning and kept Texas State off the scoreboard to seal an important 7-0 series win.

The Bobcats were haunted by six errors in the game allowing three unearned runs to come across.

On the offensive side, the Bobcats were plagued by a tough day at the plate as Texas State could only muster two hits and struck out seven times.

Though Woodard praised Vanderford’s performance, the rest of the Bobcats are needing to step up.

'Sara [Vanderford's] always going to compete,' Woodard said. “She's always going to give us a chance any time she's in the box. But we have to have some other people that are going to compete the same way.'

Texas State is back at home Wednesday night for a mid-week showdown against the Baylor Bears.

First pitch is at 6 p.m.