BOONE, N.C. –
Phillip Cole blasted his second home run of the season,
Austin St. Laurent tallied a two-hit ballgame, but the App State offense was largely held in check Saturday, as Texas State was strong on the mound to take game two, 6-2.
Levi Wells was outstanding on the mound for the 20
th-ranked Bobcats, throwing a complete game, and giving up just one earned run on six hits, while striking out two.
Texas State (22-6, 7-1) grabbed the lead in the first inning when they loaded the bases and scored one run on a walk and another on a swinging bunt single, to go in front, 2-0.
App State (10-15, 3-5) got a run back in the bottom of the first inning. St. Laurent led off with a double of the wall in right field, and came into score on an
Andrew Greckel RBI single later in the inning.
Xander Hamilton exited after the first inning for the Mountaineers, forcing the bullpen to cover the final eight innings in the contest. App State pitching allowed only six hits in the ballgame, but they surrendered 10 walks and hit three batters in the contest.
Cole led off the sixth inning with a home run to left field for the Mountaineers, to make it a 4-2 ballgame. However, the Bobcats were able to add on insurance, scoring a run in each inning from the fifth through the eighth to pad their advantage.
The Mountaineers did get two men aboard in the ninth. Greckel reached on an error, and
Luke Drumheller singled to center, but pinch hitter
Dalton Williams flew out to strand the tying run in the on-deck circle.
The Mountaineers will look to salvage the finale Sunday, when they face the Bobcats at 11 a.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+. The 2022 App State Baseball season is presented by Chick-fil-A.
