App State baseball kicked off conference play by scoring 33 runs in a series sweep of Texas State which saw plenty of offense accompanied by excellent pitching in key moments.
The Mountaineers started their Sun Belt Conference slate in Boone for the first time since 2022. App State began the weekend with a bludgeoning of the Bobcats Friday, 15-4.
The Mountaineers put a 5-spot on the board in the second inning to get the scoring started. Redshirt sophomore infielder Jonathan Xuereb ripped a 2-RBI to right center field to bring home redshirt junior outfielder John Kramer and sophomore first baseman Kameron Miller. Freshman infielder Tyler Lichtenberger kept the runs coming in, hitting a sacrifice fly that scored sophomore infielder Tyler Figueroa. Senior infielder Joseph Zamora followed that up with an RBI single and Miller drew a bases-loaded walk to finish the scoring.
Texas State got one back in the third on a bases-loaded walk of their own but gave up two to the Mountaineers on crucial mistakes. Figueroa scored on an error by the Bobcats’ first baseman, and Xuereb ran home on a passed ball to extend the lead.
Following a Bobcats home run in the top of the fourth, App State’s offense erupted again, plating 7 in the home half of the inning. Xuereb lined a 3-run double to left field, setting a career-high for RBIs in a game with 5. Lichtenberger and senior catcher Braxton Church smashed back-to-back triples to add 2 more to the tally. Redshirt freshman outfielder Dillon Moquin hit a sacrifice fly, and senior first baseman Juan Correa capped the offensive outburst with his team-leading ninth home run, a solo shot to right field.
The Mountaineers added one more in the fifth for good measure on a Church single to put App State ahead by a baker’s dozen. Texas State scored twice in the sixth inning but no more, and the game ended in seven innings via the run rule.
Game two of the series Saturday was an extra-inning barnburner. App State prevailed over the Bobcats, 8-7, in an 11-inning contest that lasted over four hours.
Kramer got plunked by a pitch with the bases loaded in the first to provide the Mountaineers an early lead.
Things settled down as the pitchers dialed in. App State’s starter, senior right-hander Caleb Marks, allowed just 1 hit through the first 3 innings.
Marks’ shutdown start unraveled during the fourth and fifth as the Bobcats strung hits together, pushing across 4 runs over the course of the 2 frames. The Mountaineers got 1 back in the bottom of the fifth on an RBI double by Miller.
App State roared back to reclaim the lead with 5 runs in the sixth. Sophomore infielder Tanner McCammon hit an RBI single into right field, Church drove in Moquin on a fielder’s choice and Kramer bounced one off the left field wall for a bases-clearing 3-run triple, sending the Mountaineers faithful into a frenzy.
Texas State answered in the eighth with 3 runs to even the game at 7. The Mountaineers had a chance to win it in the ninth, but Figueroa was thrown out at home trying to score on a Lichtenberger single, and the game went to extra innings.
After a scoreless tenth inning, the Bobcats had the Mountaineers on the ropes in the top of the 11th, getting back-to-back hits to put two runners on. Redshirt junior relief pitcher Jordan Fisher was called on to stop the Bobcats from scoring. After intentionally walking a batter to load the bases with nobody out, Fisher did his best Houdini impersonation, striking out 3 straight Bobcats to escape the jam with no runs allowed.
Xuereb started the home half of the 11th with a base hit and was pinch-run for by junior outfielder Charlie Evans. Evans promptly stole second, advancing to third on a groundout by Church. After Moquin was intentionally walked, Zamora stepped in and smacked the first pitch he saw to left field, scoring Evans and securing the series win in walk-off fashion.
App State completed the sweep Sunday in another high-scoring affair, 10-8.
The Black and Gold wasted no time building a big lead, putting up 6 runs in their first trip to the plate. Church ripped a 2-run double to right field, Figueroa hit a sacrifice fly, McCammon drove in another run on an RBI groundout, and the scoring concluded with Lichtenberger and Moquin both collecting RBIs on 2-out base hits.
The Mountaineers tacked on another run in the third on a sacrifice fly from McCammon to extend their advantage to 7-0.
Texas State rallied back in the fifth and sixth innings, tying the game at 7-7 and forcing App State to use four pitchers in the sixth. The Mountaineers responded immediately with 3 in the bottom of the frame, as Zamora hit a 2-run single and Figueroa drew a bases-loaded walk.
The Bobcats scored once more in the eighth, but Fisher again came to the rescue in the ninth; despite allowing a double and hitting 2 batters to load the bases, Fisher settled down and got a big strikeout to seal the series sweep.
App State will look to extend their win streak to 5 Tuesday at Charlotte after beating the 49ers 5-4 last Tuesday in Boone. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m., and the game will stream live on ESPN+.
