Trojans Head to Texas For Series Against Bobcats

Little Rock at Texas State
Location	San Marcos, Texas
Stadium	Bobcat Park
First Pitch	Thursday, Mar. 29 - 6 p.m. Friday, Mar. 30 - 6 p.m. Saturday, Mar. 31 - 1 p.m.
Records	Little Rock (14-10, 4-2 SBC) Texas State (14-9-1, 3-3 SBC)
Watch	Texas State All-Access
Stats	TrojanStats.com
Bobcat Preview	TXStateBobcats.com

LITTLE ROCK - Little Rock closes out its March with a three-game Sun Belt Conference series in San Marcos, Texas, facing Texas State at Bobcat Ballpark. The series begins on Thursday at 6 p.m., followed by game two Friday at 6 p.m. before wrapping up Saturday at 1 p.m.
 
The Trojans enter the weekend as one of the hottest teams in the Sun Belt, having won eight of their last 10 games and are 14-10 on the year while leading the Sun Belt West division at 4-2. Texas State is 14-9-1 on the year and 3-3 in conference play.
 
Trojans to Watch For:
Chase Coker has dominated at the place in the last week, hitting 10-for-18 in the past four games while knocking in five runs in that span. He currently sits fourth in the Sun Belt in hitting with a .373 average
 
Troy Alexander is in the top three of the conference statistical leaders in batting average, slugging percentage, RBIs, hits and doubles, leading the league in total bases. He is a menace to try and get out as he has recorded a hit in all but three games this season. His overall average on the year sits at .385 coming around to the halfway point of the season.
 
Expect to see Justin Garcia over the weekend as he has seen 16 appearances for the Trojans this year. He recorded his fifth save of the season Tuesday against Oral Roberts, which has him tied for 29th in the nation. He continues to lead the Sun Belt in strikeouts with 47 and is seventh in the nation in strikeouts per nine innings with a 14.76 ration in just 28.2 innings thrown.
 
James Gann is currently on a four game hit streak while getting seven of his eight season RBIs in that span.
 
Chandler Fidel, Pablo Ortiz, and Ethan Daily are expected to get the starts for the Trojans this weekend.
 
In Fidel's last outing, he nearly had double digit strikeouts, finishing with nine and tallying his third win on the year. He threw 7.0 innings for the Trojans, holding UT Arlington to only one run and six hits.
 
Ortiz will see his first start as a Trojan, pitching 8.0 innings total on the year. In the short amount of innings, he has five strikeouts and only two walks while giving up only three runs.
 
Daily has earned his way as a consistent starter for the Trojans as he will get his fifth start on the year. He still has yet to have a decision in any of his starts but holds a 2.84 ERA while getting 14 strikeouts in the 44 batters he has faced.
 
Scouting Texas State:
The Bobcats are at an overall record of 14-9-1 heading in to the series while being at an even 3-3 in conference. They have faced each side of the pendulum in conference first going up against last-placed Appalachian State and getting the sweep. They then went on to get swept by top-seeded and nationally ranked Coastal Carolina last weekend.
 
While the day three starter is undecided for the Bobcats, the Trojans are expected to face right-hander Connor Reich on Thursday and right-hander Zachary Leigh on Friday.
 
Reich has seen six starts this year for Texas State going 3-1 in those starts and holding an ERA of 2.70. He has wins over Oklahoma State, Stephan F. Austin and UC Santa Barbara while his only loss came to Coastal Carolina. He has 30 strikeouts total while walking 12.
 
Leigh has had four starts in his six appearances this season while going 1-1 with a 4.68 ERA.
 
Series Against Texas State:
Little Rock has never lost a series to Texas State and has the edge 9-4 in the overall matchups between the two. Last season, the Trojans had won the series in the regular season 2-1, but the Bobcats got their revenge in the conference tournament, eliminating Little Rock with a 3-2 first round victory.
 
Last Time Out:
Little Rock faced off against Oral Roberts in a midweek game on Tuesday winning 5-2 at Gary Hogan Field to close out a four-game home stand. Trailing 2-0 in the fourth, Little Rock scored five unanswered runs to race past the Golden Eagles, giving the Trojans their first victory over ORU in Little Rock since 1996 when Gary Hogan was the Trojan head coach.
 
On Deck:
The Trojans will return home from Texas to continue the Rock 'n' Roar Rivalry series with game two at Gary Hogan Field on Tuesday, April 3 at 6. p.m. The first 150 people to attend the game will receive vouchers for Chick-fil-A and Moe's.
 
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