CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – It was all Texas State from the outset as the Bobcats run-ruled Texas A&M-Corpus Christi by an 11-0 final after eight innings in the final game of the Kleberg Bank College Classic held at Whataburger Field.
"We need to walk out there and play well whether it's against UCF, Michigan State or Texas State," said head coach Scott Malone. "We had a few glimmers of 'hey, this looks good', but overall it was a rough weekend for us. It might be one of our worst showings in this tournament and that hurts. I want to make sure our guys have a lot of pride in this program and I know they do. I don't want this weekend to be a reflection of how this season is going to be for us."
The Bobcats (5-3) pounded out 13 hits, including a pair of home runs to hang the 11-spot on the board. Shortstop Luke Sherley led the way with a 3-for-4 game and two RBI.
The Islanders (3-4) surrendered runs in each of the opening four innings as freshman David Worrell (1-1) was tagged with the loss after going 3 1/3 innings allowing seven runs, six earned, on eight hits.
Texas State opened the game with a pair of runs in the top of the first, stringing together three consecutive singles to plate the opening run with one out. After a throwing error on a pickoff attempt moved runners to second and third, a groundout made it 2-0 in favor of the Bobcats.
In the next two innings, the Bobcats would launch a pair of home runs to extend the lead to 5-0 after three. Tanner Hill led off the second with a towering shot to left, while Ryan Newman drove a two-run shot into the Islander bullpen in the third.
The Blue and Green were not bereft of chances, placing runners in scoring position in the second, third and fourth innings. In each frame, an Islander advanced to third, but was stranded by Bobcat starter Jonathan Hennigan (1-0). Hennigan went six strong allowing just four hits while striking out nine to earn All-Tournament honors.
Texas State led 7-0 after four innings and would tack on a single run in the sixth before pushing the lead past the run-rule with a three-run eighth.
The three losses for the Islanders marks just the second time in the past nine seasons the Blue and Green left the Kleberg Bank College Classic empty handed.
ALL-TOURNAMENT RECOGNITION
Two Islanders earned All-Tournament recognition as center fielder Zack Gibson went 5-for-12 with a home run over the three games to pick up an outfield spot. Freshman Nick Anderson joined him as the All-Tournament Team's designated hitter after a 3-for-4 night against Michigan State. Anderson finished Sunday's loss with a 1-for-3 day to go 4-for-7 at the Classic.
UP NEXT
The Islanders conclude their season-opening homestand on Wednesday night with a 6:30 p.m. matchup versus Houston-Victoria. Following the midweek contest, the Islanders will hit the road for a four-game weekend series at UT Arlington.
